GOOD PROGRESS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 138, 23 March 1935, Page 3

GOOD PROGRESS

SMALL-FARM SCHEME. UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF. (Special to the “ Guardian.”) WELLINGTON, March 22. Hie progress of the Government’s small-farm scheme for the relief of unemployment was a subject mentioned by the Minister of Lands (the Hon. E. A. Ransom). He said that up to the present 1170 men had been placed on individual holdings or on share-milk-ing farms. Of this number 356 fulltime farmers had been placed on 23,635 acres, which had been developed by the gmall Farms Board. The board was engaged in the development of a total area of 35,300 acres, which was estimated to provide 459 full-time farms, and the operations were providing employment at "slightly better than relief rates for 1200 men. A total of 2372 men had been taken from the unemployed labour ranks and were now engaged in reproductive work. If the statement was extended to include ordinary Crown land development (349) and afforestation (900), the total number of men at present engaged on the Crown’s land operations reached 3621. , “The policy of the Small Farms Board is to select blocks of unimproved or partially-improved land, to develop it was unemployed labour, and t° ailo ~ cate the subdivisions by holding a ballot' among the suitable married men employed on the block,” said the M - ister “Over 23,000 acres have been so developed and are now m occupation as separate farms, while the 3o blocks, aggregating oyer 35,000 aaes, which are at present under development, are estimated to provide 45J full-time holdings. , “The policy adopted by the boaid ensures that the prospective settlers will be established at a cost which should ensure their success even j prices for produce do not greaflyexceed their present low level. But it also restricts the scheme largely to those localities, principally m tne North Island, where Grown la » d “ available or wheie low-priced partiallydeveloped lands can be purchased. Apart from the provision of work for the unemployed and their ultima establishment in farming 011 " account, the scheme has a definite na tional value in the restoration of deteriorated or rapidly-reverting propei, ties, and has also made possibie the bringing into production of thous of acres of unoccupied Crown land which otherwise would not have been capable of economic development. “Statistics and general statemen canot give an adequate idea of fh| extent of the work done undei th scheme or of its value to a particuku district or to the Bomimon m general. Only a personal inspection can do tht. The transformation effected in calities is most striking. . j s “So far as the cost of the scheme concerned, a total of £467,013 has been expended to date, but it would not be correct to divide thi. amount.by the number of settlers established and arrive at a per capita establishment COi “Tlie Small Farms Board has “Jj posed a limit of approximately LI2OU per man settled, and this is the gu jW figure when any new scheme is under consideration. . So far th» has been exceeded m onlj ve y cases, and present indications die that the average cost of providing a supporting holding for each man will be wellwithin the limit mentioned. Tim gratifying result has been made po - Sble largely by reason of the fact that the full labour cost of development has been met by Board, while, In addition, the Public Works Fund has so far provided most of the access loading costs. “There can be no doubt,” concluded the Minister, “that tlie Small Farms Scheme is providing a satisfactoiy avenue for the employment of surplus labour and that it will prove of value to the Dominion as a whole, lhe question of extending it on more compre-. hensive lines is, of course, one oi policy involving such considerations as that of still further expanding our production at a time when produce prices are exceedingly low and when serious marketing problems are facing the dominion.”