The Chronicle. PUBLISHED DAILY THURSDAY, MAY 26, 1910. HORATIO: AND THE HON. T. MACKENZIE.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 26 May 1910, Page 2

The Chronicle. PUBLISHED DAILY THURSDAY, MAY 26, 1910. HORATIO: AND THE HON. T. MACKENZIE.

A countky's needs ale not to bo ganged entirely by the immediate, financial rasults of any undertaking. Nor .should it be presumed (but public experiments aro not, justified, per se, if they fail to produce profits. But there is, unfortunately, a, disposition in soma quarters 'to make this test tliu decisive one as to continuation, and in consequence thorn is a. grave risk of the dominion being deprived of some exceedingly useful guidance for those of iits settlors who are in a position to go upon the land to cultivate it. A remark wliifli proves this to be the :case was made at the banquet of the IVovincin.l Farmers' Union Conference, a«b Marton, yesterday, by the Minister for Agriculture T. Mackenzie), when he mentioned tliia.t lie had stopped experiments in fruitgrowing because they had cost £500 and produced only £30 in value of fruit. Tlie inference it'o 1 bo drawn from tho Minister's ut- ! torance is that he considered this j dnsorepjancy between receipts awl expenditure an absolutely conclusive reason why no further expenditure on fruit, growing experiments should be inn do. Tf Mr Slacken- , zio roally did intend to convey this < meaning, lie apparently was coil- ' tent to bo convicted of what is filial- j low reasoning—for the mental pro- ( cess that could reach this conclusion j betoken a. lamentable absence of 1 broad views. 1 The truo basis of experimental ) farming, The Chronicle contends, is the elimination of profit .as an , essential factor of success. The r chief justification of Governmental r expenditure m sucli directions as j. experimental fanning is the very v fact that the private cultivator is 1 unable to stand the expense of the ' experimental work. Will the Min- f: ister for Agriculture assert that the r small army of landing waiters and i, private detectives employed by his f colleague the. Minister for Customs n have even one twentieth part of their total salaries made up by Ithe q fines for smuggling tliat aire based r

i upon their informations and prose.cufeions a.nd evidences P Ye.t it is beyond doubt that they serve a wry useful end indeed, and indirectly save Now Zealand many thousands of pounds sterling wliicli cannot he .specifically indicated. So, too, do i tho -experiment farms. Tf i,t i:: proved by their experiments that (say) dun <«its will avonigo (:•■) bushels per acre more than sparlowbills in certain peculiar lands :\v districts, tho acfiral gain to \.h<> cfHintry's wealth may bo inmien.<\\ ~ lalthough tho 'experiments themD solves in<iy have yieldoid only ... ■• - in oat values for £'2000 in .(>xp:>.ndiituro on Inbonr and maiiiures and cultiva'tnon generally. That the Minister should apparently fail i> see tih.is ,n«|)e-''t ef the c-ase in roL r -\rd Id fruit culture is especially regret table, for illio fruit industry is emItlhat has peculiar interests and wit!-. , 'r possibilities so far as this district i- , c(»ncerued. As a ma-ttor f>f fact it seems i . us that the Government would experiment a good deal more than il has done in testing and proving t!: ■ fruitgrowing capacities of tho vie!: but sl'inv lands that are scattere. tili.mughont 'the llnrowlienua district, between the moro loamy and stone free lands, and in the Levi'i district especially. We do ivi know einy sur-h experiment has bo-:•:: tried or not. hut we do say that i-: would, be a great advantage fo ipteiiding settlers to know if nectarines would be a more profitable cro;i to grow (Mi siK-h stony .soils thai: (say) apnles or peaches Avould b.'. Since t-he nectarine, is aj)t to roe* too frcelv in rich soils--so much .«■; as t<l require uprootingsevery few years, to increase- its fruit 'fulness it, may be thai 1-hi-; fn-.r-. would <' b/'Uf-er in ,lhe '■•ouip.-intively stonv patches I ban in th" suils t-li;it ar from .«toney. Rut is it in tliremotest, degree likely iha'.t a :m-" settler would risk his small rapil: ,, in proving .such a debatable ]>oiii! ' as the one now put I'orwml for th first time, so far as we ai - e aware' , I T.t seems (o that tho Hon. T. Mackenzie is in :: portion «omewh''iakin to that of Horatio, there beiii" mo-re things in experimental farm , ing than are. dreamt of in his phi I o.sophy.