POWER DISTRICTS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 37, 13 February 1926, Page 15

POWER DISTRICTS.

a ■ 'OUR OF WAITEMATA BOARD, i THAMES VAIXEY FARMS. BASIS-OF CHARGES. (By Telegraph.—Special to "Star."* HAMILTON, Friday. Tne tour of ihe Waitemata Power ;oard to the power. diatricts of the 7aikato and Thames Valley afforded a plendid opportunity of witnessing the nprovement of the lot of the man on he land as the result of the applica:on of electricity co the home, factory nd milking-3hed! The county members f the Board were particularly interested l tbe effect of the operation of the utterfat basis eliding scale of charge Dr the farming load. This system oi at rate obtains in the Thames Valley, ut the other boards are not charging n this basis, which is proposed foT Vaitemata. Farms were therefore isited to elicit whether the butterfat asis worked out equitably to the conumer. Recovered from the Swamp. The "Bellevue Farm." at Mangaiti. "hames Valley, was the first inspected, nd this waa of particular interest to he visitors. As- a typical instance of .-hat has heen accomplished by the drainge of swamp lands in this locality, on he Hanraki Plains, and elsewhere, it is Worthy of remark that forty years ago his area of 668 acres was all covered rith Sax. Only 250 acres. of the area .re not now in use because of swamp. "he balance of the 400 odd acres, a ear ago carried 271 cows. 44 two-year-dd* heifers, ten pedigree Jerseys, 41 . ;razed calves, ten grazed yearlings, 210 heep, and a dozen horses, which have teen added. to this year by forty head if cattle. The milking machines on this arm was the first plant put down in he valley. The butterfat production ince tells the same story 33 the history >f the leading primary Dominion industry does elsewhere. For the year L9IS-19 the butterfat oiitput was !2.0641b; - for 1019-20. 24.3251b; for 1920-21. 26.3741b; far 1921-22 eoincilent with the installation of electricity). &.183Ib; for 1922-23. 51,3761b; or 1923-24, 50,5211b; for 1924-25. 58,5091b: and for the current year ipproximately 65,0G01b. Besides "this :h.ere is a considerable output ot lax from_ the estate. The homestead vas re-erected eight years ago. after the iesfruction by fire of the original louse. The long entrance in the centre >f the property is fringed- on one side w giant pines 35 years old, ranging to i height of 122-feet, with beautiful larrels, and on the -other side by a row )f 25-year-old oaks. Sheltering the home j s a -bed of gums nearly eight years old. j '.n the grounds around • the house is a j :ollection of native trees, including otara, rimu, karaka, puriri and tasetau. The lawn in front of the residence s paapalum, which does well in the wet ountry, and doubtless the mowing nachine hag to be kept going to maintain .hat excellent even surface. A lemon jrove of vigorous growth further demonitrates the „ fertility of the reclaimed iwamp. The grub on the flax hard by s testimony that the land here does tot now flood. Working for Posterity. - Some chains back, on-a plot of ground ooking like a Maori pa, an experiment if considerable interest has been initiited by the engineer of the Thames Valey Power Board, for the purpose of iscertaining the durability of New Zea-and-grown timber for poles for power meg. All these poles are numbered and ndexed One row of the same species las been subjected to different treatnents, and to no treatment. The treatnents, as well as the poles, are being ;ried out- Ten years hence the experinent may be more interesting still, and vlth the lapse of time will doubtless jrove of great educational value. Electricity on tbe Farm. At the miUring-shed a dozen cows are xt the bails. Some 190 cows have to be nilked altogether.. There are two units if plants. The owner of "Bellerae." Mr. F. M. Strange, touches the ilectric switch, and in a. twinkle the ;hree horse-power motors is operating the 12-cow plant, and the separator and pump, all at the same time. Mr. Strange ieclares that the - electric power is inlomparably cheaper than the benzine sngine, in his experience; neither does le know of one solitary instance where i farmer in the district has gone back to the engine. Moreover, the biggest opponent against the adoption of the jlectric power scheme had now got it installed. Next, the party is conducted to the wash-house, where Miss Ethel Strange iemonstrates the ease and speed with which the clothes are washed and dried by the electric washer. The clothes are put into the .larg« container, inside of which is adjusted the spinning basin in in inclined position. The switch is touched, and the clothes immediately revolve in the water. Afterwards the same basin, which is perforated, is placed in a flat position inside the container. Into the revolving basin are placed the washed clothes, which, when the electric power is again switched' on, are spun round at a great speed, and dried by this means. Outside, too, is a one-third horse-power motor operating a pump, for the domestic water supply. In the kitchen is the electric stove. Opposite is the ordinary range—now relegated to the position of a "stand-by plant" —but which has been used once only since the electric stove was installed a year ago, on the authority of Mrs. Strange herself. In the season; food had to be cooked for fifteen people, and the electric stove was by far the more satisfactory and labour-saving cooker. After the joint is roasted, this lady explains, enough heat remains to cook a cake. By turning off the top, and only low at the bottom, she could "forget all about a cake for four hours—and it would be quite aH right." The house is also lighted by electricity; so that on this farm electricity has been a great boon. Another farm called at belonged to Mr. B. Schware, at Matamata. Over 100 cows were being milked here, the approximate production of butterfat for the season being 30,0001b. The milking plant was operated by electric power, which he preferred for cleanliness and convenience, even if it was no cheaper than the benzine engine. There is still another powerful argument in favour of electricity, it seems. One sporting fanner, who had discarded the benzine engine, on being asked how electricity was going on here, replied: "AH right!" I went to the Thames races this meeting for the first time in five years!"