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Hokitika Guardian, 7 September 1925, Page 2

Tilt: Prince 1 of Wales has concluded his stay in Argentine, where lie had a wonderful reception. A very interesting pen picture of the Argentine is given by a Sydney paper in the course of a review of a work lately published. It says: -- Twenty-one years ago Captain .1. .Macnio went out to the Argentine and became, as ue should say, a jackeroo. His first experience of station life was with sheep, an animal lor which he soon conceived a violent dislike. Subsequently he was manager of several large estancias. But, as the title of “Work and Play in the Argentine” suggests, he found time for relaxation. Thorp is capital shooting in the country. and polo and racing flourish. Of all these pursuits the author had his full share. Bo gives an interesting aceount of conditions in the Argentine! where, by the way. many English families have settled, and have been there tor generations. The great patnpa is absolutly treeless. One may ride for days without seeing a single specimen other than those which have Iwi'ii planted by the pstrancierns. or station owners. Most of the homesteads have groves, which, not only serve an aesthetic purpose, hut act as a protection against the biting winds. Poplars and eucalypts reach a height of forty feet in seven or eight years, while in a few years willows and acacias form an impenetrable jungle, unless continually cleared. The only thing that interferes with the growth is an occasional drought, and sometimes lonsts. The locusts are a national pest, corresponding to our rabbits. Station owners are compelled by law to destroy them. The method is to arrange strips of tin in a wide V. the arms of which run out for a, distance of 50 yards. At the end of the V. where an nooning is left, a long ditch is dug. The swarm is driven inis the enclosure by peons waving flags. The locusts crowd through the o]>ening into the ditch, which when it is full is covered with earth. There are

langosterns. or official locust inspectors. whose duty is to see that the

work of destruction is carried out, and the author mentions that they are far more (treaded than any locusts. The reader of thi- took soon realises why the Argentine i- such a •formidable rival to Australia, in the meat trade. Infinite care is devoted to maintaining tics standard of the herds. The host blood stock is constantly l»o----itig imported. There are still a number of poor class cattle, especially in the remote provinces. But these are rapidly being improved, and on the larger and better run estancias “there are thousands of rattle with hardly a had one among them, and a levelness of class has been attained that would be an eye-opener to the average English farmer or breeder." The latter frequently breeds from beasts which the Argentine estam-iero would not dream of using for the purpose. In fact Captain Maehie thinks that in certain provinces the average quality of the stock is far higher than it is in England.