The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. TUESDAY, MARCH 22, 1891.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 2916, 24 March 1891, Page 2

The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

TUESDAY, MARCH 22, 1891.

Equal .ind exAct justice t(i all tnen, Ot whatsoever state or persuasion, religious or political.

As promised in ;i former issue, we now place before our readers a few particulars us to what our \ ictorian friends liave accomplished towards fostering and encouraging the agricultural interests, through the agency of an institution similar to our own in Canterbury. lhe Dookie Agricultural College and Model Farm is situated on the border of the (.ioulburn Valley, in north-eastern Victoria, in the district of the same name. The farm comprises -l,iS Hi acres, situated amid rolling volcanic hills, and shallow valleys, in the vicinity of the Broken River. The soil com prises all varieties, from the rich loamy hill side to the poor thin soiled valley. Taken all round, the. soil may be said to be fair, but it is not the best in the district. It is distant from the village of Oashel about two miles in a straight line, and from Dookie railway station about five .miles by the road. Jhe buildings for a college are unpretentious, but they are suitable to the requirements and conditions of a young community, and there is a temperate and salubrious climate. The buildings are all of weather - boards, and centrally situated, with plenty of slope for drainage, and a favourable aspect, and cost in the aggregate about '3,000. The Colleini buildings have a frontage of IbOfr,, and an: divided inlo the necessary compartments for the accommodation of tlie officers and students, lined inside with Murray pine, and varnished. There is a spacious lecture hull, with a raised platform at one end, the walls of the hall being adorned with trophies, not of the chase, but of the harvest field, in the shape of samples of the various cereals. This also serves as a dining hall tor the students. There h, beside-;, a Ida'ary, which bv the way might lie better stocked with books- not that the hooka which are there now are not well chosen, but they might bo more numerous. There is a laboratory, class rooms, ollicers, teachers'and students' quarters, with the necessary out-buildings. In front, and in the vicinity of the College are grounds tastefully laid oil' with ornamental trees and llowers. lhe farm building's are adjacent to the Collage, but on a lower slope. The barns, stables, cowsheds, dairy, wine cellar, and the principal's residence, are here all contiguously situated. The piggeries are placed further afield. The stables are conveniently constructed with a passage ill front of tho animals, for convenience in feeding them, and by which they may be examined if necessary. Tho chafl" and grain house is handy, and there-is 110 haphazard feeding, but each animal receives a sufficiency and no more. In these buildings there is no affectation of what might be termed finery, or in providing quarters for high-class, aristocratic animals ; here ft stable is a place for a horse and a byre for a cow. The buildings are well drained and clean, with plenty of bedding, but there is 110 unnecessary work put 011 for mere appearance sake.

The dairy is of the same modest appearance, but it is a notable building for all that, and deserves more than passing notice. It has three roofs, each one foot apart. This gives it plenty of ventilation, and keeps it cool. It has an underground cellar, in which the temperature never rises above G.kleg. in the hottest day in summer, without any artificial cooling apparatus whatever, when it is Godeg. in the cellar, it is 73deg. in the upper room, and llOdeg. outside in the shade. The wine cellar and olive oil house is adjacent, while the

apiary is close handy. There is a blacksmith's shop, where students are taught something of that art; and thev are also taught to construct rough buildings, of weather-boards, and of thatch, several of which are on the premises. A model farm was started at Dookie as early as 1878. but it was not. until October Ist, IIsSG, that students were admitted. There aro now forty students in the college, being as many as there is accommodation for. Double that number could lie easily obtained, if they could be accommodated. Six of the number are from New South Wales. Mr .John Low Thompson is the Principal of the College, a position which he hns retained, with the exception of six years, >vhen lie retired, from the be-

ginning. Principal Thompson is in every way well qualitii'd to fill the important position which he holds, by his long 'ind careful training toagrioulture. and his groat capacity for work, and for leadership. There urn associated in the college with Principal Thompson, as teachers. Mr IT. I'ye. a Victorian gentlemen, and M r (too. A. Sinclair, a native of Tasmania.

Instruction in tho collogo is freo, but it fee "1' i'-5 ppr uuntiin, payable liait'-yoiirly it; iiJvanuo, in for tlio iuaintfiniiricti of ciicli studout, and it costs £2~i IGs Id iuiiiuall}', for tho uiaintonanco of (mcli individual fodat tlioDookio tables. Thu course of studios cotupriso. arithomutic, inonsuration, book-kooping, practical farm work, instruction in field operations, tho usn of farm implements and machinery, and the of stock, chemistry botany, etc. Tho course of ins'ru':tinn occupies two years, but a student may remain ail extra year should ho chouse to do so. The students are worked in tho field ono day, and study the next. Each student must take his turn at all work on the farm, from niilkiu<; cows, to making wine, and working harvesting machines Many of tho students are the sons of well-to-do parents, who may not, in after life, have to resort to manual labour for a living. Several however aro the sons of working fanners, but this latter class, " and this remark applies with equal force to our colony," do not avail thamaelvos of this institution to tho extent they might. For purposes of cultivation, tne farm is divided into grazing and cropping paddocks, orchards and vineyards. A rotation of crops suitable to tho country is carried out. Experiments in wheat culture are carried on extensively, 1'25 different varieties of wheat boing under cultivation, grasses and clovers to tho number of thirty-three, both exotic and indigenous are cultivated, sevon varieties of barle}", twelve of oats, sixteen of peas, and four of (lax. as well as a large number of plants, vegetables, are cultivated, and tho results carefully noted. There aro ton acres of vineyard, five acres of an olive grove, and twenty aeres devoted to orchard trees of various kinds. All the troes have thriven wonderfully well, tho olive grove being a particularly happy experiment, and if tho establishment of the college and farm had done nothing more than demonstrate to the people of Victoria and Now South Wales, that this valuable product would thrive so well in their inland villages, this alone would have repaid all the outlay in the undertaking. The troes are now seven years old, and average perhaps 10ft high, branched with strong long liiubs froui a few inches above tho ground, and will yield this year about an average of 1 i:>lb' of fruit each, and will give about 2gal. of oil each tree- Tho oil is sold iu tho market for 1 :!s 6d per gallon, but Mr Thompson thinks of raising tho price as there is sale for any quantity of it. The olive tree does not come into full bearing until it is about 15 years of aoo, and will continue to thrive and bear for hundreds of years, so it can easily be seen that the olivo is one of the most prolitablo crops that can be cultivated iu Australia. The grapes iu tho vineyard aro converted into wine, and sold to tho public. A portion of tho vineyard is planted with raisin grapes, and Mr Thompson showed a very good sample of raisins. Dried i'riuts of other varieties wore also shown, and were creditably got up.

There are some very lino live stock upon the farm. The animals an; in no way pampered, hat kept in fair working condition. Pigs form a prominent item of industry, and comprise Berkshirea and Poland Chinese. A profit ot' £3G5 was made on pigs last year.

In addition to its other merits, the institution lias also that of being a paying concern. The total receipts last year amounted to £3,373 10s lid, and the working expenses to £1,34S 7s 3d, thus leaving a sum of £2,027 3s Gd, plus £GB3 13s Gd former balance, for the purchase of stocks now on hand, buildings and improvements. Students fees amounted to £1000, and the college expenses to £2,417 13s 3d, which shows a credit balance of £GO9 8s 3d on hand. This is surely most creditable to the management and gratifying to the Government of the colony.

Tho college is not a gilt-edged allair, bound in call', and whero every energy is devoted to effect and show. On tho contrary, it is an institution whero die praelical affairs of life, and practical agriculture) are taught. The grounds, buildings, and stock, are in just such a condition as they ought to bo, on any well organised payable farm. From the lecturo hall to the byre, tho college is an eminonty practical institution, whore the coming farmers of Australia may not only learn tho theoretical, and practical lessons o advanced agriculture, but loam the equally essential lessons to success, of order, economy, and industry. The prosperous farmer becomes prosperous by attention to little things, by economising what is frequently waste product with many people. There is not a straw, nor a leaf, nor a grain of corn wasted at Dookie. A course of two years' training in such an institute must have a great influence on the after life of the Australian boy. When shall we have such an agricultural school and model farm established in our midst? A block of suitable land, comprising 137 acres, has already been secured, and adjoining it is an additional 100 acres, which has been set apart as an endownment for secondary education. Thus the chief difficulty—that of procuring a suitablo block of land for the model farm—has, through tho foresight of a few gentlomon, beon rc-

moved. It only needs a little energy and unity among tho AVaikato residonts to have the undertaking fnirlv started. Of its ■ aanifold and almost inealculiiblo advantages, both individually and nationally, it is unnecessary for us to speak. If the college and farm were managed like that, and worked upon plain practical business lines, and possessed the confidence and support of the people, there is no reason to suppose that it would, when once started, be any drain upon the public purse.

We commend tho subject to tho attention of our public inon, to our Local Government bodies, indeed to all who havo their country's welfare at hoart, and who wish to place agriculture—the only true fountain of national wealth—on a bettor footing than it is.