A NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5377, 21 June 1878, Page 6

A NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY.

At a meeting of the Otago Agricultural and Pastoral Society, held oa May 24th, Mr. Matthew Holmes said it would be in the recollection of most of those present that he had brought this subject prominently before the annual meeting, as mentioned by the secretary. No definite proposition or resolution had then been come to on the subject, however. As president of another similar society at Oamaru, he had since brought the matter before that body, the members of which had universally agreed that it would be highly advantageous to the interests of agriculture throughout the colony that such an association should he organised and established for the whole of the Middle Island. His own impression was that although the organisation of the Canterbury Association, as far as it went, was all that could be desired, it was not sufficient. What was wanted was an organisation that could deal with the Government of the colony, and could bring together the intelligence of those interested in agricultural and pastoral matters. The subject°had pressed itself upon his mind from a consideration of the magnitude of the interests involved. At their annual meeting it would he remembered that he had made rough calculations of the agricultural and pastoral statistics of the colony, but since that meeting he had had access to the Government returns,;and had prepared the following statement of the value of the agricultural produce of the Middle Island, taking the returns compiled in February of tliis year, and reckoning the value at what he thought would be allowed to be a low rate : 6.996,607 bushels wheat, at 4s 3d .. .. £1,274,291 5.607,103 „ oats, at 3s id .. .. £>31,517 650,041 „ barley, at 4s Od .. .. 183,894 25,004 acres hay, at £0 155,904 09,017 tons potatoes, at £2los .. .. 147,542 130,469 acres other crops, at £5 .. .. 652,345 748,814 ~ English grass, at 10s .. 374,407 Total value of agricultural produce of the Middle Island, as taken in Feb,, 1878 £3,662,960 In addition to this, there could fairly be brought into calculation the value of the sheep and cattle fed upon freehold land, in the Middle Island also. The sheep under this head numbered 1,401,310, and the cattle 38,907. He had not valued these, but the figures he had given would be sufficient to give some idea of the magnitude of the interests at stake, and serve to show the necessity of such an industry being represented by a body which would make itself felt in the way of carrying out objects connected with it. He believed such a body also would considerably affect for good the health and prosperity of the country. The main objects he thought such a society should lay down for itself were —(1) the improvement of the breeding and quality of stock ; and (2) encouraging a system of agriculture that would enable the best crops to be taken out of the ground with the least deterioration. Such an association, carrying out such objects, would be of infinitely more advantage to the State than any other which could be established. Taking into consideration the quantity of land recently sold in Canterbury, the breaking up of large estates into small farms which had recently been going on, and the land sold also in Otago, it would be allowed that the country was only yet in its infancy, and that New Zealand would yet become, for its extent, one of the first agricultural countries in the world. Indeed he had to allow that it was likely to turn out much better than ever he had expected. The soil was better, and the climate more favorable. Even in Southland, where it was so cold, there had been remarkably good crops, and the whole of the Middle Island might be said to be a firstclass wheat-growing country. He was of opinion these considerations justified the establishment of an association on a similar basis to that of the Royal Society of England or the Highland Society of Scotland, and every large proprietor should be a subscriber to such an association. Union was strength, and if all the different societies sent their best men to form a convention to establish such a body, they would be doing an immense service to the colony generally. He thought a subject of so much importance deserved the best consideration of every gentlemen present. —(Applause.)