COUNTRY ITEMS.

Otago Witness, Issue 1945, 4 June 1891, Page 19

COUNTRY ITEMS.

Short neira paragraph! for tbl( oolomn are lnrited from oorroiponaenti and other*. Fou Oasds may be tued.

The Waitahuna Farmers' Club are not in favour ot imposing a tax on stallions. The Mataur will load 14,000 sheep at Oamaru/aLd the Nairnshire 8000 or 9000. \ Mr J.F. Morris has severed his connection with the Upper Kyeburn School, and commenced a lecturing tour. The Courier says that quite a dumber have been suffering from poisoned bands about the Tapanui district lately. Mr George Gould has purchased Messrs Brake Brothers' 500-acre freehold at Hals well, Canterbury, for £11,000 cash. The directors of the Aparima Dairy Faofcory Company recommend that the factory be disposed of and the company wound up. . Mr Herman Mayne sustained some severe contusions at Milton the other day through bis horse slipping and rolling on him. Poisoning having begun in the Upper Waitaki dlstriot, the rabbit tinning factory of Messrs Fiollnson and Co. has ceased operations for the season. ~ - Work on tbe Wafkawa jetty contract bat been commenced. This will ba a public jetty * those at .present in use at the harbour belong to private individuals. - > The Gore Farmers' Club have passed a resolution to the effeot that the time has not yet arrived for the formation of a farmers' co-operative association in that dlstrlot. ' * >» ■ . _ Mr Oooob, who hat been for nine Tears on th& 1 olerioal staff of the South Canterbury FarHers'Association (Timarb), has baen appointed manager of the Hawke's Bay 'Farniers' Association.'- -«••> -- ■ Mr George Morton, of Waihao, who was seriously gored by, a bull a short time- since, is now getting better, and; although he is terribly wounded, his medical attendants say that he will recover. At -a confirmation at the Gore Bomsin - Catholic Church last Sunday the veil of one of the girls came In contact with the candle she carried, and ignited. Fortunately one of the nuns was able to extinguish the fire before serious Injury was done. ' , A couple of so-culled scrub kangaroos shot at Easter time at Waihao are on view at Oamaru. Tha Mall thinks they are wallabies, as a number of these oreaturea, which have a decided resemblance to young kangaroos, were liberated some time baok in the Waimate district. ' , The loss of the Kakanul has resulted in the settler* in the Fortroie dlstrlot having to use the' road to Glenham station for cartage. The grain and goods have to travel 50 miles to reaob Invercargill. ■ By the Seaward Bush line (the construction of which is at a standstill) the distance would be less than 25 miles. The West Plains correspondent of the Southland Times writes :— Threshing In this district Is all done, and most of the grain is sold. About Is 3d per bushel seems to be about the top price for oats. The yield is very good. I know of one party-'who sowed twe and a-half bags of oats, and threshed 75 bags from same. The Palmeraton and Walhemo A. and P. Association are in favour of a £30 tax on entires, conditionally that the sum so received in any district be handed to the agricultural and pastoral association in the district in wbioh the. entires travel, to be devoted to increasing the amount given in prizes at eaoh annual showMessrs Ireland and 00. have bad their flour mill at Oamaru fitted with roller mills'. The mill is capable of . manufacturing four sacks of flour per hour, or 60 tons every week, and the whole machinery is driven by a 29-horse power water motor. The mill is to be immediately fitted with electric lighting apparatus. / As showing the efforts of the Waitaki County Counoil to abate the small bird nuisanoe. it was stated at the council's meeting recently that the counoil had expended altogether £277 3s in the abatement of tbe nuisanoe, and of that sum £238 10a 8d bad been paid for eggs at Is 6d p?r 100, representing the total destruction as 318,000.

A disease of a peculiar nature has been committing extensive ravages amongst the lambs in the Tnuranga -district, which are dying off at the alarming rate of 80 per eet.t. The Stook department, realising; tbe serious nature of the disease, hat despatched Mr M'Lean, veterinary surgeon, to the effected district in order to make a thorough investigation into the cau:e. Mr Morgan Hayes offers to contribute £1000 towards the improvement of Biverton harbour, bub he stipulates that 49 other farmers should contribute a like amount. Mr J. O. Ellis', of Merrivale, has expressed his willingness to act on the committee and to assist in the movement ; Mr Gardner, of Birchwood,'has. also signified that he will assist in promoting the undertaking; and several -other leading landholders have intimated a like desire to further the soheme,