OUR GREATEST INDUSTRY.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 111, 6 November 1913, Page 13

OUR GREATEST INDUSTRY.

GOLDjEN FLEECE AND FROZEN MUTTON. | EXPORTS /WORTH ELEVEN AND A HALF MILLIONS. I STILL NEW ZEALAND'S CHIEF RESOURCE OF WEALTH. j

Though in recent years other industries have' risen in importance, it remains a fact that tho sheep industry is still by far the greatest, source of New Zealand's wealth, and .is.likely long to remain so. Last year tho total value of tho exports from New -Zealand , was £23,043,589. .Out of • this 1 total • wool contributed £8,065,945 ; frozen • mutton, £1,544,250 ; and frozen ■ lamb, £1,825,342; total,. £11,445,637. Thus it will be seen that nearly, half the value of the exports of« tho Dominion came, in tho year ended 31st March, 1913, from tho products of the "humblest, of animals — the sheep. Next.' in- order of prece* dence in value were the products of tho dairy industry-: .butter, £2,056,615; and cheese, £1,859,179} or £3,915,794.- Thus the sheep industry, so far as exports, are •concerned, , was 1 last] .year three* times as valuable to the country as the dairy industry; ' i • • . . ■ ' STE AD Y4Y 4 PROGRESS. ■""""' The products of the sheen industry — wool and mutton — have in the past been sub, ject to ' greater fluctuations than the .dairy industry, but'non'o the less", if the figures oft en years -bo- taken,- it will be 'seen that the progress has been steady throughout. • Following are the values 'of the exports ' of wool for' tho" years ended' 31st ■March,'- from" 1904 to 1913 :— < « ' Value. - ' 'Year,. ' ''■.£■ (. 1904 ' ■... • . .4. ' ... .4,522,726 1905 - ■• ... 5,380,193 > ' ;1906 ... ; . ».. ' ... 6,028,093 1907 ...^ .... • .... .7,529,188 1908" '...- ■ ... i ../ '6,063,436. ' 1909- i'..i .:. ... 5,537,861 1910 '... > i „\ ' '-...< 7,941,655 - • , 1911 ' ... ' ... ■ .'.. 7,194,444 : 1912 ', ... ■ ...- • ... - 6,579,074 - 1913 -... . ....„> ..." 8,065,945

• . ..... . » Year. Number. 1904 ... •...,' ... 18,280,806 1905' 19,130,875 . 1906 ( • ... 20,108,471 1907 20,983,772 ' 1908 ' ... 22,449,053 1909 23,480,707 1910 24,269,620 1911 23,996,126 1912 23,750,153 ■1913 ... 24,191,810 . FIRST AND' FOREMOST A .SHEEP COUNTRY. \ Theso' figures, go to show that New Zealand is first .and ■ foremost a sheep country, _ and tho limited cjuantity of arable, land as compared ,with the undulating and rough, hilly and brokenareas will . also tend .to keep up tho number of sheep, to like tho piesent -figures.' Dairying has mado encroachments •in many places, and several districts show a decline in tho sheep population. There are, however, limitations in' tho areas suitable for' dairying, and 'outside , those districts, sheep will always hold their own. The very" fact 'that New Zealand' contains' so much rough and ' broken country . makes 'it ' what it is— the greatest sheep country, in .the world for its size. The, climate and sbil are adapted for, all branches of sheep farming, and New Zealand sheep are recognised aa second to none for constitution and economic utility. ' Both as'- regards wool and c'-dttoji, Hhe New Zealand sheep ar& pre-eminent. WELLINGTON — G REATEST SHEEP ' • ' ' • PROVINCE. It lVweirkhowii that" the Wellington province; if' Taranaki be includ6d, as it ,is sometimes in Government statistics under ".Wellington- West Coast" dis-'

more profitable occupations. In tj rougher and moro recently settled d, tvicts of the Auckland province, nS ably, in tho western King Country a^ jßaglan, there havo been considera], iuci'easuß in the number of sheep, 'h same process is marked, in tho Wellitj ton-West Coast district. , Tho Gi'n^, Manawatu, Kairanga, and Horowheu counties havo all many, fewer blhi this year than last. Tho land' is most rjch, and level, and among tho high] pricod in. New Zealand. Consequent! cheep are being ousted by dairy cat! and , intensive farming. Probably I tho long run sheep will bo 'driven c of all the' beautiful, rich, level count from Packakariki ( up tho. coast and land to Kimbolton, beyond Feildingj a o.)i each sido ofi tho railway practical all tho way to New Plymouth. But, real sheep counties^ — those ' back fr | tho coastal country — all show largo creases in numbers of their ovino popi tion. It is in this particular coimj that Palmerston and Wellington ij ,\videly interested. . , j THROUGH THE SHEEP \ i COUNTRY. j , Tho sheep country between the Ml Trunk railway and ,the Ruahine rani is one of tho ' most interesting parts j New Zealand. Thirty years ago it v all bush, but to-day it is cleared aim! everywhere. Settlement pushed its « ' in from Feilding up the' sloping plat^ to Kimbolton. and then spread throu j^lio dceply-chnnnelled basin bejd Apiti to tlie Rimhinos, and' up no 1 towards Rangiwahia. Through i courtesy of Mr. Wackrill, of Mess Wackrill and Stewart, v thc motor fi of Feilding, tho writer was able a f weeks ago to make a very expeditii journey .through this country in onol the littlo 'Ford cars which' are so si{

-.d should ever be covered with forest, ; these hills are steep, broken, and i-outh with tho trees removed. The ns oE tho past twenty years have shed away the soil from tho sharper ;pes, leaving tho ugly gashes of clay Winp. Still, it is grand sheep coun- ) — and what would' you else? ; THE HEART OF THE HILLS. J'he Rangitikei river and its comaion, the Main Trunk railway, prac- - 'ally bisect tho sheep country^ To , > west lies an • immense area in the . per valleys of the Turakina, the Wa!iehu, and tho, Mangawhero, and fur- ' \t west still the Wanganui, the Wai- ; ara, the AVhenuakura, and the Patea Ws- It is all broken country— high nding ridges and saddles, and deep (leys, sometimes running into gorges. ' kt of it is papa— bluey-white clay, jich is nearly always found in valleys 8 ridges, which nearly always means of road metal, and therefore bad ids, but is in itself almost a guaran- '» of a fertile soil, growing sweet grass ■ ry good for sheep. It is only when 3 papa enters the rainy belt between ;mont and Ruapehu that sheep do not jm to thrive so well, and, no doubt, * ien the bush comes down there also, ? climate will be drier and sheep will : better. It seems rather a big price spay for the sheep, though — hundreds -j thousands of acres of forest! :'! NEWER SETTLEMENT. X is this belt, running up along the - ' [per valleys of the Turakina, WaMangawhero, and their tribu'ries, and in the back country of the - " anganui river, on both sides, between . pinki and Taumarunui, that settle...3nt is taking place to-day. All this "(per country does not date back 1 much , yond ten years ; most of it, indeed, in p lower King Country, is contemporapus with the advance of the Main junk railway, and since the line was jnetl up and through traffic began - ' ptlement has gone ahead very rapidly. -"in years ago there was practically Ithing but standing bush_ along the ■ „ &eh road between Pipiriki and Rae- , \ii; to-day there is hardly any bush Vil'all. To the south of this line various ''% blocks have been opened up, some j! taem in fairly large areas. It is cer- * * inly difficult country to work in small - £.tions, and tho experience of settlers ' ; j the Ohura district is favourable io ' ; fge areas in the initial stages^ of set ■-ijment^n country which is distinctly . .; PAPA LAND. - !At one- time all this p"apa land, is sup1 - " )sed to have been the floor of the sea and < .Me papa itself the sea. ooze. Elevated J ..^changes in the earth's structure above r .-Je water to an avef age height of about „ . '■jOOft above sea level, it was coon cut '„ -3, by the weather, being soft when ex- . )sed and dissolving into mud. Thud, I the course of years it became worn by |ripus streams and rivers Into deep illies, sometimes with almost vertical 1 . 'des. This is characteristic of the papa iuntry from the Rangitikei to ihe Mo- " iv, and again where it appears on the ' -ast Coast. It is invariably clothed '. ■ |iginally in heavy bush of_ t' 3 semiepical character, not the timber-bear-Ig forest of the lowlands or^Jbhevol- , "Jnic plateaus of the central regions. . - ixi account of its general roughness * f^pa. country is not suitable for cattle, „ %i it is almost ideal for" sheep and ca- * Orally the papa belt, with its area of oout three million acres, has been, and . Jill be — when, it is all settled — given up > '> the grazing of millions of sheep. *- ; | LINES OF COMMUNICATION. '. '','jThe western area of the sheep 1 coun- -. ;|y served by several lines of com- '"'. tunication. The districts lying imme,'•''lately to the west of the Main Trunk '- -«ne naturally send their produce^-their - ~A>ol and skins, etc., into stations along .' fa railway — ■Hunterville, Mangaonoho, .' /Aingaiti, Mangaweka, Taihap©, &a - • |oi, and Ohakune, for the lower por- ' < 'on : other outlets are by road down 1 • tS Turakina and Wangaehu Valleys j to ", -■» New Plymouth railway at Turakinri 1 pi Fordell. and down, the Wanganui tfver to Wanganui for settlement in *,' aat district. Roads now penetrate into ie further western sheep country from . *|faitotara, Waverley, Patea, Hawera, ' - jthani, and Stratford. All these roads a 1 © more or.less bad in the wintertime, / '.ilt there is a way out after the shear* jt for the wool. From the remoter places ;_ooi has sometimes sjtill to be packed "'" ' ,ut, and the packing in of winter stores H common. All this adds to tho cost of "fving in tlie backblocks of th,e sheep buntry, and strengthens the demand . Jiat the Government should hasten the instruction of better roads. V TOWARDS THE RANGES. Klines of communication. ■"'-The sheep country between the Main , 'ruiik Railway and the Ruahine Ranges ' i'es out of the way of ordinary traffic — , luite off the beaten track. No railway - joes through it, but it is well roaded. For Motoring, so far as surface is concei'ned, ' jie roads in the Kjiwitea County, which jtcludes a large portion of this country, *c nearly perfect. But they are very f &riow, winding, and hilly, with scores '$" hairpin bends and difficult turn 9 iaich need careful driving. It is im- " <• Visible to see ahead for long distances, sffd there is always a risk, on turning Ire corner, of coming suddenly upon „ •» i>me vehicle or a mob of sheep, and * - jpinetimes cattle. Often there is barely joom for two vehicles to pass, for the ' 'oad will be flanked on one side by a / . iteep bank and on the other will fall - '^ay in almost a precipice. The district 7 served^ by coaches from Feilding out 6", Rangiwahia, via Kimbolton^ 36 miles, s 'Tid out to'Apiti, 27 miles, and to Pern* ' jerton, 3& miles. Coaches run daily also from Mangaweka to Ruahine and Rangi- "" v&hiu, 9 and 14 miles respectively. p.; MAGNIFICENT VISTAS. . '^In fine weather, especially in spring fime, when there is still snow on the jops of the long-backed Ruahines, the - Jar views over this country from the ' vidges* climbed by the winding roatt are , pimply magnificent. Whether by coach '^t by motor or other coiiveyance,_ travel <s a joy. The^best way round is, pere «iaps, , to enter ' the country from ■ the ■ lorthern end via Mangaweka. t The ;ioble Rangitikei Valley, comparing at one time when tho forest still reigned Supreme with the more famous Warfiganui, is crossed by a steep descent at ' 'Mangaweka, the I'oad being carried over -tjhe river by a steel bridge. Just is the hydro-electric plant which .Supplies the pretty little township of Mangaweka with cheap electricity. The ■iall of water over a high terrace makes 'j. delightful picture, for at this spot the Jush has escaped the universal devastation of advancing settlement. Mangaweka ttself is a quiet place on < a flat overlooking the Rangitikei, which here flows ■in a deep gorge with almost vertical sides. The stranger to Mangaweka had ' fetter be careful not to wander too far at night ; he might drop over the cliff a few hundred feet, for the edge is quite abrupt. | COMFORTABLE PROSPERITY. j , | Mangaweka, like other towns in this district, Ohingaitj, Kimbolton, Rangi,wahia, and Apiti, seems to have at- ; tamed a steady level of comfortable {prosperity, balancing with the prosperity of the cotuitryside. While the ' was going through there was a fgreat stir and a minor boom, both at and Mangaweka, but when *the line passed on to Taihape and betjyond, the artificial stimulus was reand there was a temporary de- . Bushfalling and timber getting ,It """ -- - ' — —

also ceased gradually, and the town- t ships had to depend for their existence t on tho resources of the country around 1 them — that is, mostly on the sheep in- t dustry. In this there has been a cere tain_ amount of reaggregation of pro- t perties, but when one sees the nature 1 of tho country around, one does not t altogether wonder at it. It is not the i small man's country, capable of sub- c division into small sections, such as are £ possible and desirable in the level ccou- t try of the Manawatu. It is rough, hilly ( land, full of gorges and steeps, with 1 only a small portion of flats. This is heart-breaking land to the small settler, and one is not surprised that he prefers to sell out and get more suitable country nearer town. j CLEARED OF BUSH. { The comfortable atmosphere of proa- j perity in the townships is apparent ' through the country. As you go in < from Mangaweka, the road follows a ' tributary of the Rangitikei up in the j direction of its source in the mountains. « The valley is, to all intents and pur- ' poses, clean-stripfted of the bush. The * road climbs easily, but with sharp J curves winding along the slope of the J valley, with the hill tops on one side and the gorge, threaded by the stream, < down v below on the other^ Ancient t stumps and logs litter the slopes, now '<■ green with the fresh grasses of spring. ' The bush has Jong ago been down, and \ a few years will see it cleared entirely, ] as it is round Palmerston, and nothing ' but green hills and the dark sombre- '<■ hued plantations of pinus insignia about t the tare homesteads. It is a big coun- * try, which leaves a curious feeling of j emptiness and solitude as you pass j along. There do not appear to be many > sheep even, and human beings are fihitely fewer. Between Mangaweka and Rangiwahia, in the easy journey . by motor, the writer passed one carrying team, one coach, one dog, and one , man on horseback — not much for four- ; teen miles of road right through a fine ' spring morning. But, perhaps, a good , deal depends on the mode of travel. If you motor, you go through country so quickly that you must in a given , distance see less people than you would if you went on horseback or drove in a ; coach or buggy. In a given time the j motor will probably show you far more. , FROM THE HILL-TOPS. ] To all the stretch of tumbled country, ' like a choppy greenf sea suddenly frozen, the Ruahines stand as a background, shading away in the north-east to a ' faint blue and white lide on the sky. • From the higher points, where the ■ road has reached the saddle, Ruapehu ; can be seen dominating the landscape j in the north. All between is a tremen- [ dous expanse of confused and jumbled hills and valleys — almost a chaos of ! country, as if some giant had been moulding fanciful , shapes in the plastic earth. Strangely enough, the ridges- seem higher to the westward than to the east, where the land to the foot of the Ruahines looks like 'an immense trough with an irregular bottom. The Ruahines rise up like a blue wall marbled with late snow towards the • crests. They run far south towards the , Manawatu Gorge and elope away to in- ; finity to the north-east. Settlement < covers all _ this country— apparently as < closely as it is ever likely to do. , There ; are few level acres suitable for dairy farming, but they do appeal* now and again as a very welcome change from the angularity of the rest of the pro- 1 spect. LONG SOLITUDES. There is not the movement in the sheep country one sees in dairying districts, and, it may be added, not the signs of a hard struggle for existence, such as characterise dairying in the remoter back blocks, or sometimes even where farmers are striving strenuously to make both ends meet on the, costly land of the coast, when there are mortgages and other obligations to be met. Though Nature may be angry enough in her contortions of the surface of the country, there is a sleepy placidity at this j time of the year in the sheep country. The pastoralist rides' round his sheep in the bright sunshine of the spring morning and home again. Perhaps he is away in town. There is not much | doing. Far different is tho bustle of ' the dairying country, with carts rattling away to the creamery one after the j other along the road, and the morning j Corroboree while waiting for the skimmilk. The dairy farmer has not much time for appearance, and his " place"" is apt to bo untidy and unkempt, 'but, in this sheep country practically all the homesteads are substantial and clean, with neat hedges and plantations and trim gardens. There is time for it if, wool keeps up its price. TO RANGIWAHIA. So on over the same kind of country, winding up long hills and down the other side to the river flats and -up again over another ridge^ — all cleared' country, but not yet clear of the litter of stumps and logs until Rangiwahia is reached. t This little township, with usual equipment of hotel, church, hall, 1 school, store, and blacksmith's shop, is the capital of the northern portion of the sheep country, and has the same air of cleanly, neat prosperity that characterises the othdr townships. It has found its level. In the old bushfellirig days of the 'nineties it was a busier place, for there were scores of parties out clearing the bush, and provisions and stores had all to be brought in from the earlier settled districts along the railway. It was the opening up of this countiy, extending right through the back country from Ashhutst up the Pohangina, and from Kimbolton^ up, through and beyond Rangiwahia, and inland froto Hunterville and Waituna, that gave the chief impetus to wealth production some fifteen to twenty years ago, and' restored the prosperity of New Zealand so hard hit by the black days of the early -nineties. A PERIOD OF EXPANSION. It was a marvellous period of expansion then, with the bush going down in swathes of smoke from - fires darkening the sun by day and lighting the heavens by night. The very aspect of tho country now shows the labour that must have been needed to clear it of the heavy forest with which it was clothed. There were few roads, and those bad, and everything had to be brought in from the outside. The foundation of substantial fortunes were laid by the enterprising storekeepers of those days, and^many, too, of the prosperous farmers of to-day took a hand in the felling of their own bush. There are scanty records extant of a phase hi New Zealand's 'history which can never come back again. Old settlers tell the visitor sometimes of the early days when they entered the wilderness and began to carve for themselves and their families homes out of ■ the forest. Bub the old v settlers are ' rapidly dropping off in these later years, and soon all that will be left of a great period in our history will be tradition. EARLY LAND SCHEMES. The very names preserved in the Lands Offices are tokens of early efforts in land settlement, when statesmen 'and people alike were more hopeful of the future than they aro to-day. Thus, Rangiwahia was settled by the Wanganui Small Farmers' Association, in the days when closer settlement and the village community, were ideals which appeared easier of attainment than they are to-day. As in many other smallfarm settlements, the ideal was not reached, and farmers round Rangiwahia are not " small " farmers in the precise sense of ihe term. Apiti was settled

by the Feilding Small Farmers' Association, and Birmingham (now Kimbolton) by the Palmerston North Small Farmers' Association. There were many such attempts at closer settlement at that time, but in nearly every case tho land was heavy bush, and in most cases quite unsuitable for small settlement. The end was that some of the small farmers could not make a living, and their neighbours bought them out, and then, perhaps, some big farmer came in from the outside and bought two or three more out. " NOT MANY OLD SETTLERS. The result is to-day that there are not many of the early pioneers of this district residing there now. Some have gone in newer country still to do their preliminary work of settlement. Others i have sold out well and retired to farms closer to civilisation or to the town i itself. Some went under • and had to make a fresh start elsewhere. ' Sonie- | times the big man has come in and bought up land on a large scale. Across the Valley from Kimbolton is an estate I now of several thousand acres, and running for miles in a narrowish strip, where there were once quite a number of separate farms — ten, the writer was told. This is the most glaring case of aggregation of area, though there are many instances on a minor scale. TLe subdivision was undoubtedly too small in the first place, and it wa3 this that made aggregation possible and easy. The average holding round tho district was given the writer by an old ' resident as 600 acres, and this seems not too much for land difficult to work and not carrying on the average over two sheep to the acre.. PEEP O' DAY. Between Rangiwahia and Kimbolton the road follows an amazingly circuitous course over a series % of sharp ridges, keeping high up all the while and rising at a place with the picturesque name of "Peep o' Day" to over 2000 feet above the sea level. The route taken by this road is very like an old survey track in character, as it follows the ridge all the time on the watershed .between the Kiwitea and Oroua Valleys. There is a glorious view, even now the bush has gone, on both sides, extending into the misty distance towards the coast, with the eea visible in fine weather, and, according to settlers, Kapiti, a blue shape on the horizon when the air is specially clear. Up north , the outlook extends to Ruapehu, and eastward are all the ranges. The name, " Peep o' Day," suggests the first point as the highest in that country, tipped by the first rays of the smi coming ' over the eastern mountains. One can imagine the benighted surveyor or settler there catching> the first rays of dawn, while all the rest of the intervening country lies still in the shadow of the hills. A PROMISING INDUSTRY. On the flat towards Apiti, along the Oroua river, and on the tableland sloping gradually from Kimbolton down to the Cheltenham, is rising now a new and profitable industry — that of potato growing, for which the soil and climate appear to be specially suited. It is estimated that within a radius of four or five miles of Kimbolton the land last year produced over 5000 tons of fine potatoes, and this year there is likely to be an increase. Among the principal growers mentioned were Messrs. Haythorn, R. M'Beth, T. A. Bryce, and J. A. Bailey. Owing to its height above the Bea level, and the coldness of the winter, the Kimbolton district is little troubled with the_ potato b) and other diseases affecting root crops, and so healthy is the climate that it is recommended by doctors for people suffering with lung trouble. It is a fine, breezy, healthy place, lying open to the sun all day, with a glorious view in every direction. It represents the limit of the coastal plateau, for beyond is the rough country towards the ' mountains. This rougher grazing country sells at £12 or £13 an acre, according to a. local resident, while the flats go up to £21. Prices increase all the way down the road to Feilding, getting up to £40 an acre for the most favoured sections. Kimbolton itself appears to 1 have been first settled about 1886 by i Palmerston people, whose names are recorded in the various streets — Grammar- • street, Flyger-street, Lind-etreet, Lon- ! Don-street, Haggerty-street, and so forth, i The original name of J&mbolton itself was Birmingham, said to be called after one Ml 1 . Birr, then secretary of the Palmerston Small Farmers' Association. So much confusion arose between Birmingham, New Zealand, and Birmingha!m, England, and Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.A., that one or the other had to change, and the residents of Birmingham, New Zealand, did the decent thing by resigning their claim to the title and taking on that of Kimbolton. This happened about fifteen years ago. KIWITEA AND WAITUNA. The lower slopes of the Kiwitea and Cheltenham country date back earlier still. They were settled in the late 'seventies, and settlement advanced and spread up to Kimbolton and out Waituna way. All this country is ideal farming country for various purposes. The settlers are nearly all very well-to-do, with fine houses, motor-cars, telephone, and all the modern conveniences of civilisation. It would be hard to find any part of New Zealand which shows a higher standard of comfort without undue ostentation than this particular district up from Feilding.. There are no dominating holdings now* since the Parorangi estate was cut up, bu^. everybody seems to hold enough and a bit to spare. The district is best known as the chief centre of Romney sheep breeding in New Zealand, and a great district also for Hereford cattle. The land is ideal for Btud farms, and tin's has been realised by many settlers there to-day, as tho catalogue of the 1 Manawatu spring show demonstrates. That is the position of tho land to-day. What it was in the early days is within the recollection of comparatively few people, but Mr. Samuel Daw, of Feilding, still hale and hearty in his seventyfifth year, tells of how he used to pack ! the mail through the bush to Cheltenham, and then, after a lapse of years, ; how ho drove the first coach through. ; It was a wilderness then, and it is I rapidly becoming, in the genial climate of New Zealand, a real garden. i BREEDS OF SHEEP. ! HOW THEY HAVE BEEN IMt PROVED. i i i THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ! ? . ROMNEtf. | LINCOLNS ON THE UP GRADE. ' Enough has been said in foregoing lj columns to show that New Zealand is an j ideal sheep country, both in regard to I soil, climate, and conformation of the * land. New Zealand sheep farmers have recognised this fact long ago, and have been developing the original English ' breeds — the Romney Marsh, the Linj coin, the Southdown, the Border Leices3 ter, and others — to 6uit the conditions of , the Dominion geographically and com- - mereially. They have improved the 3 fleece and the' carcase alike, so that the x representative New Zealand sheep of f to-day, whatever its original breed may - be, is, taken all round, a much move *" valuable animal than its English iors bears. Sheep breeders, by the art of 1 selecting and mating} have emphasised^

The Manawatu Agricultural and Pastoral Association have been particularly fortunate in the selection from time to time of their presidents. They have alwayg had the good fortune to secure the election of meu who have the welfare of the association at heart, and in Mr. F. S. M'Rae, the gentleman whoso photo, appears above, the association has a president who has proved himself a real hard worker in the interests of the Manawatu shows for many years. Mr. M'Rae ha» served 21 years on the committee, and, besides doing his full share of work in that capacity, has taken a keen interest in shows generally, and has perhaps ,more prizes for fat stock to his credit than any other member of the A. and' P. Association. As a farmer Mr. M'Rae is very methodical. An inspection of his Blairichburn property, a short distance out of Palmerston, would prove an objectlesson to many. It is credited with being the best-farmed farm hi the district, and no doubt it is. Mr. M'Rae's whole life has practically been devoted to farming. He was born at Awatere, Marlborough, New Zealand, and camo to Palmerston North in 1889, where he has been farming his present holding ever Bince. Besides being a prominent member of tho A. and P. Association, Mr.' M'Rae has for fifteen years been a member of the Manawatu Racing Club, and it will be remembered iby many that ho was a prominent member of that redoubtable Manawatu polo team that won the Saville Cup four years in succession from 1893 to 1896 inclusive.

desirable points in the sheep, and corrected as far as possible undesirable attributes. Just as the dairy cow has been specially developed for the purpose for which she is required— to produce milk, bo the sheep has been brea to furnish more wool and more and better mutton. RELATIVE NUMBERS. At one time the Lincoln breed of sheep was easily the most popular in New Zealand, especially .in the North Island; then, about tho .beginning of the century tho^ Romney sheep began to supersede it, and the ,Lincoln declined to second place, and a poor second at that. Recently; however, the Lincoln has shown signs of coming back, and to-day it is quite a popular breea. It is easily the greatest of the long-wool sheep, but its constitution is not so Btrong as the Romney,^ and consequently it does not do' so well on rough country. For mutton purposes tho Shropshire and the Southdown are valuable, either pure-bred or crossed with Romney or a Lincoln. The popularity of the Romney is shown by the figures in the sheep returns for the year ended 30th April, 1913:— There were then, according to the returns, in the North Island, the following stud sheep and rams : — Merino : 10,361 ; Lincoln: 86,382; Romney ; 219,744} Border Leicester : 10,020 ; English Leicester: 10,829; Shropshire: 6821; Southdown: 25,782, and other breeds: 6778. In the South Island the Romney still leads, but only by a small margin over other breeds. 1 , Following are the fig* ures:— Merino: 42,259; Lincoln: 9821; Romney : 81,868 ; Border Leicester : 74,395; English Leicester: 73,295; Shropshire: 12,771; Southdown: 12,332, and other breeds :. 38,894. The difference between the North Island and South Island figures is, of course, explained by the wide difference in soil, climate, and configuration of country. THE FAVOURITE ROMNEY. < To most people one 6heep looks, much like another, and few laymon could, without assistance, pick out' the various breeds from a collection. There are, however, differences on closer observation. The Lincoln ie characterised by its long weeping-willow sort of fleece with the wool hanging in locks about its head and over its eyes. The Romney has a thicker, crisper fleece with tufts on his head instead of droopers. (These are, of course, quite untechnical ternis, and aTe used simply to indicate to the layman the outstanding differences in tho breeds of cheep.) He is a more upstanding sort of animal, with less of the melancholy, meek and mild appearance of the averago Lincoln. He looks to have that superior stamina and constitution which is BUch a valuable attribute. Of the Romney, Mr. R. Tanner, the wellknown breeder, writing in that excellent publication, The Journal of Agriculture, says:— "Of all the breeds of sheep introduced to New Zealand there is none which promises to hold the same preeminent position in the sheep-breeding world of tho Dominion as the Komney Marsh or Kentish sheep While it is an admitted truth that sheep as a race are more susceptible to harm from an unsuitable environment than any other family of domestic stock— being, as it has been well expressed, 'creatures of environment'— it may well be argued that the Romney provides an exception to this rule. Certain it is that there is no other breed of theep which will thrivo as well under diverse conditions and which will adapt itself with euch a remarkable degree of success to so many variations of climate and 6oil. So adaptable indeed is the Itonuloy that it readily assumes a new character of frame and fleeco to suit a changed environment, becoming in fact a different type of sheep, and this without any weakening of that great utility character for which it is famed — robustness of constitution." SPECIALLY SUITED TO THE NORTH ISLAND. " While New Zealand is a favourable habitat for many breeds of sheep— tho merino and the leading English breeds finding a congenial homo in different parts of the Doniinion — at is becoming generally recognised that the Romney is a breed eminently suited for a very large area of our sheep country, especially in the North Island. Where moist, conditions prevail for any period, as the case in much of the country devoted -to sheep farming, the Romney thrives where other breeds fail. . . . The Romney ~has further established itself in favour with the New Zealand ehfieu farmer, owing to its general pur-

pose character. In the early days of the sheep-breeding industry of the Dominion wool was the only product of the sheep which was \vorth cultivating, but with the development of the frozen meat trade, and latterly the Value of the fat lamb business, the general purpose character of the Romney has appealed to the farmer. . . . Undoubtedly under New Zealand conditions the Roranoy has developed into a higher type or animal. Not only has the fleece been greatly improved by judicious selection, but the carcase has < been refined, thus giving an animal of improved commercial quality, while its characteristic hardness has been retained. As a mother the Romney excels, her capacity to nurture her young well making tier the best ewe we have for the production of fat lambs. Crossed with the Southdown, an ideal combina* tion is secured. _ Quality and early maturity are obtained with hardihood, size, and rapidity of growth of the milk lamb, thereby ft"*nsnuuj the best allround and most economically produced lamb we have. As an all-purpose sheop the Romney is supreme, and as the business of sheep farming in this country is driven further back to make room for dairying and other industries of tho small settler, the Romney must extend its circle of admirers and further prove its undoubted good qualities." CERTAIN DANGERS. There are certain tendencies at the present time which, if allowed to act unchecked, will Andoubtedly do injury to tho Romney slreep in New Zealand. One of these is that the average farmer does not exercise sufficient care in selecting his breeding stock from stud Hocks bred on similar country to that which he grazes. The pampered sheep reared on Jthe fatter and flatter lands will not thrive or breed good stock on rougher country. There are, however, breeders who study this point and are maintaining the hardiness of the Romney by letting them run on tho rough hilly country without special attention. The hillbred sheep will accommodate itself better to' the rich lands of the plain than the lowland sheop to the highlands'. Another danger is emphasised by Mr. Tanner, and that is the destruction of the purity and general purpose charac- | teristics of the Romney by crossing with Lincolns for long-wool producing purposes. "It is to b6 hoped/ says Mr. Tanner, "that the demand for a longer ; stapled wool win not have the effect of [ inducing short-sighted breeders to bring in blood of other breeds to secure the wool in demand. It is sheer folly to attempt to ask the breed to do something which will affect its great combination of utility characters. . . . Culling' in the maintenance of these characters is essential and is not being done as closely as it should be. Even with the ordinary farmer culling is imperative if a fair standard is to bo maintained in the flock." PIONEERS OF THE ROMNEY. Among the early pioneers of the Romney breed two names stand out —Dr. Webster, of Oamaru, and Mr. Ludlam, of the Hutt. These gentlemen were among the first importers of Romney sheep, and sheep from their flocks are responsible for tho foundation of many of the leading flocks of the Dominion. Of a later date, but early breeders of this great typo of sheep were the late Mr. G. Wheeler, of Kiwitea, Mr. Alfred Matthews, of Featherston, who founded his flock on Ludlam blood, Mi 1. Robert Cobb, Mr. E. J. Eiddiford, Mr. J. W. Harding, Mr. J. Kebbell, Mr. W. B. Allen, Mr. James Holmes, and Major Willis, of Woodendean. Coming down to the present day, some of the piinci- i pal breeders are Mr. Ernest Short, of ; Feilding, who worked at the start on sheep from the Cobb flock, but later made extensive purchases from' England and elsewhere, and built up a specially fine flock,- Mr. C. A. J. Levett, Kiwitea; Mr. W. Gibson, Kiwitea; Mr. W. F. Jacob, of the same great Romney district; Mr. 8.. Tanner, of Longburn; Mr. P. Mungavin, of Poriruaj Mr. D. Rowlands, Longburn; Messrs. Grey 8r05.,. Wairarapa, and Mr.' Isaac Sykea, Masterton. These are just names that occur to mind. Through the efforts of these breeders, and the influence of environment, the New Zealand Romney has a character all its own, and many authorities scout the expediency of introducing freeh blood, in the shape of the coarser English type, which is said to react detrimentally on the wool-carrying capacity of tho New Zealand sheep.

GREATEST OF LONGWOOL SHEEP. The greatest of all the longwool sheep of the world is the Lincoln breed, which 13 beginning again, after a period of neglect, to find favour with the New Zealand farmer, largely by reason of the fact that it gives the desired length of staple so much i in demand by wool manu- J i'acturers. This demand for better and longer stapled wool is & striking tendency of the day. In years gone by, when wool was everything and mutton a mere by product—before the refrigerator—the Lincoln wae probably the most popular sheep in New Zealand. It J subsequently lost its vogue, largely due, ! no doubt, to the breeding of Lincolns on unsuitable country, and to a failing in constitution t and vigour to stand extremes of environment. It stands to reason that an animal which carries an enormous weight of wool such as the Lincoln does, must possess constitution to survive^ and must be able to secure its feed without overmuch exertion. It therefore must, to thrive, be reared and kept On good rich country. The indiscriminate use of Lincolns on all classes of country and of a weakling type in many cases lead to an undeserved revulsion against the breed. It will be in the memory of Lincoln breeders of this inland how the breed suffered considerable loss of popularity^ in Hawkes Bay owing to tho flocks failing in constitution. The sensational prices paid for Lincoln rams to noted Southland breeders was one of the features of tho time, but some of these rams altogether failed to give satisfaction. It is a well* known story that the judge of Lincolns at the Hastings Show at that time-^-a stickler for utility in sheep—poked his Btick in the wool about the neck of some Lincoln rams and contemptuously refused to award a prize at all in the class. ( "No constitution," he said, "no constitution —I won't give a prize for a sheep with no constitution!" It is also told of certain breeders in the South, who tise'U to show their sheep in the North Island with a, month's growth of wool on them when they were supposed to be shorn only a short time before the show. This practice did not appeal to another breeder when he became "converted" to a strict religious creed, ihough he had done as the rest before. He adhered with supreme rectitude to the letter of the law and showed his sheep shorn, properly and at the appointed time. He eased his conscience thereby, but his sheep—really the best in the sak^/ai'ds— were passed in unsold, while his^ less scrupulous fellow-breeders sold theirs off like hot cakes. This was a case where virtue had to be its own reward and honesty apparently was not the best j policy. I BACK TO ITS OWN AGAIN. Sow be itj to-day the Lincoln is coming back to its own again. There is another reason besides that of its long wool. The Argentine, long used to the English Lincoln, has become acquainted with superior utility of the New Zealand type oi Lincoln, and Argentina breeders are beginning to buy here on a fairly extensive scale, and at most remunerative

prices. The Lincoln crosses well with other sheep for mutton purposes. Itft general purpose value is Bhown by the fact that crossed with, the merino -it has formed the foundation of a separate breed of Bheep with permanent cliaracteristics — -New Zealand's own breed— --the Corriedale. • The importance of the _ Argentine demand will b« seen when it ifc stated that breeders in that part of South America have given as much as 1250 ' guineas for Lincoln rams, bred in England. With mch prices in view it ib lucky tiiat the breeding of Lincoln sheep in New Zealand ie in the hands of a very capable, careful, and 'painstaking ! class of breeder: These men may be | trlistcd to do for the Lincoln what has j been done for other breeds of domestic animals in New Zealand— that is, to effect an improvement in the utility of tho sheep for general purposes. LINCOLN BREEDERS. One of the early pioneers of the Lincoln breed of sheep was *Mr. William Wilson, of Whenitakura, who was assisted by Mr. Gadsby, now a breeder on hie own account. The type and traditions of ! this pioneer Lincoln flock are well maintainted by Mr. Wyboufne, of the eamo J district. Hawkes Bay has possessed many fin© Lincoln flock*. Among tloBO to-day may bo mentioned that of Mrs. J. D. Ormond, in tho maintenance of whoEe flock Air. Walter Archibald has [ done admirable work. Other breederu are: Mr. R. D. D. M'Lean, Messrs. I M'Hartly Bros., Mr. G. Tanner, and Mr. B. Chambers. In the Wairarapa are several prominent Lincoln breedors: Mr. 1 William Perry (of MasteTton), Sir Walter Buchanan, Mr. Bland Raynor, Messrs. Williams, and Beetham, and the executors of the M'Master Estate. There are fewer Lincoln breeders on the Manawatu side, which, as has been said already, favours rather the Romney. Mr. J. W. Brattey, of Bunnythorpe, is one of the chief names one calls to mind. ' SOUTHDOWNS AND OTHER BREEDS. The remaining breeds may be dismissed more briefly. Southdown,s are used chiefly for crossing with the longer wool sheep for the lamb and mutton trade, and the same statement applies to Shropshire Downs. The Leicester Bheep represent only a small minority iof the North Island flocks, though strong in the South. The chief Southdown breeders are Ellis Bros., of Bulls, relatives of one of the leading Southdown breeders in England, from whom the New Zealanad branch of the family gets fresh blood by importations for its flocks. The Department of Agriculture has some fine Southdowns at the Ruakura State Farm, while on the Hawkes i Bay side Nelson Bros, are supreme in i ibis breed of sheep. Mr. James Knight, of Feilding, Mr. A. J. Stone- Wigg Opaki, and Mr. W. Howard Booth, of Carterton, have fine flocks of_ Southdowns. The English Leicester is represented chiefly by Mr. S. R. Lancaster and Messrs. Slack Bros, in the Wellington province. Shropshire Down sheep are chiefly bred in the Rangitikei district by Mr. W, C. Birch and Mr. G. L. Marshall.