THE PLIGHT OF THE FARMER.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 February 1928, Page 13

THE PLIGHT OF THE FARMER.

(To th© Editor.) Sir,—ln your issue of February 2 is K letter from Mr. G. T. Young. His ease is very hard, and should not be allowed to pass over without an effort being made to help him. It is only on a par with w’hat is happening all over the country. The Deteriorated Lands Commission was appointed by an Act worded to give them power to make advances for improvements. Have they done so? In the basin of the Wanganui there are hundreds of good men that have reached bed-rock where an advance of a few hundreds for fencing or other Improvements would carry them through. The board has reduced values, remitted rents, encouraged aggregation, which is bad for the land and the country. but has not advanced one shilling to help the settlers to pull tnrough. Personally, I know cases where £2OO to £SOO advanced for .Improvements would enable unfortunate hard-working men I who have spent their all and the beet years of their lives in the baek-blocks) to make good instead of having to go Out broken men to further flood the labour market. While on the land question, what is the position nearer home? In your issue of January 12, the Hon. 0. J. Hawken is reported to have said: “I think I ean safely say that farming in Taranaki is progressing very well.” Will the bulk of Taranaki fanners endorse that ©pinion? Where properties have been held over 30 years by individuals or families in most cases they are doing well. The bulk of the present holders paid too much for their land, and nothing short of a miracle will enable them to pull through. Most of them have invested their life savings in a piece of land, and they .work all hours in all kinds of weather and economise in ways that people in towns never dream of, and still their little board of capital is gradually dwindling, and their position is hopeless and desperate. I will give two cases that accidentally came under my notice in one day. A man worked hard for over 20 years contracting, and as his family grew he took on share-milking. Ho had about £2OOO nine years ago, and bought a farm of 109 acres. He paid £I3OO down, and put the rest in cows. In 8j years he paid out £4576 in interest and rates alone, and last July he walked out with hie blankets. He is now share-milking again. Another ease: The father 45, the mother 40, a girl of 14, and two younger boys are milking 62 cows on 150 acres. The land, though fair, is not the best. The boys bail up, the mother and daughter strip, the father attends the machines. Since daylight saving came in the boys leave earlier for school, and most of the-extra work falls on the mother, who is fretting. Her leys loose an hour’s sleep a day. As soon as milking is done the mother rushes home to get the breakfast. The father tries to put in some winter feed. After breakfast the mother puts in two or three hours to clean the shed, wash machines, and utensils. The daughter feeds the aal-.es and pigs, and turns out the cows.

In the afternoon housework, washing and mending are done. After milking in the evening' the machines, itensile and shed are cleaned, calves and pigs fed. After that they can spend their spare time enjoying Sidey’s Daylight Saving Bill. This family has on the first day of each quarter to find £147 without reducing their liabilities. Those are only typical eases, and theii position is as deplorable as any eases h the deteriorated lands. In to-day’s issue the Premier is reported to have said in regard to the Rural Credit Act: “The Government can be relied on to eee that such a board is supplied to administer the Act as will give fullest consideration to the claims of the farmers.” Just so. The Deteriorated Land Board gave consideration and sympathy, with the result that the people’s struggle is ended for many of them. When Mr. Coates first took office in the Ministry I came personally in contact with him. I then held, and still maintain, that he was the best Minister holding portfolio in New Zealand. At the same time I respectifully beg to differ from him about the rural advances. The machinery is unworkable. Apart from the £400,000 advanced by the Government the success of the scheme depends on money being advanced by the public. It is likely the publie will subscribe funds to be let out by a Government department which will not .be guarantee for them? Mr. Coates may not know, but it looks like a suggestion of interested finance’s to put off a practical scheme. For four months I have been going through Taranaki, and have seen a good deal of the back country schools and their pupils. The Taranaki backblock schools are among the best conducted schools In New Zealand, or anywhere else. In most of them , there are pupils taught important subjects in addition to the ordinary syllabus. The drawings and compositions show careful work on the part of the traders ’ and the application of the pupite. In scale drawing, horticultural and forestry some of the work would not disgrace professionals. In looking over it one is inclined to wonder how those boys are in the preeent state of things going to apply the knowledge they have been so carefully taught. Thirty years ago Taranaki farming was very strenuous. Probably Taranaki did not produce a tenth of what it does to-day. Yet at that time people had hope, and the chance of making good on a farm was 500 per cent, better than it is to-day. While I was through the country I never heard one boy speak as if he wanted to go on the land, or one parent hope his sone would take up a farm, but I have heard numbers speak against it. The trades are crowded; the offices are full; the professions are limited; will our well educated boys have to join the unemployed?—l am, OLD FARMER. New Plymouth, Feb. 3.