THE OBJECTS OF FARMERS' CLUBS.

Wairarapa Standard, Volume I, Issue 17, 27 April 1867, Page 3

THE OBJECTS OF FARMERS' CLUBS.

At the recent annual dinner of the Hadlsigh Society, Mr. Hawkins reminded the members that they had begun twenty years ago with the intention of carrying out the objects of a farmers’ club. They iiad, however, fallen away from that idea, and as such a club, they were now a sort of nonentity. He should like them to do either one thing or another—cither resuscitate the “ dead man,” or sink the idea of a farmers’ club altogether. He thought a fanners’ club ought to start with the motto adopted by the Royal Agricultural Society—- “ Practice with science,” these being the tributary streams to feed that great society. The first thing such a club should possess was a good library. When their forefathers died all their knowledge died with them, because they never recorded any facts; a man spent half a lifetime in acquiring knowledge, hi the other half he used it for his own benefit, aud when he died all his knowledge went with him.. And that is the way they would still go on, unless they adopted the system of recording results. When we looked round and saw so many young men who wanted to look into subjects that might come before them in their avocations, he thought there ought to be books to which they coul.l refer. It was now more essential than ever. Suppose, instead of spending 50 guineas a-year about a stocks how, tiny were to spend thirty guineas for a set of botanical works, to make uie farmers acquainted with what they saw in the fields. When they knew the habits of a plant they knew how to destroy it; and when they knew the soil to which it is indigenous, they would know whether it would grow with their c o is. He landed thntau agricultural library, giving the result of experiments, and a knowledge of what was going on, was of the utmost importance to a fanners’ club. Many topics were brought before them in an erroneous point of view, which farmers’ clubs ought to correct, if they had read the speeches at the agricultural meetings during this year, they woul 1 have found that the aristocracy had come to the universal conclusion that their lands were not half tilled, and that it was owing to the ignorance and poverty of their tenants. There were a great many that were called agricultural improvements that were not undertaken by tenants—things which their landlords thought they ought to do—because they did not know how to do them. It was the business of a fanners’ club to show them. There was not a land-valuer or farmer who could get up and state the value of agricultural improvements. Suppose they took draining—just look at the diversity of opinion that existed on that subject. One said that a farmer who drained his land ought to have ten years’ security for the improvement, and another said he ought to have twenty years’. If a gentlemen took a Government loan to improve his estate, he had to pay Gj percent, for twcnty-mc years, “ i.c." 3J per cent, for interest, and 3 per cent sinking fund; and if that principle were correct, surely a farmer’s improvement must be worth twenty-one years to him. Then, again, there was chalking and draining the land—look at the diversity of opinion there was. They had seen in'the ‘Economist'a paper on Mr. Pusey’s tenant-right system, and this showed the ignorance of the land-valuers and land-agents examined before the House of Commons. Mr. Tollemache's steward was asked how long chalk would be of benefit to the land, and he said it would work out in about four or five years, but every- farmer knew that it was just when it began to pay. When men who were supposed to know things made such assertions as that, and such ridiculous answers were given, it proved they did not know anything about it. If they would real “ Cob beV Digest of Tenant Right" they would find thats hardly a land-agent that was examined knew what customs prevailed twenty-five miles away from his home. Those people were not fit to take the management of estates, and that was how the country gentlemeu got misled about agricultural improvements. Therefore bethought it was the business of farmers’ clubs tp eater upon these enqu ries.