Monday 1st It was showery all day. Samuel & I dug in the garden when the weather would permit, and we made a bee box when it was wet.
Tom was not well, so he went home and staid all day, he came back in the evening. The “Ida Zeigler” came in from Auckland in the morning. The cutters “Aquilla” & “Three Brothers” came into harbour in the afternoon windbound, en route for Wangarei & Mangawai.
Tuesday 2nd It was not so wet to day as it has been these last few days, although we had a few showers.
We continued digging in the garden. Joe & I went over to Speedwell in the afternoon, Angus Kemp brought home the horse in the afternoon.
Wednesday 3rd It was a fine day with the exception of one shower of rain in the morning. We continued to dig in the garden.
Thursday 4th We continued to finished digging the garden, Samuel sowed the rest of the Oates next to the Poultry Yard, he also sowed a little Bone Dust with them & raked them in.
In the afternoon we made a log fence round some Peach Trees in the clearing.
Friday 5th We commenced to fence in a piece of ground in the clearing below the Wheat with a log fence which we shall hoe up for Maize.
Saturday 6th We finished making the fence in the clearing. Mr Dyer & Willie came in the afternoon.
Sunday 7th Tom & Samuel went to Pakiri for the day.
I went over to the Andersons in the afternoon and staid for tea.
The schooner “Saucy Lass” came into harbour in the afternoon en route for Napier.
Monday 8th We got the bullocks yoked up early in the morning & Samuel drew out all of the posts that were at the lowest heap and part of those at the top heap, besides firewood for the house.
Tom & I commenced breaking up ground down in the clearing, the ground is so loose & the roots are so rotten that we are digging it up.
Tuesday 9th We continued digging in the clearing & burning off rubbish. In the afternoon we began planting Potatoes in the ground we are digging up, we planted 7 rows.
Wednesday 10th We got the bullocks yoked up and Samuel drew out rails, Tom and I planted 8 rows of Potatoes, we continued hoeing up & burning off rubbish.
Thursday 11th Thomas Smith came on to work to day at 10s per week, he has been working for Mr Dwyer of Pakiri for some time, but lately he has been living with the Maoris.
We continued digging in the clearing and we planted 3 rows of Potatoes. Joe went to Pakiri on the horse to get the newspapers & letters.
Friday 12th It rained all day so that we could not work out of doors. Tom & Samuel finished making three bee boxes, Tommy & Joe got some stumps up in the clearing in the afternoon when the weather had taken up a little.
Saturday 13th It was a fine day, with the exception of a few showers. We had the bullocks up and Samuel drew out 220 rails, we continued digging in the clearing, we also planted some Potatoes. I killed the Turkey Hen.
Sunday 14th It was a fine day. Willie Greenwood came over in the morning & staid for dinner, also John Wyatt, so that we had quite a large party. The cutter “Stag” arrived in harbour in the afternoon from Auckland, Captain Trayte came up by her, she brought some provisions for me.
Monday 15th We got the bullocks up and drew up two loads from the beach also posts & rails. Tommy & Tom W— continued to dig up ground in the clearing. Willie Greenwood borrowed my horse to carry some flour up to his place.
Mr Wright of Pakiri came over in the morning & staid for dinner.
Tuesday 16th We continued breaking up ground in the clearing, we took out a large Pouriri root and made a heap on the ground that is dug up, as the roots are too large to roll to the fire. Tommy & Joe went to take a bees nest in the afternoon but returned without any honey.
Wednesday 17th Got the bullocks up and we drew out all the rails for the fence, Samuel went to Pakiri on the horse in the afternoon. We made fires in the clearing and mended the fence up. The bitch Rose had five pups to day four dogs & one bitch, they almost all take after the mother.
Thursday 18th Samuel, Tom & John went to Pakiri to see if they could buy a cow of Mr Wright, they brought one home in the afternoon that is very near calving.
Tommy & I worked over in the clearing. We drowned three of Rose’s pups and kept two dogs.
Friday 19th We continued breaking up ground in the clearing, we are taking a large Pouriri root out. Mr Witten left some flour here for me to take care of for him, he staid and had some dinner with us. I went over to Mr Knaggs in the afternoon & staid for tea there.
A large swarm of bees came out to day, they swarmed in the tea tree scrub just outside the garden fence, it is the first swarm this season.
Saturday 20th We got the bullocks up and began ploughing in Potatoes on the fern land, we planted the potatoes in every third furrow and sowed a little bone dust in the same furrow as the potatoes.
In the afternoon we loosed the bullocks out early & Samuel killed the cow Moinie as I thought she was not in calf, but on opening her we found a small calf, gone about three months.
Sunday 21st John Wyatt came over early in the morning to help Samuel cut the meat up, & they put it down in the whare on the beds & covered it over with sacks, Tom Wyatt went to Pakiri on the horse and he fetched the mail. I went over to Mrs Kirkbride’s and to Mrs Anderson’s in the afternoon.
Monday 22nd We weighed out the beef & served it out to the settlers at 6d per lb, the meat weighed altogether 510 lbs, so that at 6d per lb she brought me in £12.15.0 . We salted our own down in a cask. we had the bullocks up and continued ploughing in potatoes on the ploughed ground.
It was a beautiful day, two steamers passed by en route for Auckland. The big black cat had kittens.
NB My 6 ducks laid last season 24 doz & 3 Eggs & reckoning them worth 1s per doz., their total value was £1.4.3d
Tuesday 23rd Tommy & Samuel ground all the axes & hoes, Tom made some hoe handles in the morning. In the afternoon we dug up ground in the clearing & took out roots.
Mr McGuire arrived from Auckland in the “Ida Zeigler“, he brought me two spades.
Wednesday 24th We got the bullocks up and finished ploughing in the Potatoes in the morning, in the afternoon Samuel harrowed it over two or three times and we broke the lumps with our hoes, there is now about ¾ of an acre planted on the ploughed ground, I lent McKenzie the bullocks to take to Pakiri after they had knocked off work, he is going to draw out spars out of the bush for the vessel that is building on the flat.
Thursday 25th We continued digging in the clearing, the soil at the upper end of the enclosure is not so good as that at the lower end, the soil is all washed off and there remains nothing but a retentive clay.
Friday 26th We continued digging in the clearing & gathering rubbish up into heaps. It looked very thick in the morning but it turned out to be only for heat.
Saturday 27th We continued digging in the clearing, and we finished fencing it all in. It was very misty & we had several showers. Tommy did not work today as he has sprained his thumb.
Sunday 28th It was a fine day, but looked very thick and lowering . I went over to Mrs Anderson’s in the afternoon. There were three vessels in the harbour, the “Dot“, the “Gazelle” and the “Smuggler“.
Monday 29th We continued hoeing up in the clearing. The “Miranda” came into harbour to day, the vessels that were in the harbour yesterday are still there wind-bound.
Tuesday 30th Mr Wyatt & John finished putting up the fence. We continued digging in the clearing and we made a large heap of rubbish and set fire to it.
Wednesday 31st We began to pull down the fence round the Oat paddock and Mr Wyatt & John began to put it up along by the swamp. We burnt off some rubbish in the afternoon near the Whare.