AGRICULTURAL ARMY

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXI, Issue 301, 4 December 1931, Page 4

AGRICULTURAL ARMY

LAND DEVELOPMENT SCHEME MOBILISATION OF YOUTH. INTERNAL LOAN OF £5,000,000. A scheme for the absorption of from 10,000 to 20,000 youths and young men between the ages of 15 and 24 in breaking in unproductive Crown lands has been put before the Auckland Chamber of Commerce by Mr. G. S. Bullen, of Ponsonby Boad, Auckland. Mr. Bullen’s proposal is that the Government should mobilise a volun tary army of 10,000 to 20,000 youths and young men, who would ' ‘ sign on ’ ’ for a definite period. They must ail be medically examined and passed as physically fit, and must also be of good character. The object of this army would be to break in up to 1,000,000 acres of Crown lai.ds. Beyond a small allowance for pocket money-, no payment would be made to the members of the army, but they would be fed, clothed and housed, and Mr. Bullen pro poses that an incentive to work could be provided by giving them a claim to grants of small areas of land as it was broken in. For a period of years the sections could be let to th- occupiers at a nominal rental, and the land loaded with the cost of housing, fencing and other necessary expenses. Ultimately the occupiers would have the right of converting to freehold on terms to be fixed. PRODUCTIVE EXPENDITURE. The scheme, states Mr. Bullen, would naturally eost a great dual of money, but, unlike a big proportion of that at present being spent on relief works, if would ultimately be productive. His proposal for financing the scheme is that a compulsory internal loan of £5,000,000 at 3 per cent, interest should be raised, those having incomes ol £4OO and upwards to contribute a percentage. This, he states, should prove no great sacrifice to the lenders, as the principal and interest would be safe, and finally they would reap a share of the benefit in New Zealand’s restored prosperity. To gain the ’tmost efficiency, Mr. Bullen su-frests that the army should be organised on military or semi-mili-tary lines, ...dor one directing head. The members would receive training in discipline, industry and systematic work, instead of living aimless lives as many of them, through no fault of their own, are farced to da at present. IMPETUS TO TRADE. When the land is broken in standardised cottages of three rooms and milking sheds could be erected on the sections, which would be fenced, manured and grassed. If the scheme were put under way, the loan raised would start to circulate at once, and an impetus would be given to clothing and boot trades and to the timber industry, and there ,/ould be a revival of trade all round. With a vastly increased rural population, says Mr. Bullen, more employment would be available in the cities and towns of the Dominion, which would be able to keep a greater population, thus reducing the national debt per capita. The question, of whether the scheme would be popular or not has been considered by Mr. Bullen, who says that it must be made popular. During the war recruiting campaigns were held and were most successful. Similar campaigns could be held now, for the need is as great as, if not greater than, during the war. Mr. Bullen considers that, if properly launched, the scheme should capture the imagination, not only of the New Zealand people, but of the rest of the Empire. It would be a splendid advertisement for New Zealand, and ultimately, when most of the Dominion’s young people were placed, it would absorb promising material from Britain, and probably Britain would contribute towards the cost. ESTIMATE OF COST. In his estimate of the costs, Mr. Bullen has prepared tables showing the estimated expense of breaking in 50,000 acres, and making 1000 farms of 50 acres in a year with 1000 workers. The total cost of breaking in 50,000 acres, he estimates, would be £517,500, or £5lB per 50-acre farm. Smaller schemes, he considers, would cost slightly more per 50-acre farm. An army of 1000 would be a useful unit with which to start the scheme, Mr. Bullen considers, and the personnel could be increased as experience is gained. It would bo definitely retained as a feature of national policy until every acre of cultivatable Crown lana in the Dominion was broken in and contributing to the national wealth. “It seems to me,” he concludes, “that only by such means as those outlined can the unoccupied areas of land be broken in and made to produce. There seems to be no reason why the scheme should not absorb 10,000 to 20,000 of our young men in the course of the next year or two, and so assist in bringing about renewed prosperity to our Dominion.”