A YOUNG ENGLISH FARMER'S IMPRESSIONS

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 12935, 15 October 1907, Page 8

A YOUNG ENGLISH FARMER'S IMPRESSIONS

Mr W. Andre*,, of AndlWß and Beaven, returned from' England last year, he brought out with him a nephew, Mr Edgar F. Andrew*, whoso father is a large farmer at East Cliffe, Steeple, Langford, Wiltshire. During the nine and a half months Mr E. F. Andrews has been in New Zealand he has travelled over a good part of it with a view of seeing for himself the conditions of farming as they exist. To one of our representatives he gave somo of his views and impressions. Ho says he is greatly delighted with the country and with the hospitality he has met with on his travels. He went as far North as Napier, on the East Coast of the North Island, and through Taranaki and New Plymouth on tho West Coast. He spent sonic weeks in Marlborough and has been through the South to luvercargill. Regarding tho slock ho has seen, the sheep, he says, are well up to tho standard, and he was much taken with the draught horse**, which are between the Shire and tho modern Scottish Clydesdale for weight. The harness and saddle horses are, however, not up to those to l/c seen in England. One thing that struck him was tho inferior quality of the ordinary dairy cattle thibughout the colony. Even in such a prominent dairying district as Taranaki they are n very mixed lot. Ho is a strong advocate of the use of tho Lincolnshire Red Shorthorn lor crossing upon ordinary Shorthorns to improve their milking qualities. In England there is a strong demand for Mr John Even's Lincoln Reds and ho finds by practical experience that they have proved of great benefit to his father's herd of ordinary Shorthorns. Mr Andrews is of opinion that the Lincoln Hods would* greatly improve the dairy stock of New Zealand. Milk production is one of the most profitable branches of farming in England, the milk being supplied to the large centres of population. The colonies and other countries can produce butter cheaper than it can be made at Home, but the milk business pays well.

lii regard to wheat growing, Mr Andrews said the question ho had been most frequently asked out here was —How is it that it costs less to grow wheat on £30 an acre land in New Zealand than upon land near London for which only £1 per acre is paid as rent, tho yield in each case being, sny, 40 bushels per acre P Th© explanation is simple. Beforo a crop of wheat enn be grown at Home from £2 to £3 per acre has to bo spent in artificial manure, and this is usually applied in the form of cake and other similar foods. All the straw has to go book to the land as manure. Labour is cheaper at Home, but on the large farms the methods of farming is much the same as in New Zealand, that is, the same kind of implements are used. Mr Andrews said that in Wiltshire the farms ran from about 500 to 1200 acres, and his father farmed 2500 acres. If tho single furrow plough was still in use anywhere there was room for it. For instance, down land in Now Zealand was ploughed round by a double furrow and the good soil on tho top was gradually worked down hill. At Homo, ths tops of the downs, through constant cultivation, were bare of good' soil and the land could no longer be ploughed in the aa mc way aa here. Having to plough up and down hill only single furrow* could be used. Binders were in common, use all over tho country, and while the Home method of threshing was considered slow as compared with New Zealand, the explanation -was that even when in stack the grain never got so dry and could only be through the machine slowly. A point that will interest the Farm Labourers' Union Wjw mentioned by Mr Andrews. . He noticed that here tho farm labourers were more unsettled than at ...Home and did not stay long/ in ' $hejr; billots. Ho behoved this was largely due t<), the want of better soooQunodation on the farms. , There was no encouragement given to farm labourers to marry. At Home -the farm labourers were much better housed Mid there was a much larger proportion of married men at work on farms. ' The married men were much more thrifty. For instance « man with a wife snd' Are children would be earning only f tbe same wage as a single man, and the latter having no one but himself to keep, never saved his money. Boys under 14 were not allowed to work on • farms during school hours, but they were paid so much per cow to-learn milking before they went to school in the morning, and when, they finally left school they joined th» ranks of milkers snd then there was always a supply of this class of labour. Mr Andrews admitted .that the New Zealand mutton was very good, but English beef was far ahead of New Zealand grown. It was evident that however good .mutton could bo produced upon; pasture it required artificial feeding to produce, the beet quality of beef. in his visits to different parts of the colony Mr Andrews took note of the pastures; and he considers that in the dry sous and climates of Marlborough and North Otago, Sainfoin would be a profitable addition to pastures, and locally grown seed should do much better than imported.. In Marlborough he was greatly struck with the excellent quality of the clover, peas, and barley, and he added with a smile that New Zealand beer would be improved if more of the barley were t used in its manufacture. Mr Andrews leaves" for England on Thursday via Australia and Canada. Mr Sydney W. Andrews is going Home with him to gain experience in his trade.