FARMING OUTLOOK.

Hokitika Guardian, 26 February 1924, Page 3

FARMING OUTLOOK.

A .MINISTERIAL STATEMENT. WELLINGTON, Feb. 2.1 Speaking at tbo annual smoko concert of the Masterton Agricultural and Pastoral Association, the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon W. Nosworthy, . referred briefly to the outlook in re- . gnrd to the primary products of the Dominion. Mr W. Perry (Council of Agriculture!, proposing "The Department ot Agriculture,'’ remarked that 03 per cent of our exports came from the land. lie urged farmers to produce ■ more, as this was the only way New Zealand could compete with out side i countries. The Government should .-.ot i aside a special sum for ihe seii-ni iiic i education of farmers. It had been decided that the Wairarapa Training Farm he converted into an 'educational farm, and he trusted the .Minister would make some pronouncement in this connexion. The Minister of Agriculture, in responding. said that money judiciously expended in this connexion must refleei upon the community. He appreciated what the committee had done in placing lads on the list of stewards, lie was hopeful that in a short time they would have a farm school going in the Wairarapa. If there was any black spot in tin’s country that requires eradicating, it was the blackberry. Referring to the wool mark it, he congratulated the farmers on the fact that there were only 10,000 bales left, of the tremendous aceumulation of Australian and Now Zealand supp'!?.;. It was satisfactory to all that for the last three Wellington sales the a vet ago price was 13.U1 per lb, compared with OJd last year. On last season’s leturns of £20.800,000 this represented an increase of £‘.‘1,000,000. Still, ho warned them that this might not last long. lie honestly thought there was

not likely to he any serious set-hack, hut it was going to take more than one or two .seasons fo place the sheepfarmer on his feet. The Minister seated that (here would he a shorta to of throe or four million bushels of wheat. A cargo of fowl wheat Mould ran; in Wi llingtnn this week and another in Auckland later, and this would lend to keep prices down. There would Ic no exploitation. In l>2l it cost to a man. his wife and four children CUM to emigrate to New Zealand: it was now only £'22. The annual imnu.V'ition was now about 10,000, widen Die country could easily absorb. Dr Henkes, in responding, -a’ I th.it one of the big problems which the Department was tackling strongly was the matter of dealing with various diseases in dairy cattle which have caused serious losses to the. country. 110 touched briefly on the blackberry, which he sail 1 the Department was doing its utmost to eradicate.

The Mayor of Masterton ('.Mr (). N ('. Rragnell) proposed the toast “Parliament.”

In his reply Sir AA'alter Buchanan said that Mr Massey had said on his return to the Dominion that, money was going to lie dear. Therefore it behoved everybody to go warily and curtail their expenditure. He instanced Queensland’s position. That State, he said, could mil gel. money from Loudon at less than (I per cent. Sir Walter said that rigid laws should be passed to prevent the spread of rabbits and noxious weed>. As to agricultural education, he said that when lie spoke .to the Minister of Education the other day the latter considered that in this respecl I lie agriculturist of the Dominion was being done Dili justice to. Tfe did not agree. There was still room for great improvement.