Country News.

Southland Times, Issue 19185, 24 October 1903, Page 4

Country News.

The Tapanui Courier states that a GlenKenich farmer lost 11 young lambs recently owing to weasel.** attacking them.

The Wyndham Farmer reports that two more locally-trained young men ha^ J«^ been appointed to tho oversight o '«-£«-**-* factories in other parts oi the colony Mr Neil Marshall, son of Mr Hugh Marshall, of Ota Creek. Edendale. has , received the managership of one of -K.iuipokonul D.F. Co.'s factories, f^anakl district ; and Mr Thomas Hamilton, of Long Bush, tho managership of "*«"»""*£ D.F , Oamaru. Mr Marshall served his apprenticeship at Omimi D.F, under Mr V Cnimpbell (late of Wyndham). and finished olf with Mr James Sawcrs. Nt Kdcftdale D.F. Mr Hamilton served his time at Edendale. under Mr Ravers. Vie cordially wish these young men the i e*-t of success.

The milk supply nt Mataura Inland (says the Herald) dairy factory is now over V2OO gallons daily, and it is conudently expected that the daily intake will he far in excess of any previous season If this anticipation he realised, alterations will ha\o to be made t«» enable a much larger quantity being worked than hay been possible with the present appliances. The company have just procured a paste'-iriser lor installation in the factory, with the object of preparing a clean starter and thereby improving th* quality of their output. It is now generally recognised that whatever can he done to "improve the qualify oi the manufactured urticle is a step in The right direction, and expense incurred thereon is money well spent.

The Wuirio correspondent of the Winton Kecord writes :— 1 believe it is intended to cut a large area of grass seed in this district this year owing to scarcity of stock to feed it oil and the high prices at which sneep and cuttle are selling, i also understand that many of the farmers don't intend to sow nearly as much turnips as formerly. One of the chief reasons for this is the exorbitant prices charged for artificial manure without which turnip growing is not n success in this district. 1 think this is a subject that the Farmers' Union might emiUire closely into, with advantage to the farmers.

Replying to a correspondent (" Kdendale Subscriber") the Wyndham I' armor slates that the payments for i.utter-lat by the dairy factories named during l«*t season were" as follows :— Kdendale, lod j,er If> ■ Mataura, lOd : Island. 10: d (export season) und I) 5-l<>d (winter months)-. Wyndham. lUd (export) and lid (winter), and the dividend JL.11") and repairs to building represented value equalling another Jd all over. Kdendale is a proprietary concern, the oilier threw are run on co-operative lines

On the Edendale Estate, soon to he opened for close settlement, the lambing this season has been very successful, the ascertained percentage being not lc-ss than i:«.

The crops in this district mrit.es tliu Mokoreia correspondent of the Wyndham Herald- are all in the ground, m.d brairding beautifully, thanks to the ixceptionally geniul spring weather we ere having this year. The storm last week, although very rough while it lasted, was bcneliciul, as the ground was getting too dry, for the ridgy land of this district, and the grass, etc., were coming to a stand : but the good soaking the ground has got and tho warm weather since have altered all that, and never has the -.tuhs looked better at this time of year 'the lambing promises to be very good this year. The few who have marked are well satisfied, ln one case 1 hear there \Mia If.'i per cent aad no worry and trouble with the ewes and lambs, as is the case in stormy weather Our dairy factory started operations last week, and is getting a fair supply for a start. A week or two should see it in full string. 'Iho (lax-milling is a very important industry here now. With five mills already working and two more nearly ready to start, over 100 men will be employed and will bring nearly £r>oo weekly into the district. This should be a boon to the storekeepers and others. Fortunately it is such dry weather or the roads would be in a frightful state.

Mr J. Fleming, of Haknhouka, and -Uessrs V. Deegan and Sons, of Dipton, are aaiong the lirst to do shearing this season. The former sheared between 80«> and 000 wethers a fortnight ago, and the latter put through 500 fat wethers the other day, which will bo ready for the Christmas market.— Winton Record,

Tho Wyndham Farmer states .-1 he heavy rains over two days at the end of last week caused a big fresh in the Mataura river. Much anxiety was displayed at Mataura Island, as to tho amount of damage the anticipated Hood would cause — for Mataura Island is low-lying, and a rise of any magnitude in the river has in the past invariably meant inundation. Thanks, however, to the enterprise recently displayed by Mr \v. P. Smith, for the first time on record (he Mataura Island farms escaped flooding on this occasion. Mr Smith's boundary on the western side is the river ; and the land there being exceptionally low-lying, the river frequently gains its first ingress there. Alongside the course of the river he had, with the aid of a digger-plough, raised an embankment 40 chains long. 30ft. wide at the base, and sft. high. Although the river at this point rose 3ft. above the level of the farm land, the embankment stood the test admirably, and tho result was that not a drop of llood-water encroached on to either Mr Smith's farm, or on to that of any of his neighbours. Mr C Onrnie, who for some years has ineffectively combated the flood-waters, substantially improved his embankment last winter, ond haa now secured similar immunity. The settlers turned out on Sunday to witness the satisfactory test of Mr Smith's and Mr Carnie's work — it was the first tiinic for 20 years at least that the flood-waters had not inundated their farms, and thereby worked havoc with their dairy pastures. It was truly a unique scene, " where every prospect pleased " : for while the turbid waters of tbe Mataura surged past 3ft. above the levpl of the farms. the embankments stood as taut and trim as well-calked ship's bottoms, and the klne covered the " smiling pastures " on the inner side of the embankments, browsing contentedly in their security. And the achievement, in Mr Smith's c-nse at least, was the work of two men, four horses, uml a digger-plough, extending over ten clays.