OUR STAPLE INDUSTRIES.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLV, Issue 68, 22 March 1911, Page 2

OUR STAPLE INDUSTRIES.

[All Rights Reserved.]

RURAL NEW ZEALAND UNDER! REVIEW. i

(By R. J. Barnes.)

WELLINGTON:

A PROVINCE ■

PROGRESSIVE

No. 22. CROPS, MILK AND FLEECE

Pushing still further in a northwesterly direction from Feilding, there' is the agricultural excellence of the Rangitikei, between the river of that name and the Wangaehu;"day land, hard lard," some may say. But with intelligent tillage it has proved itself capable of big things; ;,Not only for .cropping, but for grazing and.'fattening. Thirty pounds per year was offered for a 600-acre lot—and was refused. This country is used for dry-grazing and fattening, and its computed capacity is three sheep to the acre, besides cattle. Of course there is land—lots of it—available at a lower price than that. Away towards Hunteryille, again, the land runs into bigger boldinsp, and where level enough to cultivate it is good for cropping.l The. price is from £B'W£ls and £20 per Acre. The £8 land is on a twosheep ;basis, while the £15 and £20----property is generally used for mixed1 farmitfg, and the extra price is-als^| created by its closer proximity^ to thcf centres.. Fr^m Turakina to^Bulle the land has a good1 cropping 'value" —£15 to £25 'per' acre. The valley of the Tu'r#kina' li's all good:' grazing and part «t)F'it is fine for'mjxed',agriculture, commanding £30 to s£3s per acre. As the valley becomes narrower, northwards, the level) paris sell from 430 to £40'per1 acre, yhile'the hills give grazing^couniry, ftkSffc oversteep, and wojttfc. from £10 tO: £15 per acre. Away^T-sfciU— further- north there is- a wid"e> range o,f values^ according to qja/ality .and situation.* Throughout the" whole' of tile "crop-^. ping area between * Feilding and Wanganui there are on record numerous instances of land withstanding the strain of repeated crops. The Hangitikei sub-soil is heavy clay, and experience is proving the necessity of working it vigorously. Each year, as the plough gains in effectiveness, some new earth is brought sur-"face-wards to enliven and refresh the root-space. Plough-di'aining Is being largely adopted. This work on a .previously' unimproved' farm, was estimated to have increased the value of1 the land by £7 per acre. That was the owner's, estimate (not for selling purposes), but it> was necessarily arbitrary. -In a number of places plough'draining has 'Jiot been completely, succe&s'fill, the^capillz ary service not haTing prov,ed effective. Here and there, however, farmers arc working with the determination to bring the soil to its highest point of production, and ar*s.iiledraining their properties., Autumn sowing appears to be growing in favor, and" the experience this year has proved the wisdom of providing against dry seasons, such as: the present, by that process. The excellence of southern Rangitikei rye "having been proved, 'the farmers to" the north are experimenting, and with' success. As the bush land is' cleared the potato crops yield heavily;. BASIN OF THE YANGA^JtJI. , , Although' the Wanganui river is fumed-for its scenery, san evidence of the fertile pharaet&i.votfc its surrouiiding country isfound, in the importance of the town situated close ibp> its moutlrr^^timrGg^^h&t big~ works which speak of the. productivity of the stretch of country of which Wanganui is the centre there are the freezing works, the wool-stores, and the fellmongery and soap works. Dairying is also largely carried on. In the town are represented nearly all the leading mercantile firms; tieimportance of whose business has made their names familiar througihout the Dominion. The continued growth of railage freights and shipping afford .proof of the progress of the district, in sheep and cattle :rais-J ing, in agriculture, and in manufactures. Northwards of Wanganui there is some soil of the Taranaki variety. In the vicinity of Westmere and Rapanui the/price of dairying lands run between £40 and £50 j an acre, and no really good farms] can be got under £45 an acre. Ten- j acre lots, in select positions, touch £65, £70, and £80 per acre. Like all the land in the North Island, the country hereabouts is patchy. At the back of Wanganui there is hilly and rough country, with occasional flats. In the river valley itself general farming is carried on, the richer parts being devoted to- dairying* Hill land, under light, stock, with a carrying capacity ol 2§ sheep to the acre, fetches from £12 to £14 per acre, and nothing good is to be got under £8 to £10 per acre.

COMIN J THRO' THE RYE. Southwards from Marion,' and about half-way between that place and Foxton, may be found the nurseries of the rye and crested dogstail seed, which have made the name of Sandon known throughout New Zealand. The crop of dogstail this year should average between 600 and 7001bs to the acre, and it will dress down to something over half that weight. When dressed the seed sells at 9d per lb. The rye-grass : crop was estimated to-yield 30 bushels to the aci*e this year, and it was practically all sold in advance at 5s per bushel of 281bs of seed to the measure, with an additional penny for every pound-weight of seed in excess of the standard weight of the bushel. Of late years the Sandon seed has increased in weight, and sometimes proves itself at 321bs to the bushel measure, which at this year's price would mean 6s 4d per bushel. The bulk of the dogstail grown in this area is sold in the North Island, but a good deal of rye goes South. Farmers who have been in the district for 30 years say that there has never been a tetter season than the present for oats, most of which is being chaffed on account of the weight of the hay. It is a complaint that the land will_ grow enough straw to give a 60 or 70 acre bushel crop, but the grain yield, compared with the quantity of stuff produced, is not so-large as it should be. Of wheat, .30; bushels to the acre is considered a good average in an ordinary season. By a proper rotation, flf ( %;cropA;a great:area has been kept in good heart. After turnips, two or .three white crops (oats, wheat .oi^lJarley) .will .b<vtaken, .and will be - sown .down in rape and grass, which forms the famous pastures from which the rye-grass seed is harvested. After two years the seed may be taken and thereafter it can be threshed indefinitely, but practical farmers have found it not sufficiently profitable £o keep the grass down for a longer

period than seven years. Dogstail is sown and cropped annually. Bonedust and superphosphates are the manures principally used. Over the region of 1 the rye from £25 to £32 an acre is about' the price, but farmers there do not sell and run away to geek land elsewhere. They settle. About li miles from Sandon is the Ohakea settlement, where dairying has added.. heav.yi goodwills to the Government rentals, which latter jim from " lls- 9d: to 18s per^cre. Rongotea to Himitangi it is sandy country, and one finds the experience of great parts of Auckland province repeated. Fifteen, years ago farmers who knew the land ".veil, .or believed they did; would not touch it at £4 per acre. Now it is found profitable at £12 to £16 per acre, for both fattening and crops. Id. such manner have values progressed right through the country of the rye. ,

, home of the bride in Beachmont. It ' was, completed within the limits of 'the town qf Revere, i

• a~ REMA ( RKAiBLE ROBBERY 1

SipßY.' As the result 1 of -what was considered a dari,ng rohhe^yl at Gourock, a "sensational •a^Kqsts-'iias been made by the Gourock police. The victim of the outrage uas a Government official, a m^senger-at-arms of the 2nd Scottish Sub-District of the Royal. Artillery, stationed at Gourock. He Lad been to the bank to cash a cheque for £24, arid on returning to the office was met at the entrance, it was stated, by a man who, it was alleged, put a bag containing pepper over the messenger's head and made off with the money. The police had some doubt as to the truth or'the official's story, and he has been arrested on suspicion.

PICKPOCKETS' NEW METHOD. Three pickpockets who were arrested in Paris. ' had invented a Hew method of procedure. A'lady was stopped on the boulevards by a young man who was weeping bitterly. He told her that he had just dropped all the money he had in the world—a 16s ,gold piece. He had .dropped it on the ground and could not find it. He was out of work,, and he had -a wife and four children „ The lady stopped and helped him to look for the money. Several other people lit matches and helped him to search as we^: Then first one, then an,other, and then a third of the crowd missed his Rurse. There happened to be two detectives looking on, and they arrested the weeping man and two confederates, who had been busy picking pockets while the crowd hunted for the mythical 16s piece.

FAMILY LONGEVITY

'A" mother, ■ son, and daughter, whose ages total 251 years, live in a cottage at Snailham, near Hastings, mother, Mrs Carter, has just celebrated her 102 nd birthday.,- Mrs Carter" aYid'hter son are in receipt of the old-age pensions, and her daughter will be eligible next year. • ,

WORKHOUSE ROMANCE. Another'aged couple,' William Hennin, ninety-tour, and Fanny Wadhams, eighty, - having each been granted an old-age pension, ihave left Chatham Workhouse to get> married. A public subscription is being raised to furnish apartments for them. ■Tfie bridegroom is the oldest surviving postboy, .in England. He picked up Queen Victoria, then a child, when she fell on the sands at Weymouth.

EARL WHO KNITS SOCivS

Presiding at a meeting at Bourne, Lincolnshire, to foster home industries, the Isarl of A'ncaster s t aid that he found, knitting was a great- preventive of smoking, and he had knitted many pairs of socks and stockings which were three times more comfortable than machine-made socks, and would last ten times as long.

DAM FOR kTHE EUPHRATES

Sir John Jack.son, M.P., the great contractor, has signed a contract' witfe the Turkish Government for the cbnstEUction of v^lvgreat dam at the Hindie sectioii of ?tle ''Euphrates,l in connection with the Mesopotamia Irrigation Works,. ; The dam, »which will be the most > important work carried out in Mesopotamia in modern times, will, _it - i^r understood> cost several millions'of" pounds. ".■•*'.

CANARY AND THE VIOLIN

A yellow canary with an extraordinary fondnfess for; music is the pet of the household of Mr Pritchard, of High Road, Kilburn, N.W., where the bird's behaviour when the piano or violin is being played or the gramophone is at work is a source ■qf constant amusement and interest. Mr; Pritchard bought the canary about sixteen months ago from a foreigner who offered it for sale in a London street and* gave it to his little son as a present. The boy found that his new pet was surprisingly tame, and that when he played his Violin the bird grew quite cross if it were not allowed to get as near as possible to the source of the music. Now, the Mail says, the canary perches on the bow while its master plays.

HOUSE SUBSIDES

A curious accident happened in the Rue Boulard, Paris, recently, where a house, occupied by a publican, sank 'down into the Catacombs, over which it was standing. The house is a small one, consisting only of a ground floor structure, situated over a part of the old Catacombs. A gliding, downward movement was felt by its occupant early in the morning, and he hurriedly took flight. The house was gradually subsiding over a distance of some 20ft, and the courtyard threatened to disappear with it, having sunk some 12ft beneath the surrounding surface. The authorities had to take steps at once to

prevent more serious accidents to neighbouring buildings.

HUGE BLASTING OPERATION. !

The new harbor works at Cher- • bourg, France, .have been proceeding slowly for some time owing to the shortage of stone, so it was decided to provide an exceptionally large quantity at the ■■' Roule quarries by means of a gigantic blasting operation. A T-shaped passage was drilled, and a, charge of three tons ot powder and one and a-half of meli-nite-was inserted. When the charge was fired a cordon of gendarmes held the peasants back a mile from the quarfy. ' Half the hillside was torn away by the explosion, and a shelt of rock eighty, felt- deep and a hundred yards; square was broken up, and is now ready for'" transport to Cherbourg.

FAKED CHAMPAGNE. The new cihaiupagne i aw has been laid on the table of the Chamber of Deputies by the Minister of Finance. It has b^en framed' for the purpose of protecting the wine-gs»i^ers of the Champagne district ."V,^fv insuring, as far as the law ca£.,ets«|re it, a real champagne to. p^rMftP&s. of ,•*£? famous wine. Qto/JI6I^ 1? 8 of x r l the bottles themSssft»*, .#"* on the cases containing '-tveiß 'ne word "Champagne". js fe> lie plated. t No champagif^wilr'-^avjs I#>e $ ls> i?}& without l&ese • labels; no 1 wine without them J will Tbef allowed into the district. The Government will appoint inspectors to see'that the law is carried" out, and will inflict fines of £20 to £200 for each infringement.

MURDERER'S BOAST

A journeyman baker named Charles Philippo/ who is under sentence of death for the murder of the wife of a baker at Laheycourt is to be tried for the murder of the wife of another baker at St. Gerand. Philippo is believed to have murdered and robbed the wives of several bakers by whom he has been employed. He has confessed to the first crime, for which he has been sentenced to death. The second one was committed under circumstances of great atrocity, and he confessed to that one also, boasting that he had made more than £100 by it. Philippo is convinced that, although he Avill be sentenced to death a second time, the death sentence will be commuted. He is spending his time in prison writing verse and reading "The Spirit of Christianity," by Chateaubriand- ,j|