July 1926

Thursday 1st    It was a fine day.   Still laid up with bad cough and cold.  The children did not go to school to day as Mr Stewart is laid up with sore throat.

Friday 2nd   It was a fine day.  My cold still bad.  The children went to school today, but in the pm Mr Stewart went to Matakana to get Drs advice.

Saturday 3rd    It was a fine day.  Jane went to see Mrs Handby in the afternoon who is keeping house for Harry Ashton as Mabel is in Auckland Hospital.

Sunday 4th   It was a very fine day.  I got up for breakfast for the first time for a month.  Revd Rouprecht held service in the hall in the morning, there was a fair congregation, all of us with the exception of Hector went.  The collection was 10/1 .

Monday 5th   It was a fine day, warm in the sun, but cold in the shade.
I dug a strip of ground near the top fence ready to plant onions for seed.

Tuesday 6th   It was a very fine day.  I planted 8 Brown Spanish Onions for seed.  I resowed the Sweet Peas and put short sticks to those that are up.  Revd Addenbrooke called to see me in the afternoon.

Wednesday 7th   It was a very fine day, but cold in the shade.  I finished weeding the Daffodils and I dug up the ground at the back where there were no weeds.

Thursday 8th   It was a very fine day.  I sowed a bed of Vanguard Cabbage, resowed several rows of Brown Spanish Onions where they had come up badly.  Weeded some onions, and planted out 26 Pansy plants in a box.  Dolly and Ina came in the afternoon.

Friday 9th   It was a fine day, but it looks as if there was going to be a change.
I sowed a long row of Stratagem Peas next to the broad beans.  I spread pea sticks on the surface so that the fowls would not scratch them out.

Saturday 10th   It was a fine day, but very windy.  There was a hockey match at the domain, Warkworth V Omaha – the visiting team won. Jean went to spend the weekend at Will Dunnings.

Sunday 11th   It was a very wet day and blowing a hurricane.  None of us stirred off the place.

Monday 12th   It was a fine day, but everything was very wet and water was lying on the ground everywhere.  Jane and Mildred went down to Dollys in the afternoon.  I went down to the domain , water was lying about everywhere.

Tuesday 13th   It was a fine day.  I was weeding onions in the afternoon.  In the afternoon Jim rode over to Leigh.

Wednesday 14th  It was a fine day.  I was weeding onions.

Thursday 15th   It was a dull cold day.  Jim sent a crate of fowls away by the steamer.

Friday 16th   It was a fine day.  I was weeding the onions.

Saturday 17th   With the exception of one rather heavy shower in the afternoon it was a fine day, I finished weeding the Onions.

Sunday 18th   It was a fine day.  Revd Parsons held service in the morning, all went but me.  Two of Will Dunnings girls were here for dinner& tea.  I went down to Pats in the afternoon,  Eddie, Ivy and three little boys came while I was there.

Monday 19th   It was a fine day.  The Stewarts who had spent the day yesterday at Laurences and staid the night on returning home this morning  Mrs Stewart called here this morning and staid for lunch.
I planted 2 rows of Shallots.  In the evening I received a letter from Margret Clarke telling me of the death of her mother, the widow of my brother Henry who lived at Sydenham near London, so now I am the only survivor  of a once large family.

Tuesday 20th   It was a dull cold day.  I did not do any work outside.
I wrote a letter to my niece Margaret Clarke in England.

Wednesday 21st   It was a fine day.  I was glad to get up into the garden again.  I planted another row of Shallots.  Took up the bean sticks that were blown over in the late gale and tied them in bundles. Mr Perks the Traveller called and Jane got a few things from him.
Last night Dolly was safely delivered of a Daughter.  To day is the first Anniversary of Alma & Laurence Whittaker’s marriage which was celebrated at Devonport,  Jane & I were present and neither of us have been in Auckland since.

Thursday 22nd   It was a fine day.  Jane went up to see Alma & Laurence, she walked there and Laurence brought her back in the car that Mr Wallace had bought of Mr Drawer, the late manager of the Matakana Dairy Factory.  I was working in the garden all day.  I loosened between the rows of Onions, weeded the Daffodils and dug up the flower garden.

Friday 23rd   It was a fine day.  Jim and Jane drove over to Leigh in the morning to attend a clearance sale at Arthur Greenwoods who has sold his place and who is leaving for Auckland.  There was an entertainment in the Leigh hall in the evening in aid of the Omaha show funds.  Jim & Jane staid for it.
I was left alone all day, I sowed in a box seeds of Canterbury Bell and Phlox.

Saturday 24th   It was a fine day.  I dug up a piece of ground between the Shallots and Red Beet.  In the afternoon Mr Archie Dunning came to see me, after a while Mrs Jack Matthew came to see me and she brought me a large Gladiolus bulb that she had raised herself.  All of us went down to the Domain to witness a Hockey Match between Omaha & Matakana, the visiting won, 3 goals to 2.

Sunday 25th   It was a very fine day.  Revd Addenbrooke held service & Holy Communion in the Hall in the morning.  Jane, the children and I went,  Mrs Birdsall & Muny,  Mrs Evans & 2 little girls & Ethel Greenwood.  The Vicar came here for dinner.  As he was driving in a sulky I went with him after dinner as far as Mr Bromleys.  He showed me two beautiful jersey cows he had lately,  both of them had been tested, one was milkes  [sic:  milking]  365 days she gave over 8000 lbs of milk yielding 520 lbs of butter fat.  After leaving Bromleys I walked to Laurence Whitakers.  Mr & Mrs Laddie Whitaker were spending the day there, and after tea Laurence drove us all home in his car, and very kindly brought me to our gate.

Monday 26th   It was a cold dull day.  I did not do any work outside.

Tuesday 27th   A dull cold day.  I did no work outside.  I wrote a letter to Mrs Brown of Warkworth, Secretary of the Anglican church enclosing  2  £1  notes from Mr B. Birdsall and me for the Vicarage fund.

Wednesday 28th   There were several showers, dull day.  When the children came home from school they reported that Mr Stewart was ill and that he had sent for a releaving [sic] teacher.  There should have been Community singing in the hall this evening, but on account of Mr Stewart’s illness  and sickness at Big Omaha it was put off.

Thursday 29th   It was a fine day.  I planted Pansy plants & 3 Aquilegia plants in a box, also planted 2 clumps of Gladioli that Charl gave me,  Also a large bulb of Cladialus that Mrs Jack Matthew gave me.

Friday 30th   It was a fine day.  I cut the weeds off the piece of ground next the Eschalotts, and gave a lot of them to a Jersey cow in the paddock, I noticed that she would eat Canadian thistles.

Saturday 31st   It was a fine day.  In the morning I cleared the onion beds of weeds.  In the afternoon I went down to the Domain to witness a hockey match Omaha  V  Dome Valley,  Omaha won 4  .  3 goals.  The visiting team were entertained at a good afternoon tea by the ladies.

The rainfall for July as registered at the P O Warkworth was 8.84 inches.  Rain fell on 11 days, heaviest fall being on the 10th when 3.59 inches were recorded.