'WETHERSTONES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2289, 13 January 1898, Page 26

'WETHERSTONES.

January 10.— Mining : There is not much to report about mining at present. Those who took holidays, both owners and wage&men, are diifting back to work. I have been told that the owners of some of the claims are annoyed at the leni'jrks in tha Witness about them and their way of ■working. I am given to understand that they want no remarks made about their mines, either In the local paper or a»y other. As far a* lam concerned your correspondent will let them severely alone. The Golden Hise finished their paddock on Saturday last. I believe they are getting from Boe to 10"z a week. The paddock is over half an acre, and they were about f<->ur weeks over it, Tl^y are shifting their boxes today. All tbe ether claims are at work, having Euftieie»t water at present ; but the present weather is drying tbe water up f«st.

Bunky. — There are several parties trapping on the commonage at present, having been put on by the inspector, who is detensiMtd to beat the rabbit*, but I tbifek ho has undertaken a difficult contract. Obo of the parties aro trappiag all around Weth,er*tone3. They s»y they get f<om 40 to 70 rabbit* a day. The havrks destroy many of them when- in the traps, they say.

Hox-idays. — Ths children attending the Wetherstones School were dismissed for the hclidaya on December 24, h 'Ving been given wx weeks. Only one of the committee, Mr D. Murray, was there, the chairman and the others bei>-g unable to Ittt^nd.

Fihk. — A two-storeyed house above the Phoenix dam waa burnt down on the night of the sth inst It waa built by Mr Tim O'Lf-ary about 1870, but latterly the house and land have been owned by Mrs Whelan. It was uninhabited except by an occasional rabbiter or -swagger, and was not insured. A man engaged trapping rabbits on the commonage pa»sed the haute earl/ on tho forenoon of the sth, and saw smoke is-suing from behind the house, ami in the afternoon another man "parsed, and b.« likewise saw the smoke, neither taking any notice. The fire must have l)een smouldering a long time.

Accident — An accicent happened to Mr T. Mills at th« Blue Spur on Saturday, the Bth. A lump of cement rolled down and jammed 1m leg, •which was badly bruised, but there are no bones "broken. Mr Mill* ret- ides at Wctherst.-nes. An express was got from Lawrence to take him home. He ia progressing as favourably as po>si" le. Weather. — The weather duiing the laat three ■weeks haa been fine, with the exception of a few showers now and again. O* tho 21st and 25th we fiad some showera, but the following two days were the roughest, wind an 1 a heavy rai* coming from the S.W. There waa a light shower on the 30bh ult. It rained for &everal hours on the morning of the 4th iuat., and there were soaie showers in tho afternoon of the Gth. The rais on the evening of tho B*h will be beneficial to miners and fanners. On the morning of the 9fch it rained over six hours, beh.g very heavy at times, coming from the N.K , and at noon it cleared. Later there wa« thunder, and the wind changed to S.W. At n- on oa the Bth the thermometer showed HWeg in the sun The wind ha^ been from S.W to N., going on a few < cca-ions round to X The lowest reading of, thn thormometer (50deg) w« • at 7 30 a m. on the 27th ult., and the highest (SsWeg at noon in shade, and 120iJeg in sun) ob the 24fh wit. It was hotter on the 31st December and Ist January, but I waa away from home.

lUIKFAtL.— Rainfall for month of December, £ 40in ; rainfall for the last bi'x months of 1897, IB3in.