164 



THE AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 



farms in the district. This only applies to the 

 horses bred, or that have been ia the district 

 some time. The mortality in the loot horses 

 bought at public sa'es fiom the Imperial 

 Government ha'? been considerable, and likely 

 to continue. Hay making has been in full 

 swing all over the District, and the weather has 

 been all that could be desired fd-the purpose. 

 The rust in the autumn forage crops has betn as 

 bad as ever, I am sorry to s?j. Farmers are 

 now giving a good deal of millet as a sjbstitnte 

 for oats or forage. I saw one spletdid sample 

 of Sidonian forage baled at Mr. Arbuckle'sfarm 

 " Cottmore." The crop was grown in the spring, 

 which 1 am informed is the only time to grow a 

 foraae crop if the rust is to be avoided. Mealie 

 reaping has been already commenced by many 

 farmers ; I think from all accounts the mealie 

 crop will be good. 



H. W. Boast, Magistrate. 



DUNDEE, 14th May. - There is very little 

 agricultural news to report, owing to the late 

 unsettled state of the District. Mortality 

 amongst cattle is abnormal, owing to black 

 lungsickness being so prevalent. I am informed 

 by an old farmer that the disease has not been 

 so bad for 20 years. Horsesickness is also verv 

 bad. The weather is hot and rain is badly 

 wanted, but, in spite of this, the crops, what 

 there are, are in a very flourishing condition. 

 There was a fearful dust^torm yesterday, and a 

 sharp frost last night. 



W. G. Wheelavkight, Acting Magistrate. 



INANDA DIVISION, 17th May.— Since my 

 la^t notes, Verulam and Division have been 

 visited by a severe epidemic of dengue fever. 

 It is said that fully 95 per cent, of the European 

 inhabitants of the township have sutfered. I 

 believe the percentage in the country has n( t 

 been so high. The epidemic still continues, but 

 now we have had very cold weather it should 

 soon come to an end. I am sorry to say I was 

 amongst the majority, which has, in a great 

 measure, been answerable for the long interval 

 since I last sect a report to the Journal. The 

 attacks of dengue seem to have varied consider- 

 ably in virulence, some having a very severe 

 attack, while others got ofE with one or two 

 days' illness, and soon recovered from the un- 

 pleasant after effects. I have been wondering 

 •whether the mosquitoes have anything to do 

 with spreading the iufeclion. as they have been 

 a perfect plague here this summer, and are s-till 

 in evidence. The fc Uowing are a ftw of the 

 meteorological observations made here during 

 March and April :— March— Rainfall G'8 inches, 

 which fell on fifteen days; heavitst fall 11)5 

 inches on the 15th. Maximum ttmperature in 

 the shar'e 'J5 degs. on the 17th, minimum (36 

 degs. on the .^.Oth. April— Rainfall b-2l inches, 

 wh'ch fell on seven days ; heaviest falls 

 21)5 inches and 2 07 inches on ttie 2nd and 

 3rd respectively. Maximi-m temperature in the 

 shade DO d. gs. on the 2',lth, minimum 57 degs. on 

 the 29th ai-d .'iOth ; mean for month 74 6 degs. 

 It V ill be seen that nearly all the rain for the 

 month fell in the fiist day or two, the rest of 

 the month being practically raiii'ess. The 



ground has in consequence become very dry and 

 streams very low agam. A good ramnow wou.d 

 do good. The weather has been quite cold the 

 last few days, and I hear there was frost in the 

 hollows on the night of the 13th inst. It does 

 not, however, appear to have been sufficient to 

 damage can°. The mealie crop is, with the 

 exception of a few smaller patches here and 

 there, all harvested, and has proved a very fair 

 one, but I hear a good many mealies were 

 damaged by fLe heavy rains in iVlarch and early 

 part of April, while many - have gone rotten 

 through tne Indians harvesting and bagging 

 them before quite dry, in order to get t eni on 

 the market before prices fell. Result, d ad 

 loss, sometimes to the purchaser, sometimes to 

 the Indian, and one is unable to sympathise 

 with the latter in the circumstances. I hear the 

 price is now 8s. per muid, though the middleman 

 is still charging 12s. 6d. and upwards. Ibe 

 tobacco crop has all been gathered, and is a 

 bumper on^— I should imagine the largest 

 ever grown in this Division. Beans and peas 

 are now to be seen in all directions, wbere 

 recently mealies and tobacco were growing, and 

 thua the Indian farmer goes on taking the 

 utmost out of his small paten of land without 

 returning anything to it except what nature 

 may do through the medium of the growing 

 b. an or pea. The cane plantations contmue to 

 look very fine, though they would be none the 

 worse of a rain now before the long winter dry 

 spell sets in Two mills, the large central ones 

 at Mount Edgecombe and Tongaat, have re- 

 commenced crushing, the latter after a v> ry 

 short stoppage of only about a month or six 

 weeks. 1 hear the density of the juic3 is very 

 good. The yield this season should, therefore, 

 be a good one. Travelling between Umgeni 

 an! here (Verulam) on the 15th inst. I saw two 

 immense swarms of locusts. These must have 

 c jme from beyond the area of locust destruction 

 operations in this Division, a « no such swarms 

 could ever have stood a chance of r. aching 

 matuiity within the ar. a. It must be very 

 aggravating to find one's etforts frustrated by 

 large swarms com ng from places where nothiug 

 is done to keep down the pest. I do not think 

 many young locusts in this Div sion are ever 

 allowed to reach maturity. I am glad to say 

 that the lungsickness referred to in my last 

 report has not extended In fact, the area 

 has been curtailed, as the su-pected outbreak 

 amongst an Indian's rattle near Umhloti Mouth 

 proved not to be lungsickness. Horsesickness 

 seems to have been somewhat bad at the end of 

 the season, and I hear of a good many cases and 

 deaths having taken place. Now that the cold 

 weather has really set in we should hear no 

 more of this disease this season. Oranges are 

 plentiful, and though not quiti ripe yet they 

 are sweet and tit to eat, and verj large, having 

 been swelled out by the late rains Moths are, 

 however, attackirg'them, also naartjes, causing 

 them to drop off, which is very unfortunate, as 

 this renders the crop of very short duration. 

 The Lands Commission has been here, taken 

 evidence, and gone again. 



JouN L. Knight, Magistrate. 



NEW HANOVER, 20th May.— Since writing 

 my last report several heavy frosts have fallen, 



