T.I. Rainfall.

Water Shortage Feared.

From Our Own Correspondent.

Thursday Is., Jan. 25.

THE town reservoir has been depleted for some weeks, and water has been turned off, residents having to de pend on their own rainwater tanks.

January has been a dry month, and only five inches of rain have fallen to date, though normally we should be get ting from twelve to thirty inches for the month. There have been exception ally dry years when the annual rainfall has been only about ten inches or so, as in 1890, and townsfolk are hoping that 1933 is not going to be included in that list.

In the early days of the settlement, when water was scarce, the naval cutter “Pearl” was requisitioned to carry a cargo to the town. The commander, how ever, objected to his “gunboat” being used for water-carrying and protested, but submitted to authority. Just as he got into the harbour, a deluge of rain came down and filled the domestic tanks.

The most pleased person was the “Pearl’s” commander, who straightway emptied his water tanks into the sea and was thus able to say—“I told them I wouldn’t act as a common water carrier, and I didn’t!”

The Postmaster (Mr. Grenier) has been looking up rainfall records over the last forty-two years, and comparisons are very interesting. Some of the figures are:

Inches.

Inches. 1890 10.50 1911 53.11 1891 80.37 1912 61.54 1892 71.08 1913 82.87 1893 79.79 1914 79.47 1894 79.58 1915 43.87 1895 34.16 1916 94.22 1896 34.67 1917 89.30 1897 59.65 1918 45.33 1898 98.50 1919 54.12 1899 63.53 1920 58.26 1900 32.04 1921 63.54 1901 57.09 1922 63.04 1902 68.67 1923 77.21 1908 60.68 1924 60.92 1909 80.28 1925 65.01 1910 75.82