TROUBLES OF THE FARMER

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIII, 17 July 1929, Page 7

TROUBLES OF THE FARMER

(To the Editor) Sir, —New Zcalanders have come forward nobly to tho relief of those people ruined by the earthquake, and it shows that there are still many people with human hearts in this country. Those who have not actually lost anything are still nervy and, upset, fearing further developments particularly the aged and infirm. The forcible manner in which Mr Holland put it to the public has been praised by, everyone. Sir Joseph Ward, Mr Coates and others fought in unity with each other to help the refugees, which shows that whatever their political views are, they are human. 'Micro are still those who through the reverses of the last two or three years are homeless, and struggling to live—from no fault of their own but through some mismanagement, politically or the greed of tho usurer ; shortness of money ; old mortgages which could not be paid owing to tho drop in values of stock and land, big taxes and insurances; the hundreds of men with Government billets to torment the land proprietors, but more with the object of keeping I hem in employment than actual cruelty to the settlers." It has been, and still is a very cruel time for them. If seems that, some must starve for others to live. '"What matters it if a few settlers are ruined if the. country is saved?" was the remark of one politician. Supposing he iiau been himself the victim of this policy? I think ho would be the first to squeal! Now members are getting more reasonable, and can. see the folly of lighting for what has proved so disastrous —and good men are in unity for the common cause of humanity. It is right that the labourer should be paid a fair wage for work done, but it is folly to push such men into small farms. The labourer though working on a farm usually knows nothing of farming. He has not had to study the financial part. Men are going all over the country hoping to push into a little home with a small farm, and some are more ambitious and-want something bigger but without the means of paying for it, either the, first instalment of rent or money for ■ stock. They may by paying the first rent gain time, and by consulting a shady lawyer see in what way they can take advantago of tho owner through a faulty law, or some omission in their deeds left to cause a lawsuit. Decent lawyers do not take up such cases. ' Equity and justice is what is wanted, not only the common law and its sometimes trivial technicalities which serve the lawyer to get another sum of money. He does not care whether his own client has to pay or his opponent. This causes in any case prolonged distress and loss- to the owner of the house and land—in all probability he has had to rent a. house for a term, while tho defaulting tenant occupied a good home. The great difficulty has been caused by three years of a slump and financial loss to the farmer.' He could not afford to employ labour and really good farm hands were almost unobtainable. I must say that in some cases where private, lenders were concerned tihey knew the difficulties of the boiTOwers and were not too hard. Some of the Banks I believe tried to help, while a few others the least said the better. In future business those who want financial help will know which banks to put faith in. There are hundreds of men turned off their farms for the benefit of their mortgagees, and at a time when land is unsaleable,- they too have been looking for work, plenty who once were big employers and 'have families to keep and educate. I imagine the distress of

mind they have been in for the last two years; no hope, of selling out, ownors ot town houses trying to sell but cannot do so; old people with only one hope and that is tho old ago pension which has been pitifully small, and cruolly unjust to those who have been tho mainstay of the country. Sucli pensioners as these should receive at least a pension equal to that given to} civil servants ,ol good standing, for without what wore once the employers on the land there would be no need for officials. I trust a little of the humanity will bo shown to tho old age pensioners and greater leniency to tho farmers who have been taxed in all ways on an industry which is a gamble and as changeable as the weather which governs all their products. 1 am, etc., ~, ~ "ONCE A FARMER." 15th July.