August 1926

Sunday 1st   It was a very fine day.  Revd Rouprecht held service in the hall in the morning, there was a very fair congregation.  The parson came here for dinner.  Jane & the children went in his car in the afternoon to Mr Walden Senr,  Jim went later  and they all had tea there.
In the afternoon I walked to the P.O to post a Weekly News to my nephew in England,  Eliot Clarke.
Mrs Handby is keeping house for Harry Ashton as Mabel is in Auckland, having been in Hospital undergoing an operation.
Mrs H gave us pm tea and I spent a very pleasant time chatting with Harry.

Monday 2nd   It was a fine day.  Jim went to Matakana to attend the annual meeting of the Dairy Factory. there were over 100 share holders and suppliers present, it was rather a protracted meeting so Jim did not get home until after dark.  I started to dig the piece of ground I cleared of weeds last week.

Tuesday 3rd   It was a fine day.  The children went to the school, but the relieving Teacher had not arrived so they had to come home again.  I continued to dig the piece of ground I started yesterday.  I buried weeds and cow manure in the trenches.

Wednesday 4th   It was a miserable day blowing and showers.  I was not able to do any work in the garden.  The steamer made a round trip.  Jim sent away a crate of fowls by her.

Thursday 5th   It was a thorough wet day.  Besides milking and getting a bit of firewood no work was done outside.

Friday 6th   The ground was wet in the morning, but the wind that was blowing dried it a lot and I was able to finish the digging that I started on Monday.  In the morning I went down to Pats to get a library book.

Saturday 7th   It was very showery in the morning, but cleared up in the afternoon.  I went down to the beach and got a few pea sticks, also went to the domain to see how the daffodils are getting on that I planted there.

Sunday 8th   It was a fine day.  Mr Milligan should have held service in the morning, but on account of illness he did not come.  The Whitakers & Evans not knowing this came but were disappointed.
In the morning I went down to Pats to get a library book.
Mrs K. Campbell who recently died was buried this afternoon in the Matakana cemetery, Laurence brought Alma here in his car after dinner & then went to the funeral taking Jim,  Mr W  & Laddie.
In the pm I walked to Birdsalls, but found nobody at home so called at Whitakers where I always get a welcome.  The men folk soon returned from the funeral, had afternoon tea, looked at the garden and came home,  at our gate I met Laurence & Alma leaving having staid tea here.

Monday 9th   It was a showery day.  I was not able to do anything in the garden.

Tuesday 10th   It did not rain, but it was a very dull day.  I loosed between the Peas and sprinkled some B & B  and resowed where they had not come up or the slugs had eaten them.
In the afternoon I got some pea sticks.
The children went to school, Mr Stewart has recovered his indisposicao and was able to teach.

Wednesday 11th   It rained last night, but it was fine to day.
I stuck the Sweet Peas.  Sowed seeds in a box of Burwood Prize and Fillbasket Tomato.  Received a letter from Willie by the mail.

Thursday 12th    There was heavy rain last night so that the ground was too wet to do anything in the garden.  Made a seed box and wrote a letter to my son Henry  at Te Araroa.

Friday 13th   Slight showers otherwise a fine day.  As Neil Neeley and family are leaving the district, he had a clearance sale at his farm  on the hill.  Jim went.  I planted out some small panseys in a box.

Saturday 14th   It was a very showery day.  I was not able to do anything outside.

Sunday 15th   It was fine in the morning, but showery in the afternoon.  It was my 83 birthday.  I received congratulations & Jim & Jane gave a lamp for my bedroom as a birthday present.
Revd Parsons held service in the hall in the morning.  There were only 11 present, 2 men only, Jim & me.  Collection 7/-  .

Monday 16th   It was a fine day, but the ground is so wet I was not able to do anything in the garden.  Mr Perks the Traveller was to have come today,  Mrs Tom Ashton came in the morning to meet him. Dolly & Ethel  Greenwood came in the afternoon.  Mr Perks did not turn up.

Tuesday 17th   The weather was not so bad in the morning, but in the afternoon it thundered,  lightened and poured with rain, and the children got wet coming home from school.
Mr Perks came here, driven in a sulky by Tom Roke, a fine young fellow, they both had lunch here, and Jane purchased a few articles.
I was not able to do anything in the garden.  Wrote a letter to my son Willie.

Wednesday 18th   It was a fine day, but very windy.  In the morning I took up some flower plants and took them down to Ethel Greenwoods who is leaving Dolly today.   In the afternoon I took the remainder of the bean sticks.    Jane went round to see Mabel who returned from Auckland last Friday having been in the hospital for an operation.

Thursday 19th    It was fine in the morning so I went up to the garden and commenced to dig, but it commenced to rain and it was showery the remainder of the day.

Friday 20th   It was a fine day.  I continued digging.  I took up 400 Onion plants for Wilf Meiklejohn.  There was Community Singing in the hall in the evening, the collection was £2 . 17 . 0  .  All in this house went but me.  The Stewarts went to stay at Laurence Whitaker’s as they are going by train to Whangarei tomorrow.

Saturday 21st   It was a fine day.  I finished digging the piece of ground I started, I pared the weeds off the path, also round the tomato stakes.  Mr & Mrs Whitaker & Winnie came in the afternoon, they had a look at my garden and staid for tea.

Sunday 22nd   There were a few showers early in the morning, but turned out a wet day.  Revd Addenbrooke held service in the morning .  There were present Mr & Mrs B  &  Murray Birdsall,  Dolly, Ina,  Jane,  Hector and I.

Monday 23rd   I wrote a letter to Mr Wallace and gave it to Trevor Gravatt to post as he was going by, taking the mail.  It came over very misty.  I went up to the cemetery and cut 7 tomato stakes and carreyed [sic] them down and left them on the road.  I got very wet when I got home and had to change everything.

Tuesday 24th    It was a very fine day, but a cold wind was blowing.  In the morning I went down to the road and sawed off & sharped the tomato stakes I got yesterday, then went to the domain and got a bundle of pea sticks.  In the afternoon I drove in 14 tomato stakes,  sowed in a box seed of Hendersons Cabbage.

Wednesday 25th   It was a fine day, but cold.  I put rods each side of the broad beans to keep them from falling over.  Hector helped me. Jim sowed 2 rows of carrots.

Thursday 26th   It was a fine day, but cold.  I started to clear the ground next  the Broad Beans to sow a row of peas, but Jim came home from the steamer bringing 100 Cauliflower & 100 Cabbage plants that the mate had got for him, so I left off the job I was at, and planted 2 rows of Cauliflower plants,  26 plants.  It was Betty Evans 6th birthday, so Jane,  Jean & Mildred were invited to a party to celebrate it.

Friday 27th   It was a fine day, but windy.  Jim commenced to plant out Onions.  I planted 3 rows of Cabbage plants , 42 plants.
Hector went to Ti Point and staid the night.

Saturday 28th   It was a cold blowey day.  I was not able to do anything in the garden.  Jim took the horse to Matakana to get it shod, he waited till the afternoon to witness a football match Omaha V   Warkworth,  the latter won.

Sunday 29th   It was a very showery day.  Revd Rouprecht held service and communion in the hall in the morning, there was a fair congregation.  There was a steady rain when we came out.  May Dunning,  Elsie,  Eileen & Ronnie D were here for dinner.  May returned to Warkworth with the parson, but some of Will’s children staid the night here.  Hector returned from Ti Point.

Monday 30th   Everything wet outside, was not able to do anything in the garden.  Went to Pats to get a book.

Tuesday 31st   It was a slight shower, but otherwise a fine day, but the ground is still too wet to do any planting,  I dug a strip next the broad beans.

The Rainfall for August as recorded at the P.O.  Warkworth totalled 6.59 inches.  Rain fell on 24 days, the heaviest fall being on the 4th when 1.8 inches were recorded.