GROUP SETTLEMENT.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 18, 22 January 1929, Page 5

GROUP SETTLEMENT.

W. AUSTRALIA'S EXPERIENCES.

MINISTER OF LANDS SPEAKS. MISTAKES OF THE PAST. DAIRYING INDUSTRY THRIVES. "The system of the Government J»aying for everything does not bring the best results."' comment el the Hon. M. F. Troy, Minister of La:u!s and Imnii gration in the West Australian Government. who arrived hy the l'li;iwr«.i this liiomißg, accompanied by Mrs. Troy, to spend a few weeks in New Zealand for health reasons. Mr. Troy is an enthusiast as far as land development is concerned. "It is a great recompense for < flic-,"' he said, "to see actual results being achieved in a vast territory, millions of acres of which only a few years ago was cj'isidered useless, but which experiment and practical exjiericnce have shown to be valuable for wheat growing and dairying." Launching the Scheme. Referring to the group settlement system, Mr. Troy said that in the initial stages, it was necessary for the Government to do everything to launch the scheme successfully. The initial difficulties had been great, but '*we will get through all right," he added with a smile. He explained that approximately 2400 immigrants had been brought into West Australia and settled on locations, in groups up to twenty, working on a communal basis. For three months they received a sustenance allowance of 10/ a day, this being treated as an advance to be charged against them later on. The laud selected w-as in tb«; South Western coastal belt, and dairying was the objective. After the first ""three months the men were placed on contract work for clearing, fencing, ploughing and general development. The Government i>aid for everything, and if the ground tad to be resovvn it was still the Government that had to foot the bill.

"We were not too satisfied with tlie scheme." said Mr. Troy, "and when I took office about two years ago. with the consent of Cabinet,. ! instituted reforms, and was responsible for a complete change of procedure. The scheme was reconstituted entirely. We decided not to create any additional groups, but to consolidate and establish what, had already been done before proceed in 2 further. The locations were visited and a thorough examination of the land carried out. We found that some of the selections were unsuitable, and these were abandoned in the meantime, and the farmers placed on better land which is being brought up to the same state of development by Government assistance as the land vacated. In other cases the locations were increased in size, and generally speaking every step was taken to make a success of" what had been undertaken. Properties Valued. said the Minister, W we arc reaching the stage when the properties can be valued by a board set up for the purpose, and each settler placed on liis own responsibility. The farmer «o helped up to this stage can now go to the Agricultural Bank and receive ail advance for improvements according to valuation, and the Government eeases to pay for all farming operations. We have brought the settler by progressive stages up to a point where he has experience, and it is now necessary to allow him to see that his future success de]tends upon I his own initiative and efforts." The whole scheme, according to Mr.' Trov, was carried out in conjunction with the Empire Settlement Act, the Commonwealth Government being empowered to raise up to £34.000,000, a large portion of the interest being paid by the Commonwealth and the British Governments, the interest rate on what West Australia borrows working out at about 2 per cent over a period of ten years. "Any money that has been lost under the group settlement scheme," Mr. Troy, "has in my opinion been due to the selection of poor country and the necessarily experimental nature of the scheme, but that is all being rectified now. The land we have abandoned will all come Tn later on. "The development that has alreadv taken place," he added, "has had a marked effect on the dairying industrv Our output of butter is rapidly increasing. and in* a very short time'not onlv will we be able to provide for our own requirements, but we will be able to export our surplus. In the course of a very few years I anticipate that dairying will be a very pros]>erous industrv in the south-west. We have m»<le mistakes, as we were bound t<i d<» with a new scheme, but we are now reaping the | benefit of our experiences."' I