The Waikato Times AND AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. TUESDAY, OCT. 4, 1892.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 3164, 4 October 1892, Page 2

The Waikato Times AND AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

TUESDAY, OCT. 4, 1892.

C'l' what:."ever slat-' or persuasion, religious or political.

I in-; Ooclliu Moth Bill amongst many o'lht.s lias lioeu abandoned for this session, and judging \>y the nuniorous letters appearing in tho various newspapers in this part of the colony a gn-';it deal of misapprehension exists hoth as to its provisions us well iis in connection with (Ik: draft Bill considered and approved of at a Conference of fruitgrowers held in Auckland, in July last. The September number of the New Zealand Knrmer, contains an article upon the .subject, and as it is written with the view of removing some of tli' , misapprehensions which exist as regards the action of the Association and adduces cogent reasons for legislation proposed we reprint it :■ —Since the Conference, of delegates from eight fruitgrowers' Associations (representing a membership of 109 fruitgrowers, and about i!, 100 .•■inn.s of orchards), th<- report of whose proceedings was published in last month's issue, there, have appeared sundry letters in the daily press on the subject of the proposed

C'odiin Moth Act. Most of those letters have objected lo legislation of any kind, and in their remarks the writers liave evinced the grossest ignorance both of tho projected measure as approved by the Conference, and of the actual facts as regards the codlin moth which those who are trying to make their living liy fruitgrowing have to face. One set of objectors says that if orchardists will only spray with the proper insecticide at the proper time they can keep the pest down without any legislative compulsion. Quite true, to a certain extent ; but they might as we'll object to the laws against theft on the ground that if no one stole anything there would be no thieving. We have always adv the ofricuev of spraying with ■."•.-■'■■niltv. and ijuoted tiie experience i>f American orehardists to prove its great value. But. if two or three sprayings in the season would preserve a mans fruit and enable, him 10 harvest it in a marketable condition, is it fair that he should be compelled to incur the cost of six or seven sprayings because his neighbour with a couple of dozen neglected trees dors nothing whatever f i keep down the moth 1 Tu this climate the moth breeds from November right on as long as the warm we.itlier lasts, and an orchard which h-id been carefully sprajed w;.i;i!d be subject to continual reiiif, . l it ion it' adjoining another where !: , '.iii..g'-'.as ii >no to destmy- (he pest. .'VJ\,' UiMMIUe tO t.'lilM' V, ilO l/bjejt tO the propose,] because it will c.impel evcrv'i'-dv i'j.'prav with i' 'i i- !;iv, :! . h. ;;i -.-,• Mn-pri-ii! these '■'ii,.:-. w:ii. ii"l..i:ig aUiai I he !':.: •■■; ;,r..v ■■! .■!' i.y .], . C'"!ifereiice ■" " 1,,,; , ' , * 3 "l-'"' -''.iVeiie i., s |imv wii.i ai'-emi..- Any :,pp]e lir pear •^■■■'■'.e! , U'rC.l'.ie • iV ; 1 || ||,e C-. , '1 i', U Ul'llil ■'• did be a i'.. ■! i! a in /-pray with ■■• :■ ■■ :.;■■'.■! ID ;''■'-:■ c, !.]■,,;,.:, j; ii( ..; .. •■•i l:iis !" b ' d.iil' , . Indeed ii ; :.'--e--lv ].r.>\ ides agamsl i:imi[nil- , '

-inn m (ins limttiT. Siili.-cetinn h <\\ .-<-cii,,ii .") I |.|Tivi'.li:s fli.'if. (In , (i'i- ! vi'i'ii'ir in CiiiiMci!, as ,I'lvisi'il I'V t-lio . li.ral fruit l.diiril.-. may make tinii.s witli tn biinilaLciiiLT. div~siiiu,. <>v (itli';r\vi~i.! trouting infi'ctc.l ' t!■■■...-;, :i!w;iy> i.n.viili'il lli.-iC spniyiii.y: with ai.-fiiit<- shall not !»■ niaili , c..iii|iii!sfrv. l-'.vi'iy pi'iietical fniit- , jivc-i'iil at tin , (JuiilViviK , ' , ■ i'rrni;iii/.i;'t the vnlno of spraying with as an aid in sili'ipre.s.siliif the nifitli. I'iit iii''V were also aware of f ill.- ii»ii<ii-sthi pri'iu.lirc jtijaitist this rniii' l\ I'ci-a.isf 'if its poisonous n.-Miin , . iiii'l tln-y also that it woiilil In , a hardship to the owner , of a few tnvs to compel him to invest in a sjii-ayiiiir apparatus, which it, would take a loiil,' time, to pay for ■ i.lit of (lie produce of his little on-hard. They also knew that in Ta-nmnia they relied more upon bandaging and destroying infected fruit than on spraying, and that, according to the, testimony of a New Zealand orchardist, published in the l''aniiei' for .Julv, tliev were ginJu.'ill) , ViiiKpiisiiing the pest in that colony by these 11)0:1113 carried out by all under the compulsion of the Oollin Moth Act. l.'uder these circumstances the I'ill was ilrafteil in a manner so as studiously to avoid giving ground for complaint as to undue stringency. As regards cost of inspection it will depend entirely upon the fruit-growers themselves whether the cost per acre be merely nominal or approaching the maximum rale of Is per acre. In Tasmania the expense varies from Is I ,Sd to "is per acre in districts where there are fruit board?. l>van honest endeavour on the part of growers to comply with the provisions of (he Act. the work of an inspector will be much lightened, and being appointed by a local body, and a resident in the district, arrangements could doubtless be niiide by which the inspection would cost very little. A great outcry has hern made in some quarters about an army of Government inspectors. 'Che only Government Inspector will be the chief inspector for each provincial district, to whom reports will be made by the local inspectors appointed by the fruit boards. < hie sapient correspondent in an Auckland paper has made the wonderful discovery that the proposed Act is :i plot of the largest, fruitgrowers to crush the small. I lather than pick up the infected fruit and put on and examine bandages all the small fruitgrowers, according to this correspondent, will cut down their trees, and leave the whole trade in the hands of the big orchardists. Well we don't think the small growers, who made anything out of their orchards, arc ipiitu such fools as to do anything of the kind. The suppression of the moth i? quite as much in their interest as in that of the bigger growers. Those who may be induced to cut down their trees are people who have three or four gnarled old apple trees from which they never expect any money return, and never get any fruit worth talking oft' so long as Ihe moth reigns supreme. These people may prefer to buy their fruit rather than be bothered to carry out the provisions of the Act, and in cutting down their useless trees they will materially contribute to the suppression of the moth and thus benefit the fruitgrowing industry without hurting

themselves. Without legislation of some kind compelling the careless to do what the careful mm who makes his living Liy fruit-growing is quite willing to do, the frtiit-growiay- indiistrv of thi.s part of the eolonv will slealily ueeline so far as peppin mils arc concorncil.