TIKOKANGI.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 8740, 28 March 1890, Page 3

TIKOKANGI.

[fKOJI OUB OWN COBRESPONDENT.j March 26. — The grain crops now boing threshed are turning out very badly The yields of the wheat crops have been from 10 to 12 bushels per acre. One yield was 3? sucks from 4 acres, another I hear 8 sacks from 'J acres. A piece of! 14 acres on which one and a half tons of good hone dust was sown, 10 bushels to the acre. This shows that cropping wont pay those engaged in it. On Monday the steam thresher threshing at Mr R. Iliek's, was drawn up between two wheat stacks and the men engaged threshing. When they had threshed about half of one stack, the stack on the opposite side was seen to be on fire. The men inimc liately jumped on to the stack on fire and worked strenuously to put it out. They however did not succeed, for the ■wind was blowing hard from the southwest, and they gave it up, aud transferred all their efforts to prevent the stack they were threshing catching on fire. This was a very diflicult matter, for the lire was falling from the burning stack and soon ran over the loose chaff and straw, when it was soon all in a blaze. Luckily a tank of water had just been brought, and the btaek was saved. The fire, whilst it lasted was very fierce, the men put bags over their hands and went in and around the fire with water, keeping the straw, &c , around the unthreslied stack wet, and by this means it was saved. But for the piesence of mind and well directed labours of the men engaged, to whom too much praise cannot be awarded, the Joss of the whole of the stack must have taken place. As soon as it was seen that the stack on fire could not be saved, the engine was pulled clear away and the untlireshed wheat was removed by carts, and then threshed. Mr Hicks estimates the burnt stack to have yielded 30 sacks of wheat.