PUERUA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2244, 4 March 1897, Page 25

PUERUA.

I February 26.— Though the more inland countrjb seems to have suffered much from drought, I think this season has been hereabouts tolerab'y good, for the cereal crops at least, and we have had no heavy floods or very high wind«, such as sometimes occur just before harvest. The weather at date continues very dry, and some rain would do the turnips good. The Crops.— As to whether the oat crop will be fully up to the average opinions seem to differ. A few fields of wheat are looking well at present. • The harvest here is now well forward, and some , thre&hing of grass seed has been done. " Puffing : Billy" is to the fore. These traction engines i eeem to be coming much in vogue. Some of the i , turnip crops are looking well, but the later sown . turnips seem likely to suffer r-onsiderabiy HAleijs

we have a good supply of rain soon. Grass is also ' suffering from the drought, and feed is getting scarce. Horticultural. — There seems to be rather a deficiency of fruit this year, plums being especially scarce. The trees this season seem to have run more to wood than fruit. Bunny. — Though much execution has been done to the rabbits with poison and traps, this troublesome rodent is still well in evidence, and grappling with him is very arduous and uphill work. Toxa has been more used hereabouts lately, and seems to be generally very effective. There . seem to be some wild ferrets hereabouts. I I caught a ferret a few nights since on the bank of the river in a rabbit-trap, releasing him at once. There are also a few weasels. Roads.— The metalling of some chains of the Puerua main road, which has ' just been completed by the contractor?, will be a grent boon to the settlers in the Puerua Valley and others A very few more chains of metal in two bad bits of the road would complete the work and leave no room to grumble, if the road be kept in good repair afterwards. Savings Bank. — In response to a petition of settlers in this neighbourhood, the post office authorities have juvt decided to establish a savings bank at the post office here. This bank will probably be a considerable benefit to the district.