NORFOLK ISLAND NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21161, 19 April 1932, Page 11

NORFOLK ISLAND NEWS.

PROLONGED DRY WEATHER. SOWING OF SEEDS RETARDED. [from our own correspondent.] NORFOLK ISLAND, April 15. The present autumn has been the driest experienced on the island for many years. Fortunately rain continued well into the summer and consequently feed has held out well. Most tanks are now empty. The long spell of dry weather has retarded the sowing of garden seeds. A typical " up country" race meeting, held in a paddock on Easter Monday, attracted about 300 peoplu. About £ls was paid for admission. A fair sum passed through a " blackboard and chalk totalisator." A local " sport" was most irate because the Boy Scouts were advised by their leader not to attend the races. It was contended that they should have been present in uniform and have done their " good deed" by holding the island "Phar Laps" for their owners. A collector had caught about 200 " gi' e y warblers," which are very plentiful here, for transference to another island, where there are none. While bringing his catch to the jetty his horse bolted. The trap and cage were smashed and all the birds escaped.

The crop of gtiavas growing wild in the bush is a most prolific one. Thanks to the rain in the summer the fruit has filled up exceptionally well. Miss Betty Buffet, -who was buried on Good Friday, was in her 55th year. While a schoolgirl she fell from a tree she had climbed, on to some rocks, and sustained injuries that crippled her for life. In spite of this handicap she retained a bright and charming disposition and was very popular.