FARMERS’ TOUR

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 49, Issue 200, 10 June 1929, Page 7

FARMERS’ TOUR

CANTERBURY EXCURSIONfSTS.

ARRIVAL AT WELLINGTON. * (Special to the “Guardian.”) WELLINGTON, June 9. The Canterbury and West Coast farmers have entered on the final stages of their fortnight’s tour. They arrived in Wellington at yY s_ •jterday from Palmerston! North. the weather fortunately had taken up overnight, and bright sunshine prevailed throughout the day. The tourists have been extremely fortunate in the matter of weather, as only one wet day has been experienced since the party left Christ church twelve days ago. Yesterday the party was left to its own resources as far as sight-seeing was concerned. The majority attended the football matches, whilst others took part in bus excursions around the lays and environs of thft city. To-<l£iy * the more active indulged m further sight-seeing. . ’ To-morrow forenoon the visitors will he escorted through the Parliament .Buildings and the Mayor will officially pgfawil a welcome at the Town Hall »t mid-day. The distinction has been conferred mi the visitors in all but one of the • centres visited, the Mayors of Hamilton, Cambridge, Rotorua, and Palmers'ton North expressing the pleasure of their respective communities at tho opportunity of welcoming the firstsouthern farmers’ party to visit the north. At Palmerston North, the Mayor, Mr Graham, and the member for Manawatu, Mr Linklater, mentioned that they were both ex-South Islanders. The number of farmers and ipnblio men met with on the tour who originally came from the southern side of Cook Strait was remarkable, and it was suggested in various speeches that the north owed a good deal of its progress to the people and to the capital that responded to the call of a few decades.,ago to “Go north, young man.” Incidentally these gatherings provided an opportunity for visiting speakers to urge a sympathetic consideration in the North of South Island farmers’ problems. Mr J. Carr, of Methven, placed the wheat-growers’ case before bis audiences at various centres, and Mr A. Fisher, of CulverMen, spoke with no uncertainty about tta attitude adopted in some quarters in, the north regarding the East Coast railway. To-morrow afternoon a trip wul be made to Petone to inspect the works , of General Motors, Ltd., the largest establishment of its kind in the Do- | minion. Pictures will be screened and i afternoon tea .provided by the company. The ferry boat will be caught I m the evening for the last stage of | the journey to Lyttelton. j The tour has been wonderfully successful. It has been capably managed by the Railway Department, w hich | kept the special train running well up ] to time-table, and with an itinerary j that provided a happy combination' of the scenic and the practical. The party would have liked another day at Rotorua, where the accommodation was excellent, the services for sightseeing of the best; but this would have meant a curtailment elsewhere. Generally the provision for housing the visitors at the various centres was ipost satisfactory, though the choice at Auckland was restricted on account of the race meeting being held there. He ’bus tours around the northern city were part of the arrangements made by the Railway Department, and were included in the cost of the ticket. The visitors did not come into touch with the representatives of any farming organisations in Auckland, and the courtesy of the Auckland Racing Club, n extending an invitation to the final day’s races, and to see the beautiful garden surroundings, was very i much appreciated. There was something in. the nature of an influenza epidemic in Auckland, and a few of the party contracted colds of more or less severity. A rest of a couple of days permitted all but two of the visitors to leave with the main body, but a case of congestion devel--1 oped at Palmerston, with the victim, a lady, being removed to the hospital. Three or four members of the party ' had to leave in the final stages of. the trip through some untoward happening at home. The excursionists are unanimous in their expressions of pleasure. They recognise that under no system of private touring could they see or have explained to them a quarter of the subjects and sights met with on the tour. There is little doubt, moreover, that a real practical result will follow, partiqularly in regard to the big question of top-dress-ing and pasture management. In both the Waikato and Manawatu hopes were expressed that parties would visit the south next year, and Canterbury farmers’ organisations may depend on the members of the present party to rendered all the assistance possible to entertain them.