LAKE COUNTY.

Otago Witness, Issue 1851, 17 August 1893, Page 22

LAKE COUNTY.

August 12.— Winter weather is the order of the day. and pretty dirty weather it is. Storm, rain, sleet, and snow having entered into competition have made things pretty disagreeable during the past week, and the indications are that there is ' worse to come. Of course it is seasonable, and it is far better to hava it out now than to come a month or so later. In the meantime it delays farming and gardening work, and the anxiouß ones have their patience put upon the rack. Obituary.— ln the person of Mrs Jane Meiklejohn, the widow of Mr Alexander Meiklejohn, one of .'our oldest reside ats'has passed away.l Deceased was amongst the first of her sex to come into this district, wpen it was known and marked upon the maps as a term incognita. She has thus in a sense stood sponsor. to this part of the world, and left behind a name dearly cherished by all who came under the influence of her kindness and hospitality. Losing her husband about 25 years ago, when he had had scarcely time to put his Mount Oreighton station into proper working order, Mrs Meiklejohn fought the battle of life, aided first by her brother, Mr John Brown, and later by Mr Stewart Dirke, through whose careful and judicious! management Mrs Meiklejobn succeeded in overcoming the difficulties of sheepfarming which have overwhelmed bo -many others. Deceased, who had been ailing for more than a year from the effects of influenza, died at her beautiful and comfortable residence at at Mount Creighton station, on the shores of Lake Wakatipu, leaving flwo sons and two daughters, some of whom are married. The remains of deceased, who was 57 years of acre and a native of Caithness, Scotland, were buried in the Queenstown cemetery, the Rev. T. Paulin conducting the funeral service, o,nd delivering an impromptu sermon on the text, " Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it," which the coffin bore.— Another death was that of a young man, Alexander Darrah, a native of Ballycastle, County Antrim, Ireland, who died at the Frankton Hospital at the early age of 27 years. The deceased had been ailing from the effects of an attack of influenza contracted in Ireland about three years ago, and by his doctor's advice he had sought health at the antipodes, and though relieved for a time by the change of climate, he succumbed in the end. Improvements — Mr William M Kibbon, settler at Crown Terrace, is about to add another building to his homstead.lwhich from the road presents the appearance of quite a small . township, there ' being about a dozen detached houses devoted to different purposes, Mr M'Kibbon preferring detached buildings for the storing away of his belongings in case of "fire. The contemplated building is intended to serve as a machine and

tool shed, arid will require about 10,000 ft of timber and a corresponding quantity of iron. Mr R. Lawton, builder, of Arrowfcown, is the successful contractor. There is " thoroughgoingneSs " in the M'Kibbon brothers, which is not a general quality with the New Zealand farmer, the makeshift principle being the rule. Political.— During the past week Mr W. Fraser, one of our wooers in the coming election, has been on a visit of inspection to spy out the land, and has produced a favourable impression upon those who met him. The Hon. W. J. M. Larnach, in a notice in the local papers, declares his view to be of a liberal character, without, however, committing himself to any particular line of action or thought. According to latest accounts there is another Richmond in the field, in the person of Mr J. Macalister, a solicitor at Invercargill. Mr Macalister is personally well and favourably known here.