Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1915. FARMERS AND THE WAR.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXXV, Issue 8304, 24 November 1915, Page 4

Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1915. FARMERS AND THE WAR.

It*.is not an exaggeration to : state that upon the fanning- coin;munity rests a great responsij bility in connection with the war. A nation of bad farmers might nullify the superiority of the nation's soldiers and the completeness of their supplies of munitions, for Napoleon's saying .that "an army' travels on its stomach" is as true to-day as when it was uttered. It is in •war-time that the man on the land really comes into his own, and if he farms to the best advantage " for himself he necessarily aids ; the State in a proportionate measure. This fact is so apparent that it is quite. remarkable to .find so much land lying practically idle in many parts of this Dominion. In the Ashburton, County it is estimated there are thousands of acres "of good land that are not producing one-tenth of the crops they could cany, and ■other large areas are almost enttarely unproductive. It is an easy matter to point out land in certain localities, worth from £15 to £30 per acre, choked with weeds. It is difficult to find, a reason for this state of affairs, but. in some cases it is probibly. due to ;the •craze for land speculation. During late years this craze has developed amazingly, and the changes in the ownership of some i arms have been so numerous that all pretence "at systematic farming have been abandoned. In most, cases, of course", the State has no control over these exchanges aad sales, but in the case of Crown lands it should be possible for some permanency of ifcenure and certain reproductive farm work to be insisted upon. Under the Land for Settlements Act supervision of a kind is exer.eised by officials of the Lands Department, but the complaint made by holders under that Act is that the regulations are too strictly enforced —-that no allowance is made for bad seasons. It is certtainly not desirable that a freeholder should be compelled to utilise his land as the. fancy of an official .might dictate, but, in their own interests some ■ fanners might make a great deal more use of their holdings than they do. In .this connection, it is extremely interesting to note the attitude of the British Farmers'! Club. In a recent memorandum on "The Maintenance or Increase; of Food Supplies in' the United! Kingdom," dealing with the posi-j tion of the agricultural community in view of the Government's decision not to fix a minimum price for wheat, the committee of the club states, inter alia, : that " the onus of. creating some method whereby the food supply of the United Kingdom ca.ii be increased in this time of war has been on the shoulders of the Government. Now we realise that the onus is on each individual farmer to increase the wealth of the country in this crisis by such methods feis he may think fit." The committee is outspoken with regard to the careless farmer. The memorandum.goes on to say: " In normal times there is a good i deal of waste in agriculture. It behoves us to avoid waste both commissive and permissive during the war. The biggest waste in agriculture is caused by weeds. As a rule, weeds are permitted by bad farmers only, and a determined attempt, notwithstanding all difficulties, should be made to get rid; of the weeds so that the yield per acre of the crops we grow niay attain- the highest \ standard. There are plenty of good fanners who wish to extend 'their operations, and it is the duty of landlords and agents to see that those who cannot farm their land pro-

perly should make room for those who can. At any rate, bad farmers should be warned of the risk they run." It is ■ interesting to note the committee's views on the wheat question, which is not regarded as dominating the food supply position. "In Urging the increase of foodstuffs," it says, •too'much attention is drawn to wheat. It is true that bread is made mainly of wheat, but there are many other tilings which are required* besides wheat. The increase of the home-grown meat supply is 'quite as urgent as wheat. Oats are 'required in large quantities. It is not wise to neglect barley. Beans cannot be beaten for feed. Hay is required for stock and the Army. Potatoes are a necessity. We are told that there is a large increase of wheat area in 1915 over |hat of 1913 amounting to some 30 per cent. The increase of 1915 over l&l&is some 20 per cent. Except by continuous growth of white straw crops this increase is difficult to maintain arid almost impossible to increase on the land- which is now "arable. It is impossible satisfactorily to grow continuous white straw crops unless the land is clean. In our opinion it would be a great mistake to push the wheat area of any farm unless a satisfactory crop is likely to be obtained. It. is surely better to farm steadily and with clean land to ensure the best results for the farmer and for the country. The question of ploughing up grass at the present time must be decided •by each individual fanner. If it is likely to benefit the pocket ot the individual farmer it will, at this juncture, benefit the State. But much bad and undramed land is safer in grass than in arable.