Part 7

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ordinary thresher easily. In Canada they go round threshing on contract, and four or five farmers co-operate for the purpose. But in this country, unfortunately, some of the farmers cannot be brought together at all.

8062. Have your crops ever suffered from disease? --- In the morrell country we have had the disease of white head, and the crop had no grain in it at all. I pickle, but do not grade my wheat. I have tried fruit trees, but the white ants destroyed them. Pig raising is profitable. I feed mine on soaked wheat. in this district a man could do with 2,000 acres and he should be able, with a little assistance at harvest time, to cultivate 300 acres himself, but to make it really payable he must have stock and should have 1,100 acres cleared. At this distance from the railway the price of land is ridiculous. A railway was promised us, and at any rate only a nominal price should be paid for rent, and it should be rent free for the first five or six years, and then 10s. an acre would be more ample for it. Before we came here we were recipients of all kinds of promises, both from the agent General and from pamphlets issued by his office in London. Railways were promised as soon as we got on the land, and an assured rainfall, but when we arrived in the State any decent land was miles away from anywhere. However, we did not find these facts out until we were actually on the land. We secured our land on application before the Land Board. The pamphlets I have referred to said that we could procure land on which drought was quite unknown. I have some of those pamphlets still in my possession and will send them down to you. Clearing costs 25s. to 30s. an acre and morrell costs the most to clear. We plough with a mouldboard as deep as it can go and in other places as shallow as it can go. We cultivated some of it and we put in some untouched, and when the land was untouched the results were as good as the other.

8063. By Mr VENN: Are rabbits numerous here? - They have done us no damage so far.

8064. By the CHAIRMAN: What do you think of the prospects of this district? - I think it must go ahead if only we can get more clearing done, and, therefore, the Bank will have to be more liberal. If we had 600 acres cleared each that would give us a total of 1,200 acres and we would then be on the high road to success. For the first two years we did nothing but clearing and in that way started farming. We started on the morrell, and at the end of that period the whole scrub had grown up again. I have asked Mr Sutton about wheat growing on morrell country and the dry areas. We were landed here new chums and knew nothing at all about morrell and had never heard of it. I calculate that in seed, super., and labour we have lost at least £500 on the morrell land. (The witness retired.)


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JAMES ROBERT VIRGIN, East Kuminin, Farmer, sworn and examined:

8065. By the CHAIRMAN: How long have you been here? - For six years. I was reared on a farm at Port Elliot, South Australia, afterwards I was on the Eastern Goldfields mining. I hold 970 acres in partnership and 1,000 acres of my own. The whole is worked as one farm. This year I have had my second crop. The 970 acres was priced at 25s. and afterwards reduced to 15s. 6d. The other land is 10s. an acre. 1,700 acres are first class. The smaller area is 31 miles and the 1,000 acres is 24 miles from the present railway. When the line is completed to Emu Hill they will be five and three miles distant respectively. We have no fencing done, but we have 650 acres cleared. Our water supply is two dams: 922 cubic yards and 1,285 cubic yards. The one is 9ft. 6in. and the other 8ft. 6in. deep. Both are dry now and I am carting water. Dams should be constructed "1" in "1." They should be long, narrow and deep, and the Agricultural Bank should advance more for dam sinking. "1" in "1" is required, otherwise the sides would get washed away. I am a married man with no family. My house is of iron and cornstacks. I have a shed for horses, but no machinery shed, a full set of implements, eight working horses and a few pigs. My partner and I put in £600 capital. I have 450 acres in crop, which I think will yield 10 bushels.

8066. By Mr PAYNTER: Have you any fallow? - 150 acres was fallowed, and I am a thorough believer in it, but we have not had the chance to fallow. I use 50lbs. of seed and 120lbs. of super. on fallowed sandplain. Federation has given the best yield so far. I have 175 acres of Gluyas, which was late in sowing, and I think it will average 10 bushels. I have a 22 Massey-Harris cultivator which does 13 acres a day and a 15-disc drill which does 14 acres, and I have had a binder for the first time this year. I have a stripper. It cost 3s 6d. to take it off with a stripper and another shilling to clean it. Smaller teams and more machinery would be more successful than a larger plant. I can do more with a 5ft. 6in. machine than with larger machinery. The tariff bears hardly on the industry. I am in favour of the Government quoting for all farming implements and doing away with the middle man. We must have bulk handling. The bags we pay for are no good and we want something that will last. With bulk handling one would be able to do with 20 bags if they were of good quality, and they could be emptied at the railway station, and with care should last for 20 years. A few sheets of iron would make a depot the on the land. I have no disease amongst the crops so far. I pickle and winnow my seed. Labour here is unsatisfactory and it is very difficult indeed to get a good man amongst horses, while the farmer cannot afford to pay £2 10s a week for wages these times. A man should not hold less than 1,000 acres in this district, and 750 of those should be cleared in his first season so he would afterwards have 250 ready to fallow. That area is quite sufficient for one man alone. The land here is altogether too dry. Ten shillings should be the maximum price and the first five years should be rent free, while there should be a full advance from the Agricultural Department to clear the land. Once it was clear the rent could start. In three years he should have, at the rate of 250 acres a year, a total of 750 acres cleared. We cannot get clearing done here satisfactorily in the forest land for less than 30s. Last year's yield was 18 bushels. There are only four acres of morrell land on my property, fortunately.

8067. By Mr VENN: Are rabbits plentiful? - I do not think they will be much of a curse here. Once