AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2902, 27 October 1909, Page 5

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

The committee o£ the Otago A. and P. Society has again written to the Minister for Railways pointing out at some length that no valid reasons appear tb'have bean given in his reply to a previous letter why the exhibits consigned to a ,show should not be carried at quarter rates each way, thus doing away with i the present railway certificates -hafc are «> - objectionable toexhibitors. To*' this letter the tlon. J. A. Millar replied en .the 12th inst., that Lo would give the further representations of the Otago A. and P. Society his careful consideration. ' There appears to be every probability of the barren land now lying between "Alexandra and Clyde- .being transformed- into smiling fields and fruitrul orchards "in the near future. For acttne considerable ; time past (says the Alexandra Herald) Ja^ local syndicate has had under consideration a patent pumping plant for lifting . water from the Molyneux River for irrigation purposes, and the invention is said tp have roach-ad' a successful completion. ~ > With a view to demonstrating the capacity of the invention the syndicate has approached the Land Board to purchase at a nominal price about 1000 acres of the arid lend between Alexandra and Clyde. -The proposal is to erect a pumping plant and lift water on to the flats to irrigate the land for fruit cultivation. The syndicate will undertake the planting of fruit, trees, and when it has successfully cultivated the land and the trees have reached^ full bearing the intention is to subdivide the area into small fruit farms. These will be offered tq settlers at a. price sufficient to compensate the syndicate for its outlay, or elss leased to intending orchardists. A meeting of the syndicate was held at Alexandra last week., and it is said that capital amounting to £14,000 was forthcoming to carry the proposal into effect. It is stated that inoluded in the syndicate are two gentlemen* from Australia, who have had considerable experionco in irrigation works in different parts of the world. At last meeting of the Land League it was unanimously decided io support the syndicate in its request for an area of land, and if the proposal is favourably considered by the Land Board it is _ expected that immediate steps will be taken to erect the pumping plant and fenoe the' land for fruit cultivation. Speaking to a deputation of the Farmers' Union Advisory Committee on the 19th. (says the New Zealand Times), in reply to a request for the introduction of a system of through booking of produce between railway stations in both islands. Sir Joseph Ward pointed out that those facilities could only be obtained if the ferry service was State-owned, and it was only a matter of time whon this would be required to be done. While he was anxious to help the stpamshin coin pa .lies in the matter of tln-outrh 'mokiriir. the Government's difficulty wa.s that of tho drop rate on long distance tares. Th?;, could not go in for a mile rate, and if- was raising: tha question whethpr the broken rate should not be removed. While Ik> did not wish to reflect upon fho T'iron Steam Ship* Company or the Huddart, Parker Company, thj difficulty over booking fruit, parcels, ard passengers through from one island to the other was insui mountable. "The only way to srefc over it," added Sir Joseph, " is for the country to own the steemeis. I don't want to do the existing companies an injury, .but am in favour of a State-owned service."' Sandon. in the Manawalu district, is rr-.tabl.shintr a ?reat name for ryoerraas. f.ast yca>- O i><» farmer alone cleared £1020 from 120 n'-vt Mr Robert Gibb. !at^ Sta'e Bee Kxnert for the Xorth Is'ai'd. an'l previously -chcolma.-'tpr at Tu'uau. who resign ~d fro in th:.- Agrion'rural Departm -ni on the JOlh ult., has d"fmi:eh <W'ic'ct! to go in for be-9 farmini' on tt is own ;u oruint. Tcwarls th.it rrrl h" fns ptt.-ch-sse'l fi\nn Mr Goorire Ciitwri-rht a ni<x»l\ -situated book of nine sirr** ?r Af'-rz'e- Fti'v. Huge arrv»'C3 of slurs .ire making their nre~< nc-e fe't in parts a r the Hutt Tall-ey, in th« Wiollinat'-n di«=-tiie'.. and to combat these the farmers aro in 'omc ca'-ss at their wite' end«. Tn tlw opinion of one sertl-sr, l.hf iiirrcrlufi ion of tca.c';miehr to a certain rxtrnr succp. <! in kfpinz rlov. n the slugs. Another states that his ducks cat up slugs \\ ith enns tl-erab!* 1 do^pateh yjr R.<-Ki-<! ~Emn=. of Ran^ora, «ays thiirt Mi- (lri<r<\ rrrei'oo<l of j>o'sor:ing wheat for !)iivis 's]friti'<- c!rv nov.flcr on pr-gin moi c ' f encd \i >th sweetcpo^l sn ; ik and water), has b?en very effective >n hi"» ham's. As ha put it, hi' =alo-> of hiivi'.' lira/!- practically " broke " the locaJ body to which he sold them. A rec?nfc victor to Southland say-3 he has never s^-en the fe-'d <-o forward: in fart, he f>a ; <l to a Christ^hurch pressman, ir <*? ms to be two months in advance of average reasons.