THE HERALD. Alexandra Oct. 20, 1909 THE FRUIT INDUSTRY.

Alexandra Herald and Central Otago Gazette, Issue 698, 20 October 1909, Page 4

THE HERALD. Alexandra Oct. 20, 1909 THE FRUIT INDUSTRY.

Although it has been what may be i termed a long time coming, the fruit industry promises to furnish the key to the problem, so ofteu asked, as to what means are required to bring about the farther prosperity of the interior of this province. Previously few people in this j district followed fruit culture as a means j of itriihood, but whilst the numbers were small they were Sufficiently successful to prove a guidance to others j thai tJ*« industry was worth development. ! A vl.-t; round the district convinces us I that thv fruit-growing, capabilities of! Central Otago have already been amply L demonstrated, and . opportunities have presented themselves to show that under j (lie personal supervision aud advice of ' .'■it- Government inspectors the fruil production of our immediate locality will jtu the near future assume ' large | iLiuieusious. An inspection of the f orchards in the Teviot district is an ' \ ibject lesson in this direction, for there \ jhe growers availed themselves of the H'eseiuv of inspectors and experts, with ihe result that their energies were j Concentrated lin the proper Channel 1 jiowards' success.- ! - The fr'uitifefli|slry,'so , I:ar as this district is concerned, is merely ' j u its ifffaney,\ but the importance of j j ruit-culture and its probable develop- | neiit, if given j due attention, entitles it o serious and careful consideration, j :he laud is admirably adapted to the igrowth of all fruits that are not altogether ■ sub-tropical, and with easy facilities for marketing there is ample'justification for stating that the great and natural IresOurces of this district are capable of the increased demand for [luscious fruit. And here lies the crux >!' the whole position. Around the jiistrict orchardists are springing up [everywhere, areas are being planted in 'different kinds of fruits, and growers jarc devoting their entire energies to the jsuccess of their orchards. But it will not be taken amiss if we remind growers that to ensure success in fruit-growing many matters'? must be duly considered, otherwise investors will surely come toi grief. For instance, it is laid down by ■ experts that,.with respect to the selection of fruit trees,'',the indiscriminate planting of poor and undesirable ;..rt> cansn mucJi Linnoyanee and disappoint- ' meur. advice is given to plauj but the best marketable vai ''i es'.b|i,good quality and suited for she parp6se : intended. Grive the trees dose iittealjon, and the profit may be gauged Ifplie thoroughness of the work. Proper "tfiphods of pruning and- good tillage are indispensable; whilst the ; spraying of trees must be thoroughly done, otherwise much fruit will be produced totally unsuited for the market. Thinning is also necessary in order to produce uniform, high-grade fruit. We : could go on .quoting numerous other : methods to be adopted if the culture of fruit is to be successful. However, that is not our intention. ; Ratli'er is it to I advocate the necessity for the immediate kstablishment of an experimental fruit . urra iu our' locality. The time'is | ipportune for such an institution being !] established ' in' this district' by the jl Government; for it would i'mp'ary&ucMij useful knowledge to growers. mental fruit farms exist in ife*, otherim parts of the dominion, and educational value is freely recognised-by % the numbers who visit'these places to f ascertain the proper methods of : fruit | cultivation, as well as the varieties most J suitable for the respective climates/ The | estabUshment of an experimental orchard I been promised to the .district', aiid a j I' -able' site has been selected, but; gi district are persistent in then. 1 this necessitous institution V,ill new I ; „,„. to nas* The fruit industry is no\ I SdTasthe\ole salvation of Otag< 1 Sthoves the I ' arians to combine in one united agiwtio |i r^establislnnentin.this.Us^t 1 u fruit culture and lay 1 ' im industry that; :will.^ove^ | but remunerative to the v, no dominion, ; ■.,.- "Atxirter or wardsman.is wanted for Ihe Dunstan hospital. Applications clo.se 30th inst. A ii>eeting lo form a land league wiU he ■ heid at Bald Hill Flat to-morrow evening at I 7.30 p.m. We understand that a number.of I members from the local league intend being j present. r- On Tuesday next Mr George Fache will i sell, by auction at Clyde two valuable water ! rights at Blackman'fe Gully and one alluvial' ' claim- The properties should command i keen competition, for.they are all splendidly I situated. • ... ' j The annual horse parade in connection ; with the Central Otago A. and P. Associa- | tion wil] be held at Ophir on Thursday, 28th j inst. (court.day). A meeting of the associa- ! tion will be held on the same day, likewise the privileges for the show will be auctioned. I Railway excursion fares in connection with I the annual show of the Central Otago A. and | P. association will be-issued from Clyde; j Alexandra and Galloway on Noveraper 12th. j A special train will leave Omakau at 7.30 ! p.m. after the show for Clyde. It is said that next census will mean the j loss to Otago of another electorate, and j already Taieri has .been chosen by the I wiseacres as the constituency that will dis- | appear, from the political map. The closer ] settlement of Crown lands in Central Otago j appears the only solution of the population | difficulty of the province, and when that i problem has been successfully solved Otago j has every hope of regaining her long-lost j status. The Parliamentary correspondent of the j Lyttleton Times says there appears to be no ; likelihood of a change in the Ministry during | the present session, and the accepted theory jis that the positk ill remain as it is. The I report that the . a. Thomas Mackenzie j would be raised to full Cabinet rank was | current last week, but incpairy from the | most reliable of all sources of information I was met with the positive declaration that | there was nothing to be announced. Through tlie instrumentality of the Alexandra Brass Banc} the "funds 'of the | Dnustan District' Hospital h a Ve this year I benefited to the extent of some odd. j Hospital Sundays at Clyde and Alexandra i realised £ll and £ii 8s respectively, and I Alexandra's special appeal last Saturday will ; mean an additional .£2B to the funds of the , institution. The trustees are under a debt of I gratitude to . the band for their gratuitous : services from time to time in raising funds • for the upkeep 6f the hospital.

■ Very changeable weather has been exI th ~»ehout Central Otago lately; I betTi noCtl ? 1 ? a, . es have started, last week' I being extremely boisterous Fo|low . • If auenS 7 „!° Sunday ni S hts ' and in conseI & P° ta °? s > tomatoes and varieties o£ inn! ZJI . conse q u e°«. Sports Up. lilreilv hn l - hat l - a m ™y P arts Pastured I Sales *Jr ,n &, S,gns 0f withering udHer the Ifu£r £ • wh ' lst u g r °wth this"season "ik' | further advanced than former years -raid iff lot ' ll' nu to , give U another f^sh.-lease IS , ri,U .« - a " d . ex^ rien "d. settlers affirm ■ that is the best, experienced-in I Central Otago for the past thirty years I According to the report of DrXockayne on I the sand d unes of New ZeaA which has host arrived from the Government office, the !™ rl nd du " eS in 0ta S° amou "ts to 5,325 * acres Ihe most extensive dunesiare scattered |aeasfr omTa, 0 mTa,a r o a Head to near the mouth *of the raien River, com £ rkwfrl,3lo acns. \Z ZZT- a % Waitat l(' L • o? Ul ' The , r ? are ira P°'tant areasin fCeatial Otago, notably on the banks of the jUutha River, at Tarras (700 acres) at Lowburn (200 acres), at Cromwell (700 acres), [ scattered areas between Alexandra and Clyde " ; extending for about six miles by an average breadth of two miles. The report is of conrelding S ' a " d Pr ° VideS intcresti ne An inquest was held at Alexandra on I Inns-day last before Mr H.. Schaumann, acting coroner, and a jury of six, of. whom . Mr A. Ashworth was chosen foreman, touchnig the death of Robert Nichol, who committed suicide at LiuKr'Valiey, Galioivay; station, by, cutting his throat with a razor;' ■■>■ Alter hearing a good deal, of, evidence the • ury retired and returned the.. following verdict: " That deceased came by his dealth through a wound in the throat severing the"" windpipe, self indicted whilst' temporary insane, but thejury has not sufficient evidence ; to show how he came to be in that state.'" ■ The funeral took place on Thursday afternoon, the Rev. A. Watson conducting the burial service. . A wedding of local interest was celebrated tat Roxburgh on 7th inst., when Miss Lily .Watson, daughter of Mr John Watson, of ! Dumbarton, was joined in nuptial blessed- ' [mess to Mr Robert Churchill, of Alexandra. : The ceremony was performed in the Method ■ dist Church by the Rev. Mr Pratt, who presented the happy couple with a bible, the occasion being the first marriage- celebrated , in the church. The.bride was attended by her two sisters as bridesmaids, whilst Mr Ri Churchill (brother of the bridegroom) and Mi- A.- Donaldson filled the respective roles of best man and groomsman. The churchwas tilled by a large, number of friends and »■■. relatives, and after the ceremony an adjournment was made to the residence of the bride's parents, where refreshments were partaken jof. The happy couple left for' Alexandra' ( and then took train for Dunediri. The honeymoon is being spent in Australia. Mr and Mrs Churchill, were the recipients of. numerous and costly presents, Mr Churchill receiving a handsome marble clock from the,: crew of the Lady Annie dredge, of which he is a member. • Intending cycling and athletic competitors iare reminded, that nominations in connection .with the Alexandra Caledonian Society's fsports gathering, on November 9th, close with [the secretary on Saturday next, at • 8 p m;' I The society has this year gone to considerable >expensein improving both the running and., icycling tracks, and an inspection of the ground.. jis sufficient to convince one that the tvyo - wracks are unequalled outside of Dunedin. | The cycling track has been widened .'and [[further embanked at the corners, wH.ilst the"■ -- Summing track will be in excellent order" on - I sports day.. This latter track is a-grass one,' jf.and at present it is being rolled, and cut. It • I bears an.attractive appearance to runners, and fit is hoped that competitors will-show,their. I approval 4>( the society's aim by nominating lin goodly uumbers. The cycling events are I expected to rill- well,, and the same 'remark I applies to the running and field .events. -The if society,, has erected a substantial pavilion on : the grounds, and as the local " Rec " never i| looked better than .it does at present every - inducement is extended to patrons to attend , •I the gathering. With two such well-known f offlciais as Mr Attfield (handicappcr) and Mr I Ketld !) (starter) competitors can rely on re-' i ceiving every e.-»*i«id -ration, lor the society | has display--*-' ■'- '-'•■=>« course in the selection kof ilMdktwo utrices. . . A Saturday night last was-chosen as a suit-Bfc-blc occasion for a special appeal being made ». I ■ >n the generosity of the public of Alexan- '" ~a lor funds to assist the trustees of the v '"nmstan Hospital in tiding over their present.,-. ), iancial difficulty, brought about through the 6- jf.er taxation of the institution owing to the i a ' jcent typhoid, epidemic. The Alexandra j.ringans, appeared in the street and disn f imrsed a lengthy musical programme. .The. °-, ,ght was calm, and there was a large attend- . W hce'of townspeople, who came out with the ,le istmcl luctr.iipff of assisting the movementhe response from the public was of a mas t beral nature, and the outcome of the efforts- ■ of the collectors .(Messrs Si-Cameron and'S; j T Spain, the latter a trustee of the hospital) : resulted in the handsome sum of £l3 0s BJd i being collected. As the voluntary contribu-' . j tion carries with it the Government subsidy of 24s in the pound, the funds of the hospital will benefit to the. extent of £2B 12s. This j amount will, nbgftoubt, be received with; | much gratification: by the trustees, and is. an j indication that the public of Alexandra,', whose j generosity has long since become proverbial, j are in entire sympathy'with ,the trustees in. | their present condition re finance. Too much ] praise cannot hi bestowed upon the members I of the band, who are ever ready.to come forth I and assist in any deserving movement, especially for the Dunstan Hospital..' The' col-' j lectors informed us'that their efforts were' hiade ] easy by the liberal response from everyone, j and in conclusion a word of thanks' is due to j the collectors and especially to Mr Cameron, i who was instrumental,, along with Mr Spaini.. jin inaugurating.and bringing to a successfulissue the appeal fen funds. ''":•," >' : '- ; f '- -'yil'l'MY' "*!;:'!'-•"■ .■.(j l ;-. ■• ■>' V.-';' There appears to be every of; | the barren land now lying between Alexandra, ; and; Clyde being transformed into smiling. : fields and fruitful orchards in the near future. ! For some considerable time past a local j syndicate has had under consideration a | patent pumping plant for lifting water'from I the Vlolyneux river for irrigation i and-the invention, is said to .have reached aj successful completion. With a view, to.de- : monstrating the capacity of the invention the ■ syndicate has approached the Land Board to ,{ purchase at a nominal price about 1000 acres ; of the aril land between Alexandra and I Clyde The proposal is to erect a pumping j plant and lift water on to the ()ats to irrigate i the land for fruit cultivation. The syndicate | will undertake the planting of fruit trees, and i when it has successfully cultivated the land i and the trees have reached full bearing the j intention is to subdivide the area into- small I fruit farms. These will be offered to settlers j at a price sufficient to compensate the syndicate for its outlay, or else leased to j intending orchardists. A meeting of the | syndicate was held at Alexandra last week, ; and it is said that capital amounting to | £14,000 was forthcoming to carry the j proposal into effect. We understand'tha^ i included in the syndicate are two gentlemen I from Australia, who have had 'considerable** j experience in irrigation works ip .'diflfjerejit ! parts of the world. At last meeting of'.the I Land League it was'unanimously decided.to | support the syndicate in'its request for an area of land, and we have the assurance that if the proposal is favorably considered by the Land Board immediate steps will be taken to erect the pumping plant and fence the 1 land for fruit cultivation.

A leading Auckland land agent told a Herald reporter that his firm could do with 250 houses of four or five rooms. Large numbers of married people in the city are residing in hotels and boarding* houses and in sub-let houses. T4"? severe frosts experienced on Saturday and Sunday nights have proved somewhat disastrous on apricots iu several of the orchards in this district. It is said that several orehardists have lost as much fruit owing to the frost as they forwarded to market last season. Although not largely attended, the social held at Clyde on Thursday last under the auspices of the Clyde Football Club was a most enjoyable function. An excellent table supper was provided by lady supporters of the club, and a very pleasant evening spent by those present at the soeiai. Mr John Symoiis. s.»n of Mr rl. Syraous, of Galloway, who left here some three years ago under engagement to a dredging company in Upper Burmah, returned to Alexandra last week looking none the worse for his sojourn iu the foreign elitnes. »Mr Syinons intends leaving for Burmah again about the middle of the year. Yesterday Mr Horn (county chairman), Mr Menzies (engineer), and Crs Weaver and Smart paid a visit of inspection to the proposed bridge site across the Manuherikia river at Galloway. We understand they were not very favorably impressed with the site, the general impression being that in flood time the river is apt to take a totally different course and thus leave the structure high ami dry. It is pleasing news to learn that the prospects of another record fruit yield so far as this district is concerned are exceptionally bright. Stone fruit appears to be very heavy, and growers will be kept busily engaged thinning when the time arrives for such work being undertaken. Again, the farming outlook is indeed promising, aud crops are in a forward condition. Times are . good" just now, and a steady warm rain would be much appreciated by farmers and settlers alike. Up till the end of last year cheques amounting to over £29,000 had been drawn by Mr Andrew Carnegie for donation to various New Zealand institutions. Amounts presented in other countries were as follows:—United States, £6,976,000; Canada, £410,000; England and Wales, £1,570,000; Ireland, £144,900 ; Scotland, £415,000, and a number of smaller amounts. Speeial bequests for college libraries totalled over £700,000, and the aggregate donations amounted to more than £10,000,000. Replying to a deputation at Wellington on Monday last re the construction of the Lawrence-Roxburgh railway, Sir Joseph Ward said that the Government proposed that the line should be carried on to Beaumont, but not on to Roxburgh. The people interested would have to

guarantee the difference if it did not pay v - up to 3 per cent. If the line was found to pay only 2h per cent, then the people between Lawrence and Beaumont *ould have to make up the extra 4 per cent. The deputation afterwards met in private, and it is understood that they will submit certain phases of the question to the people interested before again approaching the Government. Lamb docking is now in full swing throughout Central Otago, every fine day being taken advantage of to get the lambs docked. The results of lambing are highly satisfactory—good strong lambs and plenty of them being reported from all districts. Twin lambs are present in considerable numbers, and even triplets are common. We learn

from many old and experienced settlers that this year's lambing constitutes a record for .Central Otago, the percentage being greater than former years. Bountiful spring rains have contributed largely to the increase of pasture, and with plenty of feed the young lambs are thriving exceptionally well. To-morrow afternoon an important property sale will be held by Mr L. Evan, who is leaving for the North Island. The properties include (1) freehold sections, with'brick offices thereon; (2) freehold sections with comfortable

dwelling splendidly situated on main road near railway station; (3) freehold section already fenced. The lot presents an admirable opportunity to anyone desirous of securing valuable property, and as exceptionally easy terms can be arranged keen competition should take place for the properties. Household furniture and effects will also be offered, and as the sale will be conducted absolutely without reserve numerous bargains will no doubt be forthcomiug.

After a residence in Alexandra since boyhood, Messrs W. A. and D. Theyers, accompanied by dieir mother, left here at the beginning of the week for Auckland, where they intend to reside in future. That old established business which was commenced in the early digging days by Mr Theyers, senr., and afterwards successfully carried on by his two sons, was disposed of some three

months ago. Both brothers intend to

go into business in Aucklaud in the agency line, and their vast experience should be of great assistance to them in the northern province. Prior to their

departure they were entertained by the local Scottish Society, of which they were members since its inception some few years ago.

Wc are in receipt of the October numl ir of Good Cheer, New Zealand's popular home journal. The issue is a creditable one, and should do much to enhance the esteem in which thii bright production is held. Housewives are particularly well provided for in the matter of cooking and general hints, while all members of the household will find stories, jokes, and interesting articles. The children's letters cover almost four pages. The two sports bodies in Roxburgh—athletic and cycling - appear to have reached a very low ebb—owing to lack of interest in their welfare. At both annual meetings last week regret wxs expressed at the failure of competitors to take an interest in the clubs, and after some discussion it was resolved that both climbs be dissolved. The athletic club has a credjt balance of £>i, and the cycling club is in funds to the extent of -C-iQ. ff any future sports club applies for the funds the amount in hand will be handed over providing the trustees are satisfied as to the bona tides of the club. An effort beiny made to form one club instead of two different bodies as has hitherto been the case.—Since writing the above we learn that a strong sports club lias been formed.