WYNDHAM.

Otago Witness, Issue 1602, 5 August 1882, Page 13

WYNDHAM.

(from our. own correspondent.) July 31st.

Farm work in this district has been nearly brought to a standstill lately owing to the very inclcmant state of the weather and the utterly impassable condition of the country road*. It is earnestly to bo hoped that a spell of favourable weather may set in shortly so as to K'ive farmers an »pportunit.y of punhinjf forward with their ploughing, whluh at present ia very far behind. Spring is at hand and many havo scarcely turned a furrow yet. The farmers hero who wished a change of seed wheat and had tho fame ordered from the. exhibitors of tho sample which gained first honour* here lately, have been sadly disappointed with the quality of the parcel which has come to hand, and I very much regret having to mention that it is as far from being the same quality as east is from west (this ia no hearsay, as I was eye-witness to the comparison. I hope the merchants have only nride a slight mistake and accidentally forwarded tho wrong lot. I believe that a mistake of a similar nature occurred in the j:ra9B seed line, some of the most unmixed rubbish imaginable being forwarded. If the seedsmen of to-day fancy that they can gull tho farmers in this neighbourhood by trying to palm on them an inferioarticlc they will soon find out that they are miserably mistaken, as most of our farmers are much better judges of grain and other farm produce than the generality of seedsmen, and lam proud of being able to say so. 1 hope tho Wyndharn correspondent of tho Southland Times will draw it a little milder the next time we are favoured with a freshot from him, as his slightly exaggerated account of tho recent floods completoly shocked and horrified the groator part of the Inverca'gilites, and moro especially those who have relations living in our midst. What a violent blow it must havo been when tho first glimp<e of thii astoundintr heading caught thoir oyea "Grbat Flo .ds; — Wykdham ukdkr Water !" Great guns—cannonthunder and turf— Wyndham swalloivod— gono to the bostom 1 w% na— nothing wrong yot, only fearing lc»t our worthy corro«pondcnfc might carclesuly fetch himself down to a dead level of one who formerly rxn dross to tho samu organ from this district. I expect hotter things of our present much-rcspectcd correspondent, and hope he will not put hi 3 foot in the flood any more. New buildings are tho order of the day here at present. Mr S. Richardson, so long and favourably known as driver of the Royal mail coach betweeu here and Edendale, has just finished * very neat self-contained cottage, the interior of which he has has highly adorned by the introduction of a snug little wife Mr P. Traynor is at present busy with a very superior dwelling for himself and family. Mr J. Rankin's now store is nearly complete, and will be opened for business in a week or two. Mr M'Kay is making largo additions to his Railway Hotel. Mr J. Morely is also adding extensively to hii cottago, and I hoar that Mr D. Milne is about to miko additions to his Farmers*' Arms Hotel. The Wyndham Hotel changed hands last week, the late proprietor, Mr John Milne, having purchased a large farm on the Seaward Downs Estate, goes thither at once to commence farming. The new proprietor h a Mr Humphries, from Qaeenstown. Our town property is rapidly increasing in value, one section, which two years ago was bought for £20, wai sold lately for ten times that amount; another which wai bought for £20, was tho other day sold for £100, and others have changed hands at similar advanced rates. At a meetiag of the ploughing match committee hold here last Friday night it was proposed by Mr Cushnio, and seconded by MrLumsden that active and immediate steps be taken to form a Farmers' Club, and posters ara now out calling a pub'.ic meeting to be held in Mr Humphries Hall for that purpose, after whioh a debate will take place between Messrs Elliot and M'Lean— subject : " Whether is the farmer or tho incchaiic lho most i'xlepr-ndeiit man ?" Mr Elliot will take up the cudgels for the mechanic, and Mr M'Lean |or the farmer,