STATE FARMING

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 182, 27 April 1908, Page 2

STATE FARMING

A NEW DEPARTURE. TO MAKE IT PAY. Tho decision, of the Minister for Agriculture to make the poultry station at Milton self-supporting v:i\\, we-hcive reason to beliovo, uo hailed, with satisfaction by tho experts of the various divisions of the Department, .as at last affording them some hope of being enabled to put into practice tho advice which hitherto they have,' to a great extent, .been able only to preach. Tho , now departure will bo welcomed also , by. those who. may bo termed the beginners among our farming communities, who are looking, for some nuide ,'as to probahlo profits. The policy.is one which The Dominion, has -suggested in this column on several ■ occasions, and v, r e- are convinced that,-. .on reasonable lines, .it will,, bo s course, that will in time gain general approval. . • If the Minister's, intention is eventually to . apply the principle of/" making things pay" to each of the divisions concerned in the various branches'.of .'farming,/-at suitable . opportunities, it may - appear' .at , fir§t sight that the, now-.policy will put. the. ,ei£. parts on. their trial, .and no doubt they' will welcome! the opportunity it 'will give them., . ;A balance-sheet, is. a powerful] argument, . and the divisional heads ; and their specialists may be. trusted to us 6 it .to good ac- . count.. possibilities suggest themselves' as a natural development of the - Minister's new .policy.. There, are grdpes.to bo grown • .to Profit, fruit'.orchards'to. show big returns,; n canning fcetbry to be 'erected; to traiiv youn'n .managers and show fruity groiviiig co-oporators',a safe-way to go about '■ preserving., their own '.fruit—an eijterprisc: . that; m the past, has. been more often .discussed by fruitgrowers, than-put'into practice. ; The chief difficulty, hitherto has been to .safeguard against the appointment of ail inefficient manager, and this difficulty should be! lessened, if the, State's, canning expert had p. nb.ee where lie could tf?.:n .managers and show methods in operation. In poultry, /of course, there is a. vigorous question to . be: swept -beyond the/-,bounds • of, discussion—"Does poultry farming pay?" ;,V.lt will,.be dull . times. when , that. ijuestion, is At an ind. ,v Still, wider possibilities present themselves_ in the .spheres- of sheep' and.' ; dairy and ordinary agriculture.. It is quite common to hear it -said that tlie freak ,points of'the dairy, industry are in' .not in■'manufacture. Yet . the - assistance, -civen to the , industry' is "more efficient on the . factory side . than . .on the side of the farni. , .AV6 have'wider dairy . inspection coming into'vogue, it is. true, but tho .men engaged. for that'.duty do. not , quite seem to meet the' .case' in our mind: - A_ State dairy: farm/ run ,to : nay, --'.would' afford a training, that, could' bo 'of. .incalculable value.. The probability that borax: spon be; no longer permissible tq counteract the errors of, the dairy farm gives this question an ,adcled significance. ..... . Whether in ' all,, or, any, of these 'direc.tionsi a. policy of State farms that, pay is jfracticable must be determined, of courso, by the Minister and, his advisers. Allthat one outside the Department rail do is to ..point out that some of the , results would apparently be of value, leaving the ' of--ways, and^ means to responsible. ;. authorities. is ■ done,'...however, - it must; 'not'-be .forgotten that State com-, ' petition;, beyond; the /minimum . necessary to ( the,, work,'.would v ii6't' be good- for! the; - country' in any; one/'of. the farm, industries' that . the'-.ordinary, 'farmer is showing '.himself. willing ;ff able,, to' develop. But when , jjrofit is, the chief. end r of 'all enterprises,'' it • is . fittingthat the' Dep'a'rfaerit's attention'' to ' affording, information • on ...that /side'.- of the question should, b(5. strengthened.' , _/;Hoiv : far the Minister is prepared to'go, ■ 'on the-.lines we; have' indicated is 'not .apparent:' - His remarks.'ha'vg -, applied 'to the > ■Milton poultry station, whore he'hopes "neit yoar to >,be .able-to show-that the station, which.'.consists of 23 acres, will .be absolutely • Golf-supporting." If a beginning :is . .'to bo inade i with poultry, the results should • .lib mcird quickly available than in'any/other branch of .work, and ' they will bo awaited' with- great: interest' both 1 -by ■ 'arid' bv farmers. •' •• - V- iy.y ■ V-