NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS

Otago Witness, Issue 2604, 10 February 1904, Page 7

NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS

A few weeks ago a letter appeared in the

Witness from "North Island Lnnd for the manner in which Crown. Landless. Favni~>r," complaining of the

tenants are bothered and harassed and tyrannised over by those appointed by the Stote to see that the conditions and 1 regulations of the lease® are carried out. That may bo ihe case in the North Inland, but I certainly do not think it is so in the sout.i ; in fact, of my own personal knowled.se I can say that in many tases the Crown lands rangers are too lenient in their dealings- with the tenants, and allow them to infringe tho rules as to cropping, cutting out trc-es, etc. I have heard complaints, too, of partiality and favour being shown to some tenants uhile others are tied down to the. stiict wording of the lease. I am of opinion that, so far as my observation goer;, the Go\ eminent settlers are treated vry fairly all round, and that it i,3 only the shufflers and ne'er-do-wells that 'omplain of harsh treatment. A settler who is honestly striving to do his duty to himself, lis farm, and his landlord need not roar molestation at the hands of any Government official. Tue-se men aro not all w-ell qualified for their poet's in the matteiof practical knowledge, but they are all human, like the reef of us, and if a settlor goes out of his way to be nasty to them, he can only etpect that they will retaliate if he> gives them the chance by making froewith the conditions of his lease. Ido not mean to f-ay that the t riter of the letter referred to na* made misstatements regarJisig the^ jidminihtrat'on of the land laws in the norrh ; but ana only giving my opinion bai-ed upon my observation in the south ; but I nnut say that I think the I'beral land h se of the present day are tempting men to 30 on r h& land who have no experience (Jr qualification whak-vcr for successful occupancy of iho same. Successful farming under favourable conditions lequires practical knowledge ond experience., and yet there is a prevailing- idea among all classes that if they can get some land they are all right, end assured of a comfortable living without any preparatory training. It seems t=o eaisy to pin in a crop and ih«n f-it down and calculate, that so many bushels an acre et so much pea- bushel corner to a nice little mm. Some people seen to think> that farming j« an intuitive- fa<ul:y implanted in the. mind by Nature, cine l in no way depending 1 upon technical knowledge and experience.; but many -such onthusiastn ha^e found out tbeir mistake at the> co«t of their capital and discovered' that they have gained a little knowledge at a great expense. Then, too, scores of men have secured sections at the ballot as a speculation, and with the intention of selling the lease as f-ooii as a chance occurs of getting a good sum for the goodwill, in addition to the value of any improvements effected. I am glad to see that this practice haa been checked by re-

I I strieting a man from obtaining a transfer | within five years.

I think I have seen an old saying to the effect "that he who would Practice With thrive in farming must guide Science. the plough himself." This

may not be literally true, because the necessity cf driving one's own plough depends upon the farmer's circumstances ; but there is no doubt that the principle implied in the proverb is sound, and, taken in it 3 broad sense, applies to all farmers. Whether it is necessary or not for pecuniary reasons for a farmer to follow the plough, it ie essential that he should know when the work is done as it should be. It is a fact that many, if not the majority, of oui successful farmers have risen from the ranks, as it were, and gained their experience- while working for hire upon other men's farms. Theoretical knowledge alone is a poor guide, but is not to be despised altogether, because science and practice can go hand in hand with excellent results. Many hard-hoad'ed, hornyhanded farmers are apt to sneer at theory and science in connection with farming, and to unde-restimate the value of b00k.3 and newspapers ; but while it is true that a novice cannot expect to supply his want of practical knowledge by providing himself with all the available books upon farming, it is equally true that the experienced man should keep himself abreast with the times and endeavoar to derive information from every available source. In th-3se scientific days we cannot afford to neglect the teachings of those men who devote their time and talents to the mrfolding of the hidden things of Nature. The botanist, the geologist, and the anolytio.il chemist are continually opening up eomathmg new and valuable to farmers, who, aa a rule, trouble themselves very little about the laws and conditions under which the earth bringe forth her increaso. More especially is this the case in connection with fertiliser's, for many of these are of such an intricate chemical nature that science mufit guide us in the use of them in order to obtain good results.

Since writing the foregoing I have eeen the report of a meeting of craoks in Christchurch, the meeting being held at the instigation of four M.P.R 's of well-known single-tax and land-natioualisaoioa proclivities. They say that they view with much alarm the tendency of the people to acquire the freehold of land, and they ar3 of opinion thst when land is held on leasehold tenure, periodical revaluations should be made. They are evidently afraid that land ie bein? held on too easy a tenure: therefore, though they do not say co, it follows that the revaluations would always be in an upward dirsenon, so that CVown tenants will not become too fat and prosperous. These crankc do not seem to eon^id-e-r that if it is a fair thiiig to increase the rente in good times it will alco be only fair and just to reduce the rent in bad time*. But tio. they have a hazy sorb of idoa that farmeis a?o. always flourishing and prosperous, and! fair game for all who want to have a shot at them.

a. have heard reports of a bad strike in the

latest-sown turnips, and that The Turnip the turnip fly has been busy Fiy. and done a !ot of mischief

in miny parts, especially where the dry weather caused a slow and weak brairding. The post ia not exactly a fly, but rather a beetle possessing the power of flying. It is i-maU, bin voracious, and for its size seems to be ab'.e to consume an enormous amount of green food. Science does not seem to Le of r.ny assistance to tho farmer in pie\-cntmg the ravages of this pest. The late Miss Ormerod, a noted enfcomologvt, gave- a great deal of attention 10 this matter, but was unnblc to arriie at any satisfactory solution of the problem — viz , how to protect the <-ecdhng turnips from tho attack of the fly. A great many suggestions have been made, Irom time to time, but i>one of them of much practical \alue: such as sprinkling the plants with soot, and steeping the seed for an hoar in turpentine. As a matter of fact, there seems to be a lot of luck in growing turnips — tliat is, ir> regard to getting au assumed strike. Sometimes tho diiFeionc"- of a day or two in the date of sowing makes all the difference between success and failure. Then, again, it is seldom that a whole field is taken by tho pest. On© see* a patch here and there quite blank, while the rcat is goodj or it may be the opposite, and only a few patches escape the fly, although the soil, treatment, and time of sowing of the whole field a.ie much the came. I ha\e seen a few breadths of the round of a paddock com? away all right, the rest of the paddock being a failure The fly is rot responsible altogether for the damage done, to young root crops. The English skylark doos a very great deal of roirohief among the tender plants, to say nothing of othei small birds of a voracious nature. AGEICOLA.

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