SOLDIERS' FARMS.

Timaru Herald, Volume CVI, Issue 16234, 2 April 1917, Page 8

SOLDIERS' FARMS.

MEETING' "OF LEVELS CGUjSTY UATEPiyEUS.

APPOINTMEN f OF. COMA lITTEE

A meeting of iainiei\s df Lhe litielb County m tnc-iiorougn on (Jiinmbsis on featuiday afternoon lor tho pui pcs 3 oi consiueuiiig rJie question: of tne management of farms held by tarmeis who go to the war. 1 Between 40 and .50 rai mera w-tro present and Mr C. N. Oibeli, chauman of the 1 levels -County Council, presided. Mi* E. P. ,Burbuiy, agricultural adviser to the -Elficiency Boa id m Canterbury, was picscnt, and also Mr E. E. Guinness,' Mayor cf Tirnam.

Mr Orbe 1 explained that the object of the meeting, was to elect a comjrrttes of advice, for the management of s-il-,^lieiV; farms., . He asked tluj mestuig to stick to the business before them and not to attempt to discuss other tilings, ;suc]i as tho shortage of labour, or any of . their, troubles. .Mr Burbury.- v. ou >1 bf pleased to give aiiy informat oi A scheme for the' management of soldiers' "forms had been drawn tip and approved' by the Efficiency Board. Mr -\ Orliell then ,_road this sclieme and insked the • meeting to • a pprove of - - it; (This scheme, which is the one known as the Geraldme scheme,. has been already pub. lished.) Mr T. B. Gat;i'ick' said ih.o scheme •lid not provide for taking over 'infinancial farms J , What become of such farins when;tho owite'rs wore at the war sl ' 1 Mr -Buibury said f'the Government the^owners, pf such farms that they would b'6 •• taken caro oh Jf there was no equity in a faim there"cou'd be no tiS3 jii taking it over: The owner off such _ a farm would' ,to deal with it i T ; the fsaine-.-way .as :he .coiild shaven deal 1 ; : with it tbefere. If they took over a'l sol-dier-farms they' would-' hive to lake Over all soldier-businesses; that would "run'into • millions of pounds, and would be too b g an undertaking /'Mr* Hait said kill the whole ;if thev > declined 1 to take * over farms' 'which were not fipr.7ic : allv sound . Mr Buriburv said file scheme onlv sard th-> t-nste:s "mnv" decline io -take over 'such firms. It''rt Vl"not' prohibit from doing «o. Tho trustees wonVl be local jjien and it would rest purely 4vitli them what farms they would , .take • over, and lihe trustees would be men whom they oould trust to deaJ equitablywith all. ,In i reply, to Mr 'Hart Mr Burbury 'Saiaatxie. Aiovernmenx ioouia -not- guarantee to tmcl laDoui. £iut J tliey DUieved tn<*t tiiey woaid be aty© to liud. all the iie\.€S3ury labourl' • ' 1 in reply to ivii' B. E. H: ( Tr.pp,' Mr Burbuiy said 1 the Government did nut soldiois'tfiarmsfftso rai a» he w>is awaie Ix tney ttiu so tliey(would lequiie also to onrchase soldieiis', businesses, and that wouifl be too b g an "uudeitaking: jln saving /tins he ->vas expressing his own .private opinion. Air TfcT. Oibeli asked w~he|hor it wouid >ba advisable to elect becond Division, men as tiustees. 1 ' •* Mr Burbury said ,it would be' much better if men-over m.litaiy age' were elected as trustees.' the latter must be questioned integrity, and men.;; in whom the soldiers , and tVse whole community had implicit confidence. Mr Gerald Casey suggested that unf.nfincial farms might be taken ovei by the Government for * the ' purpose of wheat growing. In reply to Mr Hart Mr Burbury ■ explained that the' teiil.or twleve names which that meeting might suggest as a committee of advice wouldgbe forwarded to the Efficiency Board, who would seiect five ort these'names to form the local committee of adv.ee.- f Mr Kairt said it \vou:d be better for the moe-tuig to select the five names as the local people-would be'.ab.e to make the selection better than the, Efficiency

board. , | i\lr Casey endorsed this view. • I Tlie' chairman said the meeting could make the selection hy .only seudmg m five names to the Efficiency Boaid. ' Mr Burbury said that was so, but it wouid be better to solid in more names to let the Board make tlie selection. , V > ,Mr J. Paterson (OtaioV explained what had been done tbo previous day at. the St. Andrews -.meeting,.. and he < favoured tlie selection of the five names by the meeting that day. (Hear, hear.) In reply to Mr Casej, Mr Burbury said the Efficiency Board weie not Government servants, they were volun-

teers. " Mr: Casey: "I am very glad to bear it " (Laughter.) •Mr Bui bury impressed' upon the mooting that tJie ..Efficiency Board "■'members* received' absolutely pay, ■ b'ut«were doing the work because they felt it to bo thoir duty as they were over, the military «.ge and cou.d not -go-to the war. The chairman of the Effioiency vßoard. (Mr .Ferguson of Wellington), had thrown up a position ! ' worth £3OOO a. year; to take up this ■work* and. Mr, I'rostick,': Commissioner i for Canterbury, had sacrificed far more than £3OOO a year to undertake this work, for which neither ho nor any other member of the; Board received one penny; (Prolonged applause.) •Mr Hart moved the adopt.on of the isscheme submitted with an a.-t;;ration to r,'clause 10, providing that unfinancial farms should .be taken over as well as ■those which" were paying. ;-Mr. ■ Burbury suggested that the scheme should be adopted as .it. stood at- present. To ask for alterations now • would nieian delay, and lie could assure ■ them : that :f they made any recommendations they woulcf receive the serious consideration of the Board. ■Mr • Gai-nck said there-could be no use haggling further, and .he proposed that the sciieme be adopted in globo>~'Mr Casey proceeded to deliver an impassioned address on fanners' ■ difficulties as a.pp.ied to wheat. K growing, and lie fcharattei-jsed as a sublime, faxoe the. proposal to grow wheat under supervisors. He asKed that the faroe ■ba yut- a stop to. •The chairman asked Mr Casejr ttf" keep to the business of tiie meeting: They were not there that day to, dis--01103" Wheat growings . .. ' Mr Casey proceeded to ask a question concerning appeals before %e; Appeal Board, but the chairman said] that Mr Burbury had nothing to do j with the aptisal Board. j

Mr W. J. Bassett rose to a point of order and aslred thai Mi" Casey lie directed not to further take up tjhe' t-i've of the meeting. The. chairman said that he did not like to stop anyone from speaking, hut thoy must get on with the business, which was the selection of a number of names to form a committee of advice. •He added that he quite agreed > with the view expressed by Mr Hart in regard to iin.financial farms'. He supposed that lie had seen more men start on the land in South Canterbury than any othor man, and he did not think it would be right to refuse to take over® a farm ' simply because the owner of it had not yet had time to "turn the cornei;." It would not be fair in tlhe case of deserving men. , Mr Gavruck's motion to adopt the scheme in globo was seconded by Mr Bassett and carried without a dissentient voice. ' ,

The meeting then proceeded to select names from which to choose a. committee of five. The names selected were:— Messrs A. G. Hnrt (Rosewill). T. R. "arriok (Totara Valley). B. J. Mc(Krrmnull). W. MeCullv (Sea-d->wrO. J. Mnsie W. P.. Stiricker (iKiea«do\vn); ;M. O'Connor (Fair-

W. King (Levels ..Val.ey), G. Casey (Claremont'), and C. E. Kerr (Cave)." Messrs W. G- Aspinall, and ,B. E. H. ■Tripp were appointed scrutineers,. and the-tive chosen-were as follows: —Messrs i Hart, Kerr, Garriok, McCuiiy and Mc- | Koown- ' ' x /Mr'C. N. Orbell' was strongly urged ' to serve on the committee, but 'he said that' his-health would not permit. After the general'meeting the coinnutt'ee met -arid -appointed •Mr Gan-ksk as their chairman. They albo decided to recommend the Efficiency' Board not to- ( decline to take over any .soldier's'farm on' the ground that it did not show a profit. Mr Burbury said h© felt" :>ure that each ca.se would 'be dealt -with on its merits-and that iijp injustice would be done to anybody.-- * ;• , i