BUYING A FARM.

Taranaki Daily News, 20 August 1921, Page 6

BUYING A FARM.

A SHAREMILKER’S EXPERIENCE.

| MISREPRESENTATION ALLEGED. t What happened in negotiations over the sale of a farm situated on the Ohangai Road (Hawera), was the subject of an action commenced in the Supreme Court, New Plymouth, yesterday afternoon, in which the sum of £l5OO damages for alleged misrepresentation is claimed by Cecil H. Harrison from Mrs. Mary J. Grant. Mi. P. O’Dea (Hawera), with him Mr. L. A. Taylor (Hawera), appeared for plaintiff, and Mr. E. J. Prendergast (Auckland), with him Mr. W. C. Patterson (Hawera), represented defendant. Thu. jury comprised: Messrs. A. Cowling, H. D. Curline, J. T. Lock, A. R. Clow, W. E. Healing, R. P. Rickard, J. Kibby, L. E. Marsh, L. D. Callaghan, J. Niven jnr., C. E. King, W. Mitchirison. Mr. Kibby was elected foreman. Stating the case, Mr. O’Dea said that up till last season, Harrison was a sharemilker. He had accumulated about £5OO in savings, and decided to start farming on his own. Mrs. Grant’s farm was mentioned to him by Grant and Campbell, land agents. The property was 42 acres, pf which 30 were Native lease, and it was quoted at £llO pur acre. As a matter of fact, counsel said, the authority for sale showed that the farm had been originally quoted at £lOO, was then increased to £l2O per acre, and subsequently reduced to £llO. The representations iu the authority given to the land agents, and signed by Mrs. Grant, were that the carrying capacity was 30 cows and horses. Harrison was told that the property had never been on the market before, which was I an important thing, as in South Taranaki farms changed hands frequently and, in : looking for information as to carrying i capacity, a buyer did not value the statements of a man who had been on a farm only a short while to the same extent as he did those of a settler for a long period. The authority also said that the stock then on the property was 34 cows, 16 i young stock, and horses. In reply to j Harmon as to whether the 43 acres was ; all *the land they had, plaintiff’s son I (David Grant) said they had the use of ! 10 acres of Native lease adjoining, but j got practically nothing off it, as rhe ‘ Maoris used it. to run their horses on. On another occasion Harrison was told tbe ' farm would carry the stock mentioned i well. He decided to buy. The total purchase price was £4613, and as defendant had only a small capital he paid £lOO cash, and of the balance, his bankers found £1407; he took over a mortgage of £1200; and gave a mortgage of £1906 to Mrs. Grant for the balance. The guarantors also took a further mortgage as security for their money, in addition to a bill of sale over the stock.

On July 1 of last year, Harrison put 26 cows on his newly-purchased farm, and a month later he bought three more. In October, however, he had to start, feeding out lucerne, as the place would not carry the stock. In November he sold one cow, and he continued to persevere, thinking that some of his trouble might be due to lack of management on his pari. On what Harrison was told he expected to take 9000 lbs butterfat off the farm last season, but actually he only got 6000 lbs. In March and Apiy] of this year he was compelled to sell four more cows, and he had subsequently found that at the utmost the carrying capacity of the property was 22 cows, instead of 30 as represented. During i the course of conversation with a Maori in April he found that Mrs. Grant, while farming the property, had been in the habit of using a near-by paddock of eighteen acres as a sort of night paddock, and that was how they were able to carry all the stock. They also had another outside paddock of ten acres, off which they took hay. This made a tota> of seventy acres that the defendant, really used, and probably there might have been more. As the result of his experience. Harrison then made a demand on Mrs. Grant, as he could see that he was losing by the proposition. The hearing of the case was adjourned till 10 a.m. to-day, when plaintiff’s evidence will be taken.