FAIRLIE SNOW POSITION

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21090, 16 July 1938, Page 3

FAIRLIE SNOW POSITION

Conditions Becoming Serious RESEMBLANCE TO 1895 Snow problems in the Mackenzie back-country are now becoming serious, and without r. phenomenal thaw such as occurred after the heavy fall towards the end of last month, most of the stations on the other side of Burke’s Pass will lose hundreds, if not thousands, of sheep. Immediate losses are not great, but a heavy death rate will almost certainly occur when the spring grass appears and during lambing. On the Sawdon Flat and Tekapo area, the snow lies about eight inches deep, but in other parts of the back country the position is more serious; the Balmoral Flat for instance, Las three feet of frozen snow. If more snow falls, one serious problem that will arise is the clearing of the roads. Already ploughs have piled snow to heights of four and five feet on either side of the roads, and to pile up more will be well nigh impossible. Wind, too, is liable to drift the high piles across the roads, and that has already occurred on the Braemar road and on Cowan’'. Hill on the Burke’s Pass side of Tekapo. Heavy Losses in 1895 Old residents in the back count! y have expressed the opinion that the present winter resembles that of 1895, which was one of the grimmest in the history of the district, and resulted in the loss of thousands of sheep. The first fall of snow arrived about Easter, followed by others in May and on June 13, and .ighter falls in July One of the falls was heavy, and snow remained on the gound until August 23. Lake Alexandrina was almost completely frozen. Thousands of sheep were without food for 10 weeks, and those surviving were merely bundles of skin and bone with practically no wool. The lambing percentages on some stations was nil, and on others from 20 to 30 per cent. In sworn evidence given before the Land Board, some of the estimated losses in 1895 were colossal. Rollesby Station lost 8000 out of 13,000 sheep. Lillybank the whole Jock of 12,000, Glenmore and Balmoral 40,000 out of 45,000, Ben Ohau 33,000 out of 50,000, Mistake (now Godley Peaks) had serious loss, and other stations lost from one-third to half of their sheep. Even if the present winter did ultimately prove as severe as that oi 1895. stock losses ?ould sea ceJy be on the same scale. One advantage of the present day is the mechanical snowclearing equipment available and modern transport for the supply of hay. Then again, two or even three stations will to-day cover the arja occupy'xl by

one in 1895. That has given greater control over the sheep. In the history of the Mackenzie Country, there are a number of serious snowfalls. In 1868 a big fall occurred after July 31, and the thaw added to the terrible floods experienced previously down country. From then onwards, bad winters have arrived approximately at 10-year intervals. The next bad fall was in 1879, and there were others in 1903, 1908, 1918, 1925 and 1929. Altogether in the back country, there is usually one unfavourable season in five, even though bad snowfalls have been in 10-year periods. In recent y?ars however, there seems to have been a modification of the isual winter cycles, and runholders have been inclined to overlook the possibility of a return to past severity. The lesson to be learned from this winter, therefore, is that probably more provision will be made for hay and chaff in future years. Turnips in the back country become useless because of sne and frost. Comment by Runholders Back- country men interviewed yesterday, said they were greatly concerned about the present position, but they did not desire the impression to go abroad that they were crying about the severe conditions. Many offers of assistance hud been received from meicantile firms and others particularly L the matter of supplying feed, and those offers were greatly appreciated. Appreciation was also expressed about the great work done by the Mackenzie County Council's employees in clearing snow from the roads. T he work involved long hours under arduous conditions, and its value not only for moving sheep down country, but in the case of sickness, was of tremendous importance. The extreme conditions the men had been called upon to face could scarcely be realised by people unacquainted with a snow area. ROAD IMPROVEMENT WORK AT HORSESHOE BEND The Public Works Department is starting road improvement work on the Horseshoe bend above Kimbell. and 20 men are in camp. There are several blind comers on the bend, and motorists have always had to negotiate it with care. The widening and straightening will involve the removal of a large quantity of rock, and will take some time. As the Horseshoe bend is on the State highway, the improvement work does not involve the Mackenzie County Council. “THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO” Alexandre Dumas’ magnificent st ry, "The Count of Monte Cristo," virtually comes to life in the splendid picture, produced by Reliance Pictures, and featuring the outstanding British actor Robert Donat and Elissa Landi, which will head the programme at the De Luxe Theatre, Fairlie, at 8 o’clock to-night. The gripping story of how an innocent victim to 20 years' im-

prisonment achieves his vengeance on his false accusers is translated to the screen with all the power of Dumas’ facile pen. The supports will include a “Mickey fhe Mouse” cartoon.