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Otago Witness, Issue 3993, 23 September 1930, Page 36

Tobacco growing is proving highly profitable in Victoria. Within the past six months purchases of land at Pomona! for the growing of tobacco have aggregated over £26.000. About 500 acres have been prepared for planting, and inquiries amongst existing growers show that during the 1931 season they expect to plant between 1000 and 2000 acres. With the present high prices that are being paid, any well-managed tobacco plantation on suitable soil is returning £lOO an acre profit. This means that during the 1931 season the return from Pomona] tobacco should be in the vicinity of £200,000. Mr J. Sccck, a prominent grower, took to Melbourne several “ hands ” of tobacco, and an expert said he had not seen anything to equal it in Australia, and that as far as colour was concerned he had not seen better colour than the bright lemon during his 40 years’ experience in America and England.

A quarter-acre section in the borough of Blenheim changed hands the other day for 50s (states the Marlborough Express). True, it is not much of a section, requiring a great deal of filling in, but the figure probably sets a new low-water mark for such transactions in any part of New Zealand. The costs incidental to the transfer would run out at. about £3 15s, and the annual rates at the present time are at least 50 per cent, in advance of the new capital value of the section. Mie new owner will probably be applying for a revaluation, but his bargain is hardly likely to affect the neighbourhood values much, as they are well established at between £BO and £lOO per quarter-acre, unimproved.