DEVELOPMENTAL PLANS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17607, 24 October 1931, Page 12

DEVELOPMENTAL PLANS

BREAKING IN NEW COUNTRY VALUABLE REPRODUCTIVE WORK flood results have boon achieved by the (jnempjoyuicnt Board's Iso. 4 scheme (4A and 48J,. it they are regarded only in terms of the manner of unemployed that have been taken from city and suburban streets and placed in employment that lias developed their sense of the necessity and importance of work on the land- This in itself is a'distinctgain psychologically, for it is probable that many ol those , who ha ve . been ,so occupied during the past six months had begun to have serious doubts whether they would ever again have ,an opportunity of enjoying the real thrill of a woni;-while job. Actually ,the absorption of the unemployed was the basic idea behind these land development plans, and they have realised hopes to the extent of'providing work for 1i,556 men since their inception on February 22. When 4A was temporarily suspended on, August 31 the tally of men who had been engaged under it was 7846 single men and 2229 married men. The suspension lasted only a moiitli, and to-day there are 2005 single men and 636 married men employed on reproductive work on farms. And more are being taken on every week. \ Welireas under 4A it may happen that the board finds ilie whole of the wages for men engaged by farmers, the hoard grants subsidies lo the extent of 33 1-3 per cent of labor only for contracts under 41k Yet the record of this scheme is the approval of 620 contracts, involving the employment of 1481 men upon work of a reproductive character. ■ Among the achievements of these men were the following : Scrub-cutting, 17,045 acres Bush-felling, 9795 acres. Stumping and logging, 1273 acres. Grubbing, 1472 acres. Drain-age, 8450 chains (106 miles).

Fencing, 10.655 chains (134 miles). Maiiy of the farmers responsible for these contracts gave estimates, of the expected additions of stock that would result, but many others did not- do so. The figures so far to hand show that in the near future nearly 40,000 sheep and oyer 7000 cattle will be grazing oil land that- lias, since the discovery of the country, remained unproductive. One of the biggest contracts so Tir arranged is the clearing of COO acres of bush on a Crown leasehold property at Kekerangu, Polohis Sound, involving the letting of eight subcontracts and the employment of 30 men for two months. Seven of the contracts are of four men each and the oightli will he carried out by twp mob. At a reasonable rate of work the men are expected to earn £3 15s per week. It is computed that when this area is ready for, stock it will provide grazing for hi) additional 1200 sheep. Applicants for subsidies under 4B must apply to the Lands and Survey Department, or where this is not convenient. should confer with the local unemployment committees, which will supply the men needed on contracts. These men must he , genuinely unemployed. ~ ’