IN THE COUNTRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13390, 19 January 1907, Page 6

IN THE COUNTRY.

[tr.O'.l ore. OWN I OKI'. I -O'OMH.N IS ]

BOMBAY

The heavy rain we had from Sunday to Tuesday caused an immense amount of damage in the district to crops, fences, roads and bridges, and there have been innumerable landslips in this and Paparata district. In some instance..; stork has suffered. The hay crops that had not been stacked but were- in cock look like so manyheaps of rubbish, and the grain that was not cut was down as Hat as it a. toller had been put over it. but is now rising l again. Some of the fields sown in turnips have suffered very much, tons ol soil being washed away. In riding round lire districts one sees landslips in every direction, and cm tiio low-lying land sheaves of oats can be seen clinging to the top wire of the fences, and along the banks of the. creeks they ale to be seen in the tops of willow trees.

j VVAM'L'. j The weather during the last (wo weeks | has; been very stormy and wet, and the j floods have been more destructive than lor j a number 01 years. The .veather has I greatly interfered with those whose crops j are leady for harvesting, and in several j instances crops were tarried away by the j flood after being stnoked. The Hoods j have, nevertheless, been a great boon to I thot-a: who have bed kauri timber in t.h" j creeks, a great number of logs having | been brought down to the several booms I in the distri't during the [;<-• few da vs. I ' ' I

MAI Kl' 'lii.' timxN have caused great ruction ail over tin- Miiukudistrict. Thegrain crop, a go.-d deal (if which was i.'i stook or partially stacked when tin 1 ruin began, has ih-, -tj almost destroyed. Oats and wheat that had not l>< en nil i.- knocked about, rind almost thrashed. ami turned l»l n k. Potatoes haw rapidly developed the blight, and are laying in the wet rotting, ami it will In- difficult to save any of them. 'I he Mauku (.'reek ruse higher 'and there »va» moro water about ih-.li the oldest ie.-i dent ill the district had ever Men. Three bridges on the main load wore washed out, and (here i- hardly ,1. lailn that lias not suffered the io c > ui bridge or enlveit, thus making it dirli'-ult to reach the creamery. The cream waggons I'ruin Waiuku to l'ukekolie have great difficulty in geiticr through. On one farm there ivas a paddock of wheat on the low ground, and next to it, on the higher hind above, a paddock of potatoes, looking splendid. When the ram started potatoes and soil were swept away and all deposited on tile paddock of wheat. OMAHA. On Sal.inii iy night it eoiuineiued to lain heavily, ami' the downfall . oiuinm-d up to the lime of writing i.Monday) doing eonsiderabh- damage in different parts of (ho district. Sunn" veiy large, landslips h.ive occurred, both on private proper! v and on the mack. A good deal of giass seed is cut, and, being.still out, will be a -real

loss to the owners. Orchards have suffer- j ed considerably, a great deal of fruit having fallen off. One orchardist alone estimates that he has 100 cases of plums on the ground. The creeks ace running higher than for many years. There is no sigh of a change in the weather, and the thick mist envelopes everything. WAIPIPI. Rain has been fallng heavily since Simda v, and the floods have caused great damage. By eight o'clock on Tuesday morning all the creeks were like vast lakes, some of them six chains wide,, the result being almost total destruction of all tinbridges from Kohekohc to Waiuku on the main road, and also those on the by-roods. The oldest settlers cannot recall such a destructive flood. There has been veryheavy damage to the oat. potato, and turnip crops. ONEWHERO. Heavy continuous rain has been falling since Sunday morning last, and this (Tuesday) morning from half-past five to halt-past nine it simply poured down. All agree that they had never seen such heavy rain for so long a time, and in consequence an enormous amount of damage has been done. The load above the creamery (which stands on high ground) was covered with a roaring torrent of water, ditches and culverts being unable to carry lie- flood water awav fast i nougli. Landslips have occurred in all directions, some oi them being verv extensive. There is hardly a farm in the district i.hat is not damaged more or less. some by slips and the low-lying ones b\Hood water. The roads arc in a terrible state and it will take hundreds of pounds to repair them. There are some extensive slips between here and Tuakatt. which will take some days to remove and in the meantime we are isolated, traffic being completely blocked. There is not a bridge left this side of the Waikato. The Opuatia bridge his been washed down the stream some miles. The loss of this bridge cuts the Wairamarama people off as far as this road is concerned. A great deal of damage has been done to the crops. The oat crops were ripe and are now flattened and destrayed. The early potatoes also have suffered, some of them being washed out of the ground.

! TUAKAC. j We had on Tuesday morning, the 15th I I his* . the in.est destructive ami highest j j Hoods ever known here. The rain, which I ; had been falling continuously since about) : ton a.m. on Sunday, was much heavier on i Monday nkdif and Tuesdav morning, with ( i Cue result thai the creeks broke their banks I • and overflowed, with disastrous results, ! i The creek at the railway station rose to ; such a, height that the station van! was ! i flooded level with the top of the'platform, ! j and the water- rushed down the cutting at j i the 35-mi'e post to a depth of 3ft, tearing ' j tip the line and doing much damage. Roth ' I bridges ear the station were carried awav, j j also on the bridge on the road to the river ! j and the one 011 the mad to Pukekohe at ! j Mr. Black's mill. Resides the entire stop- ! page of traffic, it wi'l take at least, £200 j 1 to replace the bridges and approaches. ■ Some of our ilaxmillers will lose lieavilv, I I as th" flood swept over the spreading j I grounds, which were full. There is also I ; great damage to the crops, which are nearly 1 i all in stook and it is feared the potatoes ! will suffer.

MATAMATA. The live days' heavy downpour of rain all over this locality has now (Tuesday), tor tic first time since Thursday evening, fairly well subsided, a. heavy thunderstorm which has this morning passed over the district seeming to partially clear the atmosphere. All over this part of the country the highest and most extensive floods prevail that have !..-en known during in-,' la'-t 20 years. Large tracts of the Gordon Settlement, Mariawaru. Wardville, \\ a.haroa, and Walton are quite submerged, whilst manv bridges in Gordon, Peria, and Uaitoa are washed completely away. Roads all over this locality have in various places been .swept int.. the creeks a.nd rivers. At Walton and Kiwilahi extensive sections of the railway line have been removed by the flood. fit the Waharoa native .settlement many of the wharves and buildings are entirely surrounded with water, and are in danger of being carried away, consequently the Maoris have had 10 remove to either settlements. Right throughout the entire part- of this locality oats, wheat, and barley that have been cut. and that are at present 111 stook, will be very badly damaged, if not completely destroyed, and the standing oats have nearly all fallen to the ground.' with little hope of their again rising, especially as it is now beginning to blow lather hard. In many places all round these districts the potatoes' are submerged or washed out. while those on the heights are getting the blight very badly oil account of the ill. ess, heavy rain. Turnips 1 hat have been -own 111 this vicinity are nearly all submerged or washed away, and as many settlers had their turnip manure already on the ground, it is now totally ruined. .Most. ~t' the ;..,--iI roads are at present like rivers, and in maiiv places the water is so deep as to render them unsafe for traffic of any kind. Less of stock is reported from several of the outlying districts, but -so tar the exact extent of the genera! damage all round this locality is not known. It is. however, believed to be wry considerable. In'and around Minamata the various effects of this great (local Mil' have more ruinous results than anythiim that ha- happened the new settlers in this part of the country. Every hour fresh reports of damage and ruination in regard to stock, (reps," roads, bridges, and general property, are coining to hand.

I PAEROA. j [bv T! l.tollAl'll.— own CORRKspONUKS I'. I i P.ufKcn, Friday. 1 Although the Hood waters have left most \ of '-he land round alsjul hue. matters at i Nethcrtou are as bad as ever. Ihe water j iiom the Piako Swamp behind is- finding ;;. way across, and many .ii Ihe farms at Xetlieiton are -til! under three or four feet of water. The stock is suffering severely, and practically all the crops hive been ruined. The river has fallen considerably. and the water from Nclherton is pouring lover the bank into the river like a. water--1 fall.

1 The Railway Derailment managed to -,-t j i a train through to Karangahake to-chv. I I and two trips were run between the j ! Thames and [\arau»aliake. Th*» line to > i ')> Aioha is still very bad. and Mr. Eager, ' i the railway inspector, hud considerable ditii- i ' cully ill getting lioin l'ai ina 1" Te Aroha i ! his! night "ii a jigger. ■ ! \ Tie- total damage !.. ii- canny roads ! I eannot In- taiued ye; . but the' nullity i engine* r. Mr, I'ray, estimates the damage i to he as billow's:- Main l'aeroa-YVaihi ] i Road, shout £260. slip £60; Kaian-a- | j hake Hill Road, clips £75: Rotokohu I , [load. £5o: (io'.den Cross and Alpha Road. I .-lips £130; Konrala Creek Road, slips I I £160: Thames Road, hndsre and slip-' I £65; Xetherton roads, two bridges £55. j ; bridge over the Ohin<-niuri River, near ! I Wnil'ii. £150, foothriduo at Mackavtuwn j £90. footbridge at Waikiim £20: I'aeroa- j ! 'IV Aloha Road, two bridges, washouts, and i i slips £150; I'aeroa Water Supply, wa:>h- '■ "ill £35: footbridge at Tarariki Creek. I £-10: Jubilee to Horn Level R,,id. £70: ! ' Maroloto Road, slips £55; m'nioi damages. i ! £130. j | WHAXOARE!. I ;HV IKI.I l.ltAl'H. — OWN' «'OKR'-:.SI't)NPK.\T.] J I WitA.voAHi.r, Friday. J

Latest reports from Muiigaknhia stale i thai tiie Hoods have he, the highest on ! record. Hundreds of acres wort" submerged, .aid mi Wednesday nothing omkl he .-ten of the willow trees that line the river banks. Several stays .supporting the bridge ivere curried out of [dare, and it is feared that the structure itself has l>een strained, Tin- Maoris' crops in the vicinity were all washed away, and many natives were driven from their homes by the flood waters, which, however, ate now subsiding. The oat crops in the Maunii district we're damaged, and in manv instances rendered quite useless fur feeding purposes. The district- was practically tree, from potato blight before the rains he! in, but the dreaded scourge has now made its appear aftcf everywhere. The M iiinu Road, which is the only outlet, to several important di.stri<r» to the westward, siilt'ered by the bad weather, the metal having given way in many places, ant? a number of dangerous holes developed.

It: AROHA. [BY TKLKUBAPH. — OWN CORBKSPOSUKXT.] Tk Akoha, Friday. The lloixl remained high all yesterday. but is now going down slowly. The washouts between Te Aroha and Morrinsville ' are being repaired, and it is expected that I the railway service will be resumed to- | morrow. The water is still over the line !at Mangaiti. The extent of the damage done is not yet known. The train service to Paeroa will probably be blocked for some days, and the Northern Steamship Company is running an oil launch to Paeroa, to connect with the trains to the Thames, taking passengers and mails. News of heavy losses of crops come in from the country districts, the oats cut during Christmas being still out. Potatoes have "been ruined, and turnips will require resowing. Two young lien. Weston Hughes and D. ': Farmer." had a narrow escape from drowning at the Shaftesbury bridge, Waihou ' River, yesterday. They endeavoured to ' ride across, and'were swept off their horses. ! Cue of them effected a landing, and the 'other was rescued by someone swimming j out with a rope.

TAUPIRI. | [lIY TKI.KOUU'If.— OWN rORItKSfONOIiM.I j Tautiri. Friday. ! The water is receding, but a good deal id 1 the country here is still under water-. The 1 floods have seriously affected the dairy in- ! dustry. as settlers 'cannot get their cream [ to the factories owing to a number of I bridges being either washed away or sub- : merged. | OPOTIKI. | (liY IEX-KCR-VfH. — OWN rOKKIiSVOXUEXT.J ■I OroriKi, Friday. I Alter a. few weeks oi close and muggy ! weather. a heavy downpour of rain com- ; menced on Monday, and continued on Tues- ! day without intermission, resulting in both ! livers being in high flood. Fortunately the ! Maroweka River was in flood on Monday, : and scoured a good channel to the sea. i Consequently the rain on Tuesday did not i cause the river to lise as before, and a ; heavy liocd in the township was averted. ! No "very serious damage lias been done i beyond 'that to Tie potatoes and maize in I low-lying places. Most damage was done i in the Waiotalii Valley, through landslips. j Opotiki escaped very lightly. j — — LAKE AT ELLERSLIE. ; FIVE FRET OF WATER ON THE ROAD.

j The recent rains have been the cause of i the formation of a miniature lake at, Elleri she, of which a part of the (treat South j Road is the centre. The spot where the j water has accumulated is about a-([iiarter { of a mile from the Eilerslie railway station, file sheet of water is right across I lie | main road. On the highest side of the ; road the depth of water is about Ait, while i on trie lower side, where there is a con- ; siderable dip, the depth is from 10ft to ! 12tt. From eight o'clock on Thursday night until nine o'clock yesterday morning > the lake rose some lOin. The water now I covers a. distance of live or six chains, with the water expanding on either side. There are two or three springs in the j vicinity, horn which a considerable quantity of water has been issuing tor- several days ! past, and it is assumed that as St. John's ' Lake, which is about hali-a-inile distant.. ! is much above its normal height, the water j has forced its way out. There are a couple of houses in close proximity to the water, the residents of which will certainly not he in a. pleasant I position ■'>. the rati of rising is maintained. !As it is ai. present, Mr. Alfred White, i who occupies a house close by. is suffering ! some discomfort through having water in i his vard. The Oreat South Road at the spot where the water crosses is naturally dangerous, because of the dip on one side. 'Ibis dip is about half a chain across, and then- is .1 stone wall standing some 18iu above the road which, when things are. in their 1101mal state is. perhaps, sufficient to warn people who use the road of tie- danger of turning inside, but now, being cove re. i with several feet of water, it is useless as a .mule Even persons used to the road would be. running a great danger by endeavouring to ride or drive through the water. the read itself is onlv 14ft wide. Yesterday a vehicle had to turn round ami go back. owim' to the depth of the water, and the danger of finishing up in 12ft of water. Some 12 or 13 years ago the water tiecumulated in the same spot, and on thai occasion a horse attached to a dray was driven into ii. with the Jesuit that he horse went over the wad in the dip at the j side of the road, and was drowned.

SIT.SIDKNCK AT THE POXSONBV

RESERVOIR

\ subsidence occurred at the L'oiisonby reservoir earlv y«?st«*iy morning, occasioned, no doubt, by the recent heavy rains. When the caretaker commenced i his usual examination yesterday morning j he discovered that about I2tt of the embankment which forms the part nam between Nos. 1 and 2 reservoirs had .awl ! ;,, on Ihe side of the latter, dislodging a hour 125 tons of concrete. The city 'waterworks j engineer (Mr. .1. Carlaw) was immediately ! informed, and steps were taken to pump i out the reservoir affected, and to effect i repairs as soon as possible. In order to I minimise the risk of the other and smaller reservoir breaking throng!) ihe reimuniij.r embankment—which did not seem bv am- mean- probable- -Mr. Carlaw also had the pressure there reduced. L is assume.l j the partitioning embankment became veryi dry in consequence of the recent drought. ! anil that when the heavy rams tell towatds ! the end of last week and tin- beginning ot j this week, a certain amount ot swelling I took place, with the above result. There i is no danger whatever, but in view of the J mishap, and the consequent lowering of I the water, the public are requested to be ! as economical as possible.

! ROAD HOARDS AND TDK FLOODS. i TO THE KHJTOII. , , i sir -Tim CoMTianeiir should he .ailed i.n i ,„. llII( ,. .„ make a grant to load boards to I assist them to repair tin- ureal damage oou-. ! -,:, it i, irnoo-sible tor them ... do it out i ~f oniinars re\einie, and it wool.l mueeu : |... j, eicel t'niliit to ,pe. ialiv lax ratepayer.-. i ,1 ~, whom haw -'itiercd )„-,-. more or i ;,..; I would s:iu«e-t that Hie member ,or i i|,..'r|i-ii-iei interview the I'lemier next week I ~, hi-half of the lurnid- "' <■»■■ .ii-tn.-l. and { ...Mieavour to gel a--i-l.ii.ee promised a' !01 ~._ lor 20s now i- better than mm men" 1 later on. a- an imooriant inthsstty i- being rrippled by 10-s of culvert-. I.n.ijre. et, I '~,)' if. i, a most M-ii.in. matter for hind--1 working settlers in imr tounrry di-mcts and ! jliev are the backbone of our colony. Now. 1 Mr.' Massev. kimll> take action at once. ] fIKYWdOIi f'i'.isi'K. I j — ==