FARMERS’ TOUR

Dominion, Volume 29, Issue 99, 21 January 1936, Page 6

FARMERS’ TOUR

Suitable Entertainment

Dominion Special Service.

.Masterton, January 20.

Considerable discussion arose at the bi-monthly meeting of the Wairarapa Provincial Executive of the Farmers’ Union to-day over the entertaining of the British farmers who are to make a tour of New Zealand in March. The party, which will comprise 45 farmers from England and 41 from South Africa, is due to arrive in Masterton on Tuesday, March 10. They will remain overnight, going on to Wellington after breakfast next morning As the visitors spend only about two or three daylight hours in Masterton on the Tuesday the opinion was expressed that it would be very difficult to arrange some suitable entertainment.

A suggestion was received from the Pahiatua representatives on the executive that the date of the annual picnic and demonstration for the Farmers’ Union, Women’s Division and Young Farmers’ Clubs be arranged to coincide with the date of the proposed visit. “It would be a splendid opportunity of meeting.the visitors as a combined body.’’ said the secretary, Mr. James Watson. “Also, the surroundings of Solway would be ideal for the visitors’ entertainment, which we could supplement in the evening.” After considering the proposal at some length it was rejected on the ground that the visitors would “arrive only in time to see all the rubbish about,” as one member put it, and also that their arrival would be so late that all the farmers and their families from the Lower Valley would have returned home from the picnic. It was pointed out. however, that farmers from that district would be practically unable to meet the visitors at all on their arrival, if it was to be so late in the afternoon. It was then suggested that as the visitors were coming to “have a look around New Zealand farms,” then it would probably be better to arrange cars to take them to various stations dealing in the various sections of farming in which the individual members of the party were interested. This scheme was recommended to the special committee set up to make complete arrangements for tbe visit, and also to make the necessary arrangements for the annual picnic and demonstration at Solway Showgrounds, “I don’t think we can arrange any entertainment for the evening,” said the president, Mr. Hugh Morrison, “because once you get the visitors out on the farms you will never get them all back in time for a smoke concert or something of the sort. I think we should leave it to the special committee, and instruct our secretary to work in conjunction with Mr. G. L. Thomas, the representative of the Overseas League, which is largely responsible for the tour.”