LAND SETTLEMENT IN VICTORIA.

Western Star, Issue 374, 21 August 1880, Page 5 (Supplement)

LAND SETTLEMENT IN VICTORIA.

[From the Leader.] The report of the Minister for Lands and Agriculture, dated May 10, upon the administration of the landed estate of the colony for the year 1879'was submitted to

Parliament on May 25. We append the following abstract: — The extent and method of alienation of Crown land in Victoria from thefirst sales to the 31st December, 1879, is shown'. The total alienation has amounted to 21,794:,574.acre5, of which 6,815,644 acres were sold by auction and 14,978,930 acres taken up by selection. Of this area, 2,446,450 acres may be set down as having been forfeited or abandoned, and subsequently included in readjustments of selections, re-licensed, sold by auction or retained by the Crown. Under Imperial Acts, before thegrantingof the constitution,. 4,382,315 acres were disposed of byauction; under the Land Act 1860 there were alienated 809,462 acres; under the Act of 1862, 1,879,940 ; under the Act ot 1865. 3,526,023 ; and under the Acts of 1869 and 1878, 11,196.834 acres. The following table shows the progress of selection under the Act of 1869

Under section 10 of the. Laud Act 1869, the fee payable for occupation of land Under the provisions of Part 11. thereof was 2s per acre per annum for a period of three years from date of license. Section 2of the' Land Act 1878, which came into operation on January 1, 1879, extended to six years the period of licences under section 19 ol the principal Act, and reduced the fee per acre to Is per annum ; hence a reduced amount of fees payable yearly is shown on account of the area selected during 1879, as will be seen by the annexed table of selection under the 19th section

Under the Land Act 1878, which provides for surrender of licenses under section 19 of the principal Act, issued witbjn three years’of date of passing of the Land Act 1878, and for the issue of new licenses thereunder, there have been during the year 1879, 2408 applications to make such surrender. , . Section 11 provides for issue of non-resi-dence licenses for a period of six years, the fee payable being 2s per acre per annum, and for the issue of leases, on expiration of the term of license, for a period of fourteen years, at a rental of 2s per annum. The transactions under this sections were 185 anplications, of which 75 were approved. The area selected was 12,430 acres, and the average to each selection 166 acres. -The fees payable yearly amounted to L 1243. The number of licenses and leases revoked or declared expired during 1879 was 2375, with an area of 326,127 acres. The Treasury profited to theextentof L17,8442s through revocations and forfeitures during tire year. The total area of Victoria is given at 56.446.720 acres, and deducting for mallee scrub and at present inaccessible mountain ranges, lakes, lagoons, &c., 23,000,000 acres, leaves a total accessible area of 33.446.720 acres. The approximate area available for selection on January, 1880, is estimated at 10,711,022 acres. The following table shows the alienation by auction, during 1879, of town, suburb an, and country lands, and the amounts derived thereirom: —

ferred ; 68 run?, comprising an area of about 1,750,000 acres, were either abandoned or forfeited during the year. The area held under pastoral licenses was during the year reduced by sales, selections, reservations, and proclamations of commons to the extent of 686,080 acres. In June, 1879, 100 applications for reduction of pastoral rent were considered and allowed to the amount of L 5165 Is 8d ; and in December, 1879, 95 such applications were considered, and reductions allowed to the amount of L 4205 13s. _ The amount received for fees under this section was L 960. The pastoral revenue for the year amounted to L 107,732. The sum of

L 7560 was received during the year far grazing licenses. This amount, although not credited to the revenue from pastoral occupation, is derived from the nastoral use of land, and is therefore mentioned under this head. The following table allows the amount of pastoral rent paid for each year, from the passing of the Land Act, 1869, to the end of 1879 :

The department is described as working smoothlyand satisfactorily. Seven hundred cases were publicly heard by the Minister durin" the year. Commonage to the extent of 58,989 acres was proclaimed during the year. Of this area, 36,269 acres were added to existing commons, and 22,720 acres comprised in new commons. Commons were diminished to the extent of 27,085 acres ; 5315 Crown grants and 4472 leases were prepared and passed from the head office during 1879, the fees payable on which may be set down at L 10,451. The sum of L 40,611 was received during the year for certificates, transfers, and registrations under the Land Act, 1879, and for miscellaneous fees, including those payable for grants, leases, and survey charges. ' . The following table shows in detail the revenue contributed by the department to the Treasury during 1879

Before Calving.—Heifers fed for three months before calving with a little oil meal in addition to their other fodder, acquire, it is said, a larger development of the milk vessels and yield more milk afterwards than if fed as usual. The general practice among farmers and some breeders is to feed high up to the moment of calving, but I have found this a dangerous practice with Jerseys, having lost several fine cows in too good condition, from purpureal fever, and I consider it safest to withdraw, at least two weeks before the parturition, all food except hay, and a little pats or roots, ' ," Breeding for the , Best Results.—The best females should be used as well as the best males, and especially in the case of in-and-in breeding, which is only allowable in case no other sires of equal excellence are to be had and the breeder is striving to attain certain uniformity of excellence, The best male, in reference to the particular case, may not be the best animal of the stock from which it is desired to purchase, because he should pre-emi-nently possess points which will either improve or sustain those of the females vyhich he is to serve. The properties which a male should possess are relative, not absolute—for absolutely good points should be possessed fcy the female. The least defect in the female, from accident or inherent weakness, should he the instant signal for her’removal from the herd. The Aim of the Breeders is that the stock shall possess fine symmetry—shape, as it is commonty called—robust constitution, a disposition to attain early maturity, which insures good quality of flesh, and, in milch cows, deep-milking qualities. Selection of Bull.—He should be ot moderate size, coupled with as much fineness of bone and limb as is consistent with vigor and energy, together with of carcase and ripeness of points. In addition to these, let him be of as pure blood and of as long ancestry as possible, and for the dairy, of the best milk or butter stock. Mixing Milk.—Dr. T. H. Hoskins, in the Rural New Yorker, concludes thus : “ I have made a considerable number of experiments to test this very matter, and have uniformly found that when largeglobuled milk is mixed with small-globule 4 milk, the rising of the cream of the latter is accelerated, and also made more perfect. Experiments in the churn have also shown that, when large-globuled cream was mixed with small-globuled cream, the butter came more quickly and more perfectly than with small-globuled cream alone. In each case, by microscopictestp, ther e e were fewer cream globules left in the skim-milk and in the butter-milk than were found in the skim-milk and buttermilk of the same small-globuled milk when set and churned separately, under like conditions. I have no doubt that this will always he found true when the operations of the dairy are in other respects properly and intelligently conducted.” •Sulphur.—A writer in the “Wine and Fruit Recorder” says he has discovered from practice that sulphur," one ounce to the gallon of water, and sprinkled or syringed over grape vines, just at nightfall, will destroy insects and mildew and leaye no had show afterwards. When sifted as ' a powder it has an unpleasant and oftentimes injurious effect, although it is acknowledged a specific manure of value, even when applied .broadcast upon the soil.J

Year. By Auction. By Selection. Total. 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 ... ... 1876 1877 1878 1879 Totals under Land Actsl869andl878. Acres. 148,685 118,440 146,611 19,929 49,655 83,395 150,628 76,006 47,376 56,430 897.155 Acres. 322,592 487,436 797,176 1,063,066 1,831,698 1,183,570 1,040,356 1,126,492 1,415,129 1,032,214 jo 90Q 070 Acres. 471,277 605,876 943,787 1,082,995 1,881,353 1,266,915 1,100,984 1,202,498 1,462,505 1,088,644 it 103.8*4

Tear, Applications approved. Acreage. Fees payable yearly. £ s. d 870 3,017 320,719 32,071 18 0 871 .. 4,575 477,685 47,768 0 0 872 7,771 780,819 78.081 0 0 878 6,686 1,041,779 104,177 0 0 874 .! 9,578 1,809,668 180,966 0 0 L875 .. 6,320 1,171,849 117,184 0 0 L876 .. 5,785 1,029,141 102,914 0 0 L877 .. 6,240 1,113,266 111,329 0 0 L878 .. 7,524 1,389,955 138,995 10 ■0 L879 .. 5,726 1,0061024 1158,161 6 0

— Area, Amount. Average per acre. Town Suburban... Country ... A. E. P. 3,607 0 5 3,005 3 22 51,816 2 28 £ ‘ s. d 73,607 18 10 11,916 15 6 70,908 8 9 £ s. d. -15 14 6 3 19 4 17 4 During the year 55 runs were trans-

1870... ... £16^491 1875 ... ... £139,304 1871 ... ... 172,228 1876 .. ... 162.44* 1872... ... 153,522 1877 .. ... 146.043 1878 ... ... 140,791 1878 ... ... 134,079 1871 ... ... 127,114 1879 ... ... 107,738

Pastoral occupation and grazing £115,292 15 5 Rents tor temporary occupation Purchase under sec. 20 Land Act 1839 23,911 0 156,310 3 76,576 13 0 1 O Purchase under other sections .. 4,070 1 6 Rents under section 19, Land Act I860 158,559 11 0 Rents under section 20, Land Act 1866 502,397 10 0 Rents under other sections 17,313 10 0 Penalties under section 93, Land Act 1,323 10 1869, and interest i Fees for grants, leases, licenses, &c. .. 40,611 2 0 Total revenue .. 866,395 16 10