ATHLETE AND FARMER.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 205, 23 May 1908, Page 3

ATHLETE AND FARMER.

A TALK WITH A RECORD-BREAKER. . MAKIXG EN'DS MEET 'ON AVOOL. D. i Gall°'.vay ) of Pahautanui, while in Wellington recohfcJy, afforded a Dominion reporter r.n . interesting talk about farming matters. . . •• Mr., Galloway .is sn athlete r.s< well as' a farmer, and ho cb.ims to hold the mile and half-milo records for New Zealand. His best times, 4min. 28 l-ssec. (mile) and lmin. 57sec.'. (half-milo), were performed on the Basm Reserve sixteen-years ago, and ho believes they aro still unbeaten. '• But sinco then ,ho ' has been pioneering. At one timo_ he took un Government land at Kairanga, six miles from Palmerston North, at 1 - i.2 per aero -iii bush. -- There he carved out the proverbial homo, doing record time doubtless with the bushuian's axe. But the day came when temptation befel him in-the' shape of an .offer to purchase, and ho sold out at £12 an acre. Ho imagined he did woll. - But as the years passed values increased, and tho property was sold again two years ago at £45 per acre. The upward trend of prices has been swift. Have they gone 'too.high? • Mr. Galloway is now a.sheop-farmer, well off _ and leisurely, 110 doubt, but still athletic.. He runs 2000 sheep on two-sheep country at Pahautanui. He has, of course, been pinched,'like others, by the slump in wool, out he remembers worse times. . " Eight or nine years ago," lie said," ! shipped wool Home and got 4sd. per pound for it. There had to be l£d. per pound deducted from that for insurance, freight, anid other expenses, leaving a.'net return of about 3d. per pound. I shipped through Messrs.: Murray, Roberts, and Co., and obtained an advance of Cd. per pound; and, of course, 1 had to rofund." ' 1 . .• which-was not; pleasant.' "■" , ' ' "Vory unpleasant,, I' assure you. For three, years the, prices ranged between 4Jd. and 5d." \ . . . : Did you make ends i meet on your 3d. net? i lr Wo. simply had.to. Wo wont out to work when v/e could." ■ • , Yours'was not £20 land? ' ; .; \ "No. We couldn't'have done it if it-had been. I bought my land at - £1 an acre, and cleared arid, grassed it- at- a. further cost ; of £2.105. an acro. Land like.it in.bush is now worth £5 an/acre. , .It carries two sheep to 'tho, acre—2o,ooo-sheep." •_ Tho ' present prices*, of wool; won't drive you- to. dairy .'farming ?■ : ... ..., . :. - , .'" Oh,' no ! There s -too much hard work in. .that.- Shoepr|armors have had' six or seven good years,' and if ; they, can't stand low, prices . now it is, their own fault.'.''. ', _ (There is . a tendency ' tp say that dairying will now pay.better, tnari,sheep.! "Well, on^\loo acres of good land at Kai-! rariga a- man, would run 100 . head of cattle.. Somo of theso. would bo young stock,' coming on ,for'the future. ',Perhaps 75, would: bo' in milkV Ho sh'ould_got £10. worth of .'butter-: fat - from .each. cow. in ; the year—£7so."' .'

.Expenses? - .J ;.. ' ■ '■ •" Interest' on, cost of land (£45 per acre),say £3 per' aero, and taxes/ etc.—total; £300. Labour, five inilkcrs'-at' 30s.'each', • including. food,, ete.—-£390. Interest on' cost of 75 cows 'ot £6—£27. ' Depreciation' on 'herd, say £1 -.' per ■ head .'per; aiinum—£7s., ■; Those; arb, not all. the 'expenses,- but they iare; tho priri-; cipal.ones. Tnpre.is, on tho. other the skim milk to be mado use of. But .011" the figures ! have given there. is an income of £750 to. set against an- expenditure of about £790.' That difference has "got to be . mado good- somehow.---It is not. all profit- in dairy Farming, 'but', there .'is lots of baird 'work:" . You'll not be one of-the drifters from sheep to dairying? - "Not much." v , .