ALBURY (South Canterbury).

Otago Witness, Issue 2565, 13 May 1903, Page 44

ALBURY (South Canterbury).

' May B.— The weather has been remarkably good lor the past- two months, there being an aimost entire absence of high winds and heavy rains. As a consequence tho farmers have been enabled to gather in theii crops in spien-. did condition. Th 3 jields have been above the average, and as the prices for wheat and oats are fairly good those who have gone in for a little cropping will ge* a fair recompensefor their labours. Yields of 45 to 50 bushel 9 of wheat have not been uncommon, while Garton oats have threshed out as high as 70 bushels I to the acre. ! Angling.— Tho fishing season is over, and, though in some of the smaller streams fish, were fairly numerous, though of small size, yet the Tengaivai and upper reaches of tho Opihi and Pareora yielded poor sport. Many rer.sons may bo assigned for the failure of these far-famed rivers, chief amongst them being the heavy floods of last winter and the assiduous attention of th-> poaching fraternity, whom, like tho poor, we have always with us. Bazaar. — The Presbyterian Church is to have its bazaar on the day of the local dog trials, and as the ladies of the congregation have been working for some time past with much iiligence and good will, there is little doubt that the remaining debt on the church (about £80) will be wiped out, with, maybe, a balance in hand with which to start the nucleus of a fund , to erect a manse. I The Opawa Estate. — A considerable impetus ' to settlement and trade was given by the subdivision of Mr J. S. Rutherford's Opawa station. Many of the new settlers are aJready on their sections, building houses and fencing. It is the opinion of many that one or two general stores could do remarkably well. At present the nearest source of supplies is distant three miles from the township, and al- | though Timaxu can be reached in a couple of i hours by rail, yet residents miss a place which, they can easily reach when their stores run out. School. — Our school is steadily rising in attendance, the number on the roll being 41 — • the highest that has been attained since the inception of the school 17 years ago. The average attendance is not so good as it might be, owing to the scattered nature of the settlement, some of the children coming six miles daily. Stock Sales. — The Saleyards Company meeting took place last Monday, and was fairly well attended, 20 members being present. Mr 3. S. Rutherford presided. The report and balance sheet were adopted. The retiring directors — Messrs R. Irving and J. Austin — wero re-elected. Mr W. Couper was rcappointccl secretary, and Mr A. Lindsay aiiditor. — Occasional Correspondent. May 11.— Last month was most favourable alike to farmer and flockmaster. Early in the month the belated ingathering of the harvest was completed, and latterly the weather has been all that could be desired for threshing, consequently grain is fast going into market in excellent condition. Prices, especially for oats, are not so high as those of last year, but the heavier yields and much reduced cost of ingathering is a very favourable set-off in this respect. The labour of haulage out of th<* fields and to the railway has been minimised 1 by the capita.! order of land and roads for carting over, and the work has gone on without interruption or loss of time. Progress. — Since the sale of the Chamberlain Settlement quite a stir has been created in and around our little township. The large amount of fencing stuff and builddng material continually arriving by rail md cates a real live state of affairs, and goes to show that tho new sottlers are bona- fide selectors, and are. n ware of the importance of taking time by the forelock, and letting no time slip by unavailed. of. It is stated that a store and bakery is shortly to be started 'in our midst, and, needJess to say, this would prove a great convenience. Church Matters.— The Roman Cntholic congregation arc pushing on with the erection of their new church, which is being considerably enlarged on the original plan, and Mr Walker, the contractor, is making good progress with the building. Sport.— The football club has been put on a live footing, and the membero hope to meet, and possibly defeat, their old friendly rival — the Timaru Clvb — at an early date — probably on Empire Day, when a bazaar and sale of work is to be held for the purpose of clearing off a small debt still left on the new Presto* terian Church,

Dairy Industry.— So far the local creamery has been well supported, and probably next ■year sufficient extra support will be given it to enable the industry to be placed locally on a highly satisfactory footing. Suppliers' Teturns are sufficiently encouraging to induce others to secure cows for starting next spring. I hear the best cheque this season was £25 from 18 cows for 30 days' supply. The whole of the cows in this case were bought for the purpose, and were not an old-established herd. During the autumn the directors have made arrangements to run the local creamery on alternate <lays, in conjunction with Fairlie, which receives milk the other three days of the week. This should suffice for all concerned, as a large supply is not to be expected during winter.