CHAPTER THREE

Prosperity and Depression

The period between the First and Second WorldWars saw many changes in agriculture. Thependulum pattern begins to emerge - after thedisruptive years of the Great War, the '20s was adecade of optimism until the severe drought of1929. Suddenly farmers found themselves in anincreasingly difficult position, facing bad seasonscoupled with low prices during the Depression ofthe 1930s. Farming is always subject to unpredict-able weather and fickle market demands. A fewgood seasons and top prices can easily swing to adrought and poor prices before returning to anexcellent year. Seasons in which everything elsegoes right may be spoilt when the bottom dropsout of the market. The activities of the AgriculturalBureau reflect the changing fortunes of itsmembers as they swing back and forth betweenprosperity and ruin.

After the First World War there was a renewal ofenthusiasm in the Agricultural Bureau, and partic-ular interest was paid to regional conferences.During 1923, 12 conferences were held, anincrease of nine over the previous year. TheSouthern Branches reinstated their conference inSeptember 1919 and a new one was convened atMinnipa on 16-17 October that year.

Hotel accommodation is non-existent, anddelegates, who in some instances travelled morethan 150 miles, cheerfully shouldered theirblankets and "billies". They slept in the newlyerected barn on the Government ExperimentalFarm, or under the open sky, on bags of cockychaff. They came from Yaninee, Colton, GreenPatch, Minnipa, Petina, Talia, Mount Hope,Koppio, Edillilie, Yeelanna, and Wudinna, bytrain, trap, horseback, and motor, and theirunanimous decision to "come again next year"best expresses their satisfaction. About 100delegates attended, a figure that would havebeen considerably augmented but for the

absence of any train from Thevenard toMinnipa and the prevalence of influenza. (JASA,November 1919, p. 323.)Several guests came in their official capacities -

Mr C. Tuckwell (Vice-Chairman Advisory Board ofAgriculture), Prof. Perkins (Director of Agricuture),Mr George Quinn (Horticultural Instructor), Mr D.F. Laurie (Poultry Expert), MrW. J. Spafford (Super-intendent of Experimental Work) and Mr H. J.Finnis (Acting Secretary of the Advisory Board ofAgriculture).

The first paper of the conference was read byMr E. M. Sage of the Green Patch Branch (and thefirst life member of the Agricultural Bureau). Hismain concern was the lack of adequate marketingfacilities on Eyre Peninsula. Cattle breeders couldnot keep in touch with the Adelaide market, andpigs were virtually valueless. He suggested a baconfactory and freezing works at Port Lincoln wouldgreatly improve their situation. The delegatespresent agreed with his solution, and some wenteven further, claiming that the Government shouldrun a steamship line connecting Eyre Peninsulawith Adelaide.

This was followed by a paper on ReceivingCommodities and Marketing Produce by Mr J. J.Cronin (Wudinna Branch) and one on the advan-tages of regular sheep dipping by Mr P. G.Thompson (Talia Branch). Mr L. J. Cook, Managerof the Government Experimental Farm at Minnipa,then addressed the assembly on Clearing LocalScrub Country. Since they must deal with thetallest mallee in the State (up to 40-50 feet high)plus the native pine (Callitris purpingus) and thescrub oak (Casuarina glauca), special techniqueswere needed. On the Experimental Farm they hadused the "forest devil", tractor with a direct pull,and tractor acting on a winch.

A discussion of the Wheat Pool Scheme wasinitiated by Mr G. A. Vigar (Mount Hope Branch)

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who believed this method of marketing was advan-tageous to the wheat grower. After much debate aresolution was passed, "That this conferenceurges upon the Advisory Board to recommend tothe Government that the guarantee of 5s perbushel should, at an early date, be extended tocover the 1920 and 1921 harvests". (JASA,November 1919, p. 326.)

The last paper of the day came from Mr P. P.Kenny of the Colton Branch. He dealt with thesettlement of returned soldiers on the land,concentrating on the areas along the Murray andon Eyre Peninsula. The general feeling at theconference was that "The Government shouldclear a portion of each farm, supply water andhouse, and ring fence the cleared portion of theholding, as an inducement to returned soldiers tosettle on Eyre Peninsula". (JASA, November 1919,p. 326.)

The next day began with a tour of inspection ofthe Experimental Farm. In the afternoon a "FreeParliament" allowed the discussion of all sorts ofquestions relating to the development of EyrePeninsula. This very successful conference closedwith a lecture illustrated with lantern slides in theevening. Mr D. F. Laurie described the variousbreeds of poultry and the general care required toget good results from them.

During the first year following the declarationof peace, the resettlement of returned soldierswas a major force in South Australia's rural history.In May 1920, the following report was supplied bythe Premier, Hon. H. N. Barwell, in his policyspeech at Gladstone.

LAND SETTLEMENT. - The activities of theLands Department were at present principallydirected towards the set t lement of thedischarged soldiers. The Government recog-nised that they had a big problem to solve inregard to the mallee lands east of Tailem Bendand south of the River Murray, and also onEyre's Peninsula and the West Coast. On theWest Coast the principal difficulty was theabsence of permanent water supply. Conces-sions had been made to the settlers who had topay railage on water. With a view to meeting theproblem of the successful settlement of themallee lands east of the Murray, the RailwaysStanding Committee was preparing a report.The Loans for Fencing Act passed last sessionwas now in operation, and would be liberallyadministered by the Department of Lands. Thesettlers could now obtain advances for purchase

that the provisions of that Act would not enablesufficient assistance to be given, the Govern-ment would introduce fresh legislation. TheGovernment had under consideration theappointment of an officer of the Department ofAgriculture especially to devote himself to thestudy of mallee lands, and who will beconstantly moving amongst the settlers, givingthem advice and assistance.SOLDIER SETTLEMENT. - The DischargedSoldiers Act of 1919 was working satisfactorily,and the congestion in Land Board work hadnow been almost overcome. Since January 1st,249 [blocks] had been purchased. Up to March31st the total area of land purchased for soldierswas 516,189 acres, at a total cost of £1,792,321,and in addition about £500,000 had beenexpended in preparing land in irrigation areason the River Murray. Up to date 1,068 soldiershad been settled, and 432 were in training atGovernment farms or privately. Under thetraining scheme 360 men had been placed withfarmers, fruitgrowers, and others, and reportsreceived from the employers were mostgratifying. The work of preparing land forsoldiers in the valley of the Murray wasproceeding with the greatest possible dispatch.The Government had recently bought 12,000acres of Wellington Station. That purchasewould facilitate dealing with Jervois Swamp.There were 900 men (many of them returnedsoldiers) employed in the Berri-Cobdogla areasup-river, and from 30,000 acres to 40,000 acreswould eventually be under irrigation in thislocality. The Government recently purchasedblock E at Renmark, and it would shortly beoffered for soldier settlement. In connectionwith soldiers' homes, the board had alreadydealt with 6,767 applications, and had actuallyauthorised advances to provide homes for 4,174returned soldiers and widows at a total cost of£2,445,139. Every possible effort was being madeby the State Bank trustees to expedite this work.(JASA, June 1920, p. 933.)With so much new land being taken up, the

question of how best to clear scrub was frequentlydiscussed. One of the problems faced by manysettlers was the regrowth of mallee scrub. Therewas a great need for some means of destroyingmallee shoots, and to this end a trial of malleeshoot scorchers was arranged by the AgriculturalBureau at Lameroo on 17 February 1920. TheMinister of Agriculture (now the Hon. W. H.Harvey)accompanied Prof. Perkins (Director of Agricul-

IV £~ 1A7

Advances to Settlers Act, and if it were found Experimental Work), MrW. L. Summers (Secretary86

to Minister) and Mr H. A. Finnis (Acting Secretaryto ABA) to observe the trials. £-100 was offered fora machine capable of doing the job, but the judges- Mr A. J. A. Koch (Lamerool, Mr VV. J. TylerIWilkawatt) and Mr J. L. Williams (farm mechanic,Roseworthy College) were not satisfied by whatthey saw. In fact, of the three machines entered inthe competition, one was withdrawn and anothercould not provide a practical demonstration. Onlythe machine manufactured by Mr H. Kennett ofKadina was really tested and proved to be inade-quate. Farmers were still faced with their initialproblem and little closer to arriving at a solution.

Since building materials were still scarce, theSoldier Settlers were provided with specific allow-ances of timber supplies. They could have either400 posts at 4d each or 300 posts at that price and50 rails at Is 6d each. There was also provision forlonger rails to be obtained for 2s 3d each. This wasconsidered sufficient to start a small block.

At this time, there was also a lot of discussionat Bureau meetings about water supplies, essentialif stock was to be kept. Reinforced concrete wasfrequently recommended as a cheap and effectivematerial for building tanks. Dams were alsopopular in suitable situations. Mr T. A. Stead reada paper on this subject before the WirrabaraBranch:

After the site of the dam had been selected anumber of trial holes should be put down totest the holding quality of the subsoil. When theexcavating was being done the sides and endsof the dam should not be made too steep, inorder to make the work as light as possible forthe horses. By making the dam a good depth

the evaporation would be reduced to aminimum. To be worked to the best advantagethe dam should be three times longer one waythan the other, for it could then be ploughedlengthways and scooped across. To prevent thewater from overflowing he recommendedmaking the banks somewhat higher than theactual water level. The outlet should be in sucha position that it would take the surplus wateraway as fast as it flowed into the dam. A goodplan was to sink a catch hole about a chainaway from the mouth and place a few loads oflarge stones between it and the dam. That wouldprevent the silt from washing into the dam. Thespeaker thought it was better to erect a windmillthan let the stock go down to the dam to thewater. There was no doubt that bullocks werethe best team for dam sinking, but failing thosehe suggested using horses in teams of fourabreast. A single furrow plough was the bestimplement, but it should be very stronglyconstructed to stand the strain of being sunk agood depth into the ground. {JASA, September1920, p. 164.)

The process of dam sinking has changeddramatically over the years, especially since theintroduction of machines such as the bulldozer.

Agricultural Bureau members were keen toshare their knowledge with the new soldiersettlers. They had learnt some tough lessons fromtheir own experiences, and saw no reason forthem to be repeated by their new neighbours.Papers read at meetings during this period offereduseful practical advice. As far back as 1916 MessrsF. Tregenza and G. H. Wall of the Coonalpyn

• '̂-£•/••• J?r<f' Sinking a dam usingCaterpillar tractors.

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Branch had given a paper at the Annual Congressentitled Essentials in the Successful Occupationof a Scrub Block. They believed an intelligent manprepared to work hard, with £500 in the bank toback him up, could make a success of a scrubblock in their district, provided the land was nottoo distant from the railway or river for transport.A good water supply was extremely important.The first few years would not show much profit,so the cheapest possible methods should be usedfor preparing the ground. Fallowing should not beneglected, however, as it was essential to conservemoisture in the soil, and was the only way to getthe seedbed ready in time.

In the Eastern Mallee local farmers agreed thatmixed farming was the best way to manage landin the area. The Nunkeri and Yurgo Branch met atMr H. Sanders' homestead and their host read apaper he had prepared on the subject.

The first point to be considered is that it takesat least five years to get the upper hand of thescrub and undergrowth which springs up whenthe mallee is cleared. After that the questionarises, "What crops should one grow, and whatclass of stock is most likely to prove a source ofprofit". Let us consider cattle first. The high costof fencing, combined with the exorbitant priceof cattle, at once puts this line out of thequestion. Dairying, of course, cannot be consid-ered in view of the scarcity of labor and theabsence of irrigational facilities. There remain,therefore, sheep and pigs. Most of the occupied

blocks have from 600 to 900 acres partly cleared,and the sheep-proofing of this area would be abig item, to say nothing of the cost of the sheep.The lot would run into about £400, but after thefirst outlay, there would not be much furtherexpense. Sheep do well in this class of country,although in some years it would be necessaryto hand feed during May, June and July; 75 bagsof oats and a supply of cocky chaff would easilykeep 100 sheep going over this period. The costof feeding would be roughly £20, and intereston capital at 6 percent, equal to £24. The returnfrom 100 ewes should be about £150, and tothis must be added the benefit derived by theland. Sheep work wonders in freeing the land ofbushes, pig face, white and yellow daisies, andother plants that no other stock will touch.Probably this in itself would more than coverthe cost of feeding and interest on outlay. Withregard to pigs, the first cost would not be nearlyso large as with sheep if they were treated asthey should be. Twelve good sows and a boarcould be bought for, say, £90, and cost of fencingwould be about £50. Two barbed wires lowdown will keep a contented sow in a paddock.The sows can be run on stubbles and grass allthe time they are not rearing pigs, and they willkeep in better health and condition than if keptin a sty. Before farrowing the sows should belocked up and given plenty of good feed, wheat,barley, and pease with milk and pollard ifavailable. This will give the young pigs a goodstart. If they are to show a profit they must not

> tt

Lagging scrub with a Bulldog tractor at Wliarminda, Eyre Peninsula.

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suffer a check at any time. In commencingoperations in this class of country a good planwould be to grow two crops of wheat, then oneof barley or oats, then one of pease. If a stubbleburn can be obtained this will be half the battle.Either pigs or sheep will attend to the grain onthe ground, very little indeed will be wasted.They will do best of all on the pease, and thatcrop seems to encourage the growth of grass!The nitrogen stored by the pease seems to bejust what this class of land requires. (JASA, July1918, p.1005.)Over on Eyre Peninsula, new land was opening

up. Mr Forbes discussed what he considered tobe the best method for clearing mallee scrub landat a meeting of the Yadnarie Branch. Mallee shootswere their biggest problem.

He favoured the log for dealing with the scrub,because to a certain extent it packed the timbertogether and allowed one to secure a betterburn. It also pulled out more stumps and didnot leave so many snags. Scrub should be loggedas early in winter as possible, to allow the shootsto get a good start before the scrub was burnt,thus giving them their first severe check. Breaksshould not be burnt, but the timber clearedback the required distance, as that ensured agood start for a body of fire. The fire frequentlygot out of control when burning breaks. A veryhot day should be selected for the burn and asteady and fairly strong wind was most essen-tial. He always lit the fire with the wind a littlebehind the blaze, as that caused the fire to"draw" and give it the desired sweep, whichwas the main thing in killing the shoots andgetting a clean burn. Late wheats should besown early in the season on new land, becauseunder ordinary conditions it would produce agood stubble, and enable one to get a runningburn. (JASA, June 1920, p. 970.)It is easy to imagine that such fires could easily

get out of control, burning far more than intended.More information was provided on the subject

of Starting and Stocking a New Selection by Mr T.Nottle at a meeting of the Yaninee Branch in July1920.

Careful consideration should be given toposition, drainage, and attractiveness, and anarea of eight or 10 acres reserved for thehomestead and its surrounding buildings. Ateam of six horses, plough of medium weight,harrows and drill would be required to workabout 200 acres of newly cleared land. Hefavoured the purchase of large implements, withthe object of being able to deal with larger areas

of land as the work of clearing progressed. Forthe first few years he suggested cropping theland on five years' system of rotation - twocrops of wheat, oats, grazing, and fallow. Recentyears had proved the wisdom of conservingcocky chaff, yet there was no doubt that theharvester was a great labor saving machine, sothat the choice of harvesting machinery restedentirely on the farmers. If more than one pair ofhands was available for assisting in the work ofthe farm two cows could be kept, and underordinary conditions they should be able to keepthe household supplied with milk and butter,and help to pay the expenses in connectionwith the upkeep of the household. Poultry wasanother profitable side line, and he favoured across between a white leghorn and a blackorpington as one that would serve the doublepurpose of supplying eggs and meat for thetable. A few pigs could also be kept. As soon ascircumstances permitted, the farmer shouldgive his attention to the keeping of sheep, and ifthe system of cropping previously mentionedin the paper was carried out the householdshould be kept supplied with fresh meat allthrough the year. The laying out of a small fruitand vegetable garden was also well worthconsideration. (JASA, September 1920, p. 171-2.)At the 1920 Congress, Mr F. McMillan of the

Taplan Branch read a very interesting paper, Goon the Land, Digger. It provides us with an insightinto what the returned soldiers could expect ifthey took up this option.

A Rural Catechism

The conditions of living are another factor thatneeds to be considered. Will you be content to(in the case of single men) go out, and on yourown do the work in the field and in the camp,having a minimum of social life and sport, and,in the case of the married man, see your wifecarry on without numerous domestic conven-iences in the home that she has been used to,and your children having to travel a long way toschool, or the possibility of no school to attend?Are you prepared to spend your energy andcapital, and at the end of 12 months when youbalance, find that, through circumstances overwhich you have no control, your reward is nil?Are you prepared to go through it again, withpossibly a like result? If you are, go on the land.If not, keep away from it, as it is more than likelythat it is a phase that will have to be gonethrough. It is a case of carry on. Should youmeet with a reverse and drop your bundle,unless you are financially strong you will have

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a liability to carry that will require a lot ofmopping up. Do not be misled by thinking thatfarming is not a skilled calling, requiring andlending itself, as it does, to the expenditure ofas much brain power as any other profession inorder that you may get the best result from yourfarm.Having decided to go on the land, you mustqualify for your certificate by training at one ofthe Government training farms or with anapproved farmer, I suggest going to an approvedfarmer for your experience, and in the districtin which you intend to settle, as the methods offarming and implements used vary considerablythroughout the State. With a farmer you havegreater scope, and will find a better field foryour initiative. Learn to know your work andthe reason for doing it. Discuss it with thefarmer; if he is not communicative find one thatis, and do not be afraid to advance any theorythat you have on the subject. If there is a Branchof the Agricultural Bureau in the neighborhood,become an active member, and you will find thetime very profitably spent. Do not be overanxious to start on your own account, as it ismore profitable to gain your experience than topay for it. The time spent in gaining experienceis never wasted, and you will realise the benefitof a sound training in establishing your farm.

Making a Selection

Presuming you have obtained your certificateand are satisfied that you have sufficient knowl-edge to start a place of your own, and havingdetermined that the work is congenial, and thatyou will adopt farming as your future calling,the selection and securing of your land is thenext step. I will not go into particulars of landopen to application, as you can get all that data,forms, etc., at the Soldier Settlement Office. Butit is here that your experience is going to standyou in good stead. Having worked in the districtin which you intend settling, your knowledge ofland values and the fertility of the soil will be ofmaterial benefit to you in the choice of yourselection. Should it be an unimproved scrublease that you are taking up, then the followingmay be of use to you:- You will need to considerthe distance from nearest railhead or port,quality of land, and average rainfall. Say youselect in fairly heavy timber, with approximatelyan average rainfall of 11 in. Get on to it in thewinter, do your mullenising in good time,preferably before the harvest; then, should youchoose, you would be able to work through theharvest, thus adding to your knowledge and

conserving your capital. Do not miss an oppor-tunity to run your burn, as it is most importantto run your fire and not take the risk of havingrain over it, as so often happens. My advice ismullenise as much land as you will require forcropping for the first fouryears, then, if possible,fire all your green scrub at the same time as yourun your burn. This burnt land will grow goodfeed and as the shoots grow so you can cutthem and stack them around the standingtimber. It perhaps means a little more work, butnot nearly such hard work, and the differencein land so cleared and land mullenised is morethan worth the extra trouble. This applies totimber that is too heavy to roll. This practice isgaining favour in our district, and we have cometo the conclusion that mullenised land is a dirtyjob compared to the fire-cleaned land. Becareful to leave a good area of standing scrubaround your homestead and farm buildings,and shade and breaks are a valuable asset in thepaddocks. Mallee, sandalwood, and belar postsare not a success, pine being the most suitable.(JASA, October 1920, pp. 226-8.)

Mechanisation was gradually making its wayinto farming, even though there was very littlemoney around and machinery was difficult toprocure. Tractor trials were held at TurretfieldExperimental Farm throughout July 1920. Two ofthe most popular models were tested, the"Fordson" by Duncan and Fraser Ltd, and "Baite'sSteel Mule" made by Clutterbuck Bros. Both wereused to pull ploughs, and the general opinion wasthat tractors definitely had a place in the agricul-tural work of South Australia.

Without the burden of war over them, peopleeverywhere threw themselves into life with newvigour, and the members of the AgriculturalBureau were no different. More adventurous activ-ities were arranged for Bureau meetings, and newprojects embarked upon.

The Riverton Women's Agricultural Bureaucombined with the local Men's Bureau for a socialon 30 July 1919. The subject of After the War wasdiscussed by the Hon. W. Hannaford. Now was thetime for South Australians to rebuild their State.

It was a busy year for the Mallala Branch whichheld its 21st birthday celebrations on 7 July 1920.A non-competitive tractor trial and demonstrationof implements was held on Mr F. A. Konag's land.This was followed by a banquet at 5 o'clock. Thedistinguished guests included the Hon T. Pascoeand Prof. Perkins. In the evening a public socialwas held in the institute during which the Ministerand Perkins addressed the crowd. MrJ. J. McCabe,

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the only original member on the roll, waspresented with a certificate of life membershipduring the proceedings, and the evening finishedwith music and dancing.

Other branches implemented new ways ofrunning meetings to encourage members' partic-ipation. The Naracoorte Bureau had a "UsefulHints" night on 11 December. All sorts of inter-esting information was offered, including thefollowing:

When digging post holes, especially in stickysoil, he advised mixing lime in some kerosine tomake a thick whitewash and applying it to thespade. After being allowed to dry, it would befound that the spade would bring up the soilmuch better . . . Mr G. Turnbull stated that apiece of wombat skin would make excellentbearings and washers for a binder. He advisedmembers not to plough too deeply in light soilinclined to be wet. The seed would do better ifonly just covered. The Chairman (Mr F. A.Holmesl said that Bordeaux mixture would curecurl leaf on mulberry trees. He did not advisefeeding calves with milk direct from theseparator because they became blown, but ifthe troth was taken from the milk it would dothem no harm. {JASA, February 1921, p. 650.)The Morchard Bureau held an "Exhibit Night"

in October 1921 to add some variety to theirprogramme.

Mr Kupke tabled excellent samples of figs thathad been grown and dried on his farm. Thesame member also exhibited a number of sheep-skin mats that had been scoured and tanned ata cost ranging from 7s 6d to lls 6d each. Mr H.Toop was responsible for an interesting displayof tools made from discarded parts of oldmachines and implements. Mr F. Seriven tableda fowl trough constructed with petrol tins. Mr

Homesteadmeeting —The GeraniumBranch at Mai lacBrae, c 1920.

Lillicrapp showed a device for tallying sheep.UASA, December 15,1921, p. 442.)

As an entertaining way of discussing the prosand cons of new technology, some branchesorganised debates. The Rockwood Branch usedthe topic of hand-milking versus machine-milkingin this way for an interesting and informativemeeting.

Mr E. Rogers opened the discussion in favour ofthe machines. He said there was no doubt thatthe mechanical milker saved a great deal of timeand labour. One man could look after fourmachines, and in the 15 months that he hadbeen working the machine he had never seen abucketful of milk spilt, which was rather acommon occurrence when the cows weremilked by hand. The pigs and calves could befed while the cows were being milked. In furthersupporting the advantages of the machines, MrMeyer said the great success of the inventionwas due in no small way to the suction, whichwas an almost perfect imitation of the calfsucking its mother. If the yard was properly andconveniently laid out, one man could look afterfour machines. Most of the cows milked withthe machine did not require stripping, and hewas firmly convinced that any dairyman withmore than 12 cows should install a machine. Healso contended that the animals milked withthe machine were more contented, and stayedin milk for a longer period than the cows milkedby hand. From his experiences he would saythat it cost 6d for fuel for each milking. MrCarter had no hesitation in saying that themachines had been the salvation of the dairyingindustry in South Australia, chiefly because ofthe very great difficulty in securing suitable andconstant labour for the dairy farms. He hadbeen using the machines for 10 years, and had

!U

never had a cow lose a quarter. Cleanliness wasa most essential factor in the success of themachines, but that also applied to all operationsconnected with the handling of dairy produce.A plant could be installed for about £.150, and2s per day would cover all running expenses.Mr Dunn, in supporting hand milking,mentioned that he had noticed very dirtymachines on some of the dairy farms, and hewas also of the opinion that it was necessary tostrip the cows after milking. He doubtedwhether one man could attend to fourmachines. Mr Simmons stated that he was notfavourably impressed with the machines; theinitial cost of the outfit was very high; and, as arule, owners of high-class stock always milkedtheir cows by hand. Mr Steed was of the opinionthat only the dairyman with a herd of 20 cowsor over required a machine, and he alsocontended that the cost of installation was toogreat. He did not think that a great deal of timewas saved with the machines. The Chairman(Mr J. J. Bradford) declared the speakers whoadvocated the machines the winners of thedebate. (JASA, March 15,1922, p. 752.)

1920 also saw the end of the six-year BalaklavaWheat-growing Competition.

The competition was open to any personresident within a radius of 10 miles of Balaklava.Any kind of wheat might be grown, provided itwas a good average milling variety. Each plotwas required to be one-quarter of an acre inextent. The seed wheat for the first year's sowinghad to be hand selected from a crop growingwithin a radius of 10 miles of Balaklava. Thatapplied to the first year in which a growercompeted, whether the first year of the compe-tition or any subsequent year. After the first yearthe seed had to be hand selected from thequarter of an acre plot each year. However, acompetitor might substitute a different varietyof wheat in the fourth year, seed to be handselected from a crop on competitor's farm orfrom one within 10 miles of Balaklava, whichvariety was to be continued with during theremainder of the competition. The competitorwas at liberty to sow as much seed and applyas much manure, of any kind, per acre as hethought fit. No restrictions were made as to themethod of cultivation, but artificial wateringwas not permitted. In judging, yield was thechief factor, subject, however, to the followingconditions:- (a) The wheat was of good averagemilling quality, (b) It was reasonably plump, andin the opinion of the judge of average marketable

The Balaklava Wheat Crop Competition Shield won bvMr US Goldnev. 1920.

sample, (c) The wheat was true to type. (JASA,August 1920, pp. 30-31.)The silver shield was won by Mr R. S. Goldney

who had obtained the highest number of pointsoverall with "King's Red" wheat. The runner-upwas Mr P. H. Roedigerwith crops of "King's White",followed by Mr H. C. McPharlin with crops ofGluyas

The Murray Lands Branches held their firstconference on 5 October 1920 at Karoonda. Previ-ously the branches involved had taken part in thePinnaroo Conference. Although they had much incommon with the Pinnaroo fanners, there wasgreat difficulty experienced in getting to theconference. It made more sense for the brancheson the Paringa, Loxton and Waikerie railway linesto gather separately. The official guests attendingwere Mr C. J. Tuckwell (Chairman ABA), Mr W. J.Spafford (Superintendent of Experimental Work)and Mr H. J. Finnis (Acting Secretary of ABA).

The first paper was read by Mr E. L. Cowled ofthe Borrika Branch. He discussed Sheep on a NewMallee Farm urging settlers to pay attention tofencing and subdivision of the holding. He alsoadvised sheep owners to procure good classes ofsheep and warned against over-stocking. He

suggested Merinos as a breed well-suited to theirconditions. Many subjects were discussed duringa "Free Parliament" session before Mr Sanders ofthe Nunkeri and Yurgo Branch read his paper onworking a new block in the Mallee (discussedabove). The day closed with an address by MrSpafford on the working of sandy soil.

The first Herd Testing Society was formed bythe Murray Bridge Branch of the AgriculturalBureau towards the end of 1920, largely due to theefforts of Mr A. R. Hilton, the Branch Secretary,Sixteen dairy farmers joined the association,bringing with them 285 cows. Every cow in theherd was to be registered, whether or not in milk,and this would be taken into account whencalculating the average milk and butter-fat outputof the herd. It was hoped that by recording themilk yields of all cows that unprofitable animalswould be discarded. In order to encourage suchsocieties, the Government offered to bear half theexpenses incurred up to £.200 per annum. Cashprizes were also offered for annual competitionswithin societies. Other branches followed theirinitiative, and four more Herd Testing Societieswere formed by the end of 1924.

River Murray AssociationMt Gambier &, DistrictAssociationGlencoe AssociationMilang AssociationNarrung Association

1 October 19201 August 1922

1 October 19231 May 19241 October 1924

During the post-war period emphasis wasplaced on rebuilding the Australian economy. Partof this was to improve the living standard of allAustralians, and the rural population couldbenefit from this as much as city folk. The Journalof Agriculture of South Australia started runningadvertisements for electric power plants; discus-sions at branch meetings were often devoted totopics such as The Telephone and How to makeRural Life More Attractive.

The introduction of labour-saving devices wasrecommended by Mr L. S. Moore at a meeting ofthe Mintaro Branch.

With the aid of a tractor, the work could beperformed in less time and the need forattending to the horses at early and late hourswould be eliminated. Again the use of motorpower for such work as raising water, the layingon of a water supply to the homestead, and theinstallation of electricity for lighting puiposesand working the washing machine, etc., wouldmake farm life considerably more comfortableand enjoyable. (JASA, September 1922, p. 172.)

Why not have all these comforts?*The comforts and conveniences enjoyed by citydwellers are easy for country dwellers who wantthem. Electric light by pushing a button—elec-tric power by inserting a plug in the wall orpressing a switch.

You can have them all, and more, byinstalling Western Electric Power andLight. Electric lamps inside and out-side the house, down in the barn,dairy, and wherever i you want them.Electric power so that womenfolkmay banish house work drudgery bydoing their work with appliances suchas vacuum sweepers, dish washers,washing machines and irons, sewingmachines—all electrically operated,These arc just a few of the wondersof Western Electric Power nnd Lightwhich is easy to buy ami child's playto run. Send for 20-page DescriptiveBook (post free) by

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601

He went on to suggest that the addition of a carand a telephone would greatly improve the lot ofthe farmer. MrT. Cowley of the Elbow Hill Branchalso saw the advantages of telephone communi-cation. He suggested that wire fences could beused to connect farms with the exchange.

One would prove the value of the telephoneduring the busy seasons of the year, especiallyduring harvest time, when one found it neces-sary to obtain without loss of time new parts forthe machines. The speaker believed that tele-phon ic c o m m u n i c a t i o n would addconsiderably to the social life of the country,and would help in making rural life moreattractive. Perhaps the greatest advantagewould be in times of sickness or accident, whenone could get into quick communication with amedical practitioner. (JASA, May 1921, p. 878.)

- i. .*,,.

The Mount Hope Branch at a Field Day on Fred Myer's property, c 1922. Back Row L-R: Messrs Bob Myers,Fred Myers, George Vigar, Henry [Joudle, Tom Speed, Jim Doudle, Nelson Ness, Billie Mahonev, Bert Vigar,Harold Myers.Seated L-K: Dudley IMickl Doudle, Tommv Speed, Dennv Speed, Arthur Vigar, Jackie Mahoitcv, Jack Winstanlw.

Gradually these conveniences were introduced,but it was a long time before they were taken forgranted as part of rural life.

The first Roseworthy Agricultural CollegeWinter School was conducted in July 1921. Fortyrepresentatives of 39 branches took part in whatproved to be a very successful venture. Classes onall branches of agriculture were incorporated intothe fortnight's programme.

Monday, 18 July, - Opening addresses; wool-classing, Mr A. H. Codrington; principles ofbreeding, Mr W. J. Colebatch.Tuesday, 19 July. - Soils, Mr R. C. Scott; buddingand grafting, Mr D. G. Quinn; points of the horse,Mr F. E. Place; principles of breeding, Mr W. J.Colebatch.Wednesday, 20 July. - Management of dairycattle, Mr R. Baker; diseases of crops, Mr W. J.Spafford; grain grading and pickling, Mr R. C.Scott; diseases and parasites of poultry, Mr D. F.Laurie.Thursday, 21 July. — Establishment and manage-ment of orchards, Mr D. G. Quinn; buildingconstruction, Mr J. Paull; milk testing and herdtesting, Mr R. Baker; parturition, Mr F. E. Place.Friday, 22 July. - Farm bookkeeping, Mr H. C.Pritchard; feeding of cattle, Mr R. Baker; pruning,Mr D. G. Quinn; dairying, Mr P. H. Suter.

Saturday, 23 July. Field class, Mr W. J.Colebatch.Monday, 25 July. - Manures and manuring, MrW.J. Spafford; varieties of cereals, MrA. J.Adams;parasites of farm animals, Mr F. E. Place.Tuesday, 26 July. — Seed selection and plantbreeding, Mr R. C. Scott; tractor demonstration;butter making, Mr R. Baker; fat lambs. Mr W. J.Colebatch.Wednesday, 27 July. — Silos and silage, Mr R.Baker; chemistry of soils, fertilisers and waters,Mr E. G. Stephens; horseshoeing, Mr F. E. Place;pig breeding and feeding, Mr H. J. Apps.Thursday, 28 July. - Examination of horses forsoundness, MrF. E. Place; sheep demonstration,Mr W, J. Colebatch; pig killing and bacon curing,Mr R. Baker; forage crops, Mr W. J. Spafford.Friday, 29 July. - Diseases of fruit trees andvines, Mr D. G. Quinn; poultry fanning, Mr D. F.Laurie; farm implements and machines, Mr H.R. Nourse; common diseases of livestock, Mr F.E. Place.Saturday, 30 July. — College experiments, Mr W.J. Colebatch. IJASA, September 1921, p. 118.»The first Winter School was such a success that

it became an annual event for many years to come.Farmers realised that a scientific approach to

their work was bound to pay off. They needed the

The participants in the first Farmers' Winter School, Roseworthy Agricultural College, July 1921.

advice of agricultural scientists; the experimentalwork carried out by academics could, and should,be put to practical use for the producers' benefit.One way of obtaining this information wasthrough the journals and books published byvarious Government Agricultural Departmentsand universities. In the early years of its existence,the South Australian Department of Agriculturehad made its collection of publications from all

over the world available for loan by members ofthe public. The Millicent Branch had establisheda library for members' use in 1894 and the DebatingClub passed on its collection when the Agricul-tural Bureau formed there. In 1921 the RenmarkBranch announced its desire to create a library ofits own, and the Rockwood Branch suggested acirculating library for the use of all AgriculturalBureau Branches. Unfortunately, nothing seems

Delegates at the Longwood Conference, 1921.

to have come of Rockwood's good idea, andprogressive farmers were obliged to buy their ownpublications, while others relied on the informa-tion to be found in the pages of the monthlyJournal of Agriculture of South Australia.

The search for means of increasing productionled to some interesting experiments. The I^auraand Morchard Branches were attracted bymethods of electrifying seed wheat. Mr H. A. Toopof the latter reported on this new work.

Although onJy in its infancy, the experimentseemed to promise returns equal to that ofsuperphosphate. It had, up to the present, onlybeen used on a very few farms, but the resultshad been very much in its favour. Reportsshowed that it was a fairly simple process totreat the seed, a common medical battery beingused to electrify the water in which the wheatwas placed. The results proved a better andquicker germination, a stronger and healthierplant, and better grain; and also that the treat-ment could be applied with equal success onother seeds as well. IJASA, Sept 1921, p. 143.)

Unfortunately, the expected results did noteventuate and electrification was abandoned

Some of the innovations of this time were tohave more lasting effects. Mr Roy Currie of theWasleys Branch recalls the period:

Wheat over the yeare has been subjected tosmut, as is barley, and this required the grain tobe immersed in a solution of bluestone. Thiswas done with part bags in drums. Later it wastipped out on cement floors and tipped overwith shovels and wetted with a bluestonesolution. It was an after tea job.Nicholas McCabe of Pinkerton Plains inventeda perforated container and this was loweredinto a huge wooden cask and bagged in butts atthe side of the cask. This was widely used andwe had one on our farm. Some of the faniilvmembers still have a certificate from the Govern-ment for this achievement. One is still on displayat the Mallala Museum.A fanner at a bureau meeting at Riverton, thelate Mr Alf Hannaford, said he thought easiermethods could be adopted. So lie invented thefirst dry pickling machine turned by hand.Wheat was run from the winnower into thismachine. Later Alf Hannaford invented a mobilegrader and pickler. I can remember seeing thefirst machine and now it's used all overAustralia. (Roy P. Currie, Looking Back over theYears of the Wasleys Agricultural Bureau, 20January 1987.)

Cliff Currie tleftl and his brother Rov in 1986.

Shearing in the '20s was a much less streamlinedbusiness than it is today. This description of theprocess was prepared by Mr H. W. Tremaine forthe Smoky Bay Branch:

sheep should be shorn in the spring, at thecommencement of warm weather, but beforethe grass seeds began to drop. The shed shouldbe free from draught, and provided with ahoarded floor. For-a small shed a couple of ironcases laid together would answer' for eachshearer. In the case of a farmer with large flocksof sheep, he advocated a well laid-out andpermanent shed. In every shed, catching pens(•lose to the hoard should be erected, so that notime would be wasted by the shearer in gettingthe sheep. A sufficient number of hands shouldbe engaged, so that the shearer-s would havenothing to do but shear. The wool picking andclearing away should, if possible, be clone byother hands. It was very often difficult to securemen to shear, and in order that that might beovercome, he suggested a system of co-opera-tion among farmere. In any case, every sheepowner should, in ease of emergency, be able toshear. Prior to the commencement of shearing,the main flock should be grazed in a paddockhandy to the shed. The morning sheep (at least'should be penned under cover the previousnight, so that the wool would be quite dry andready for an early start. A good pair of shears,with the shoulder ground down and the edgefinished off with an oilstone, was essential. The

shearer should be careful, and not make secondcuts, but keep the shear's well down on thesheep. The second cut was useless from a woolbuyer's point of view, and in all probabilitywould have a had influence on the value of theclip. Stockholm tar- should be kept handy to puton any (arts on the sheep. After each sheep hadbeen shorn, the wool should be picked up, andthe board swept, so as to prevent dirt and locksfront getting into the fleece of the next sheep.As the animals were shorn, they should havetheir teeth examined, the loose ones extracted,arid the toes cut to proper length. A learnershould commence by taking off the bellies for ashearer, and gradually go a little further withthe sheep, until he was able to take off the wholefleece. (JASA, September 1921, p. 161.1

These days, there is not enough time to pay somuch attention to each individual sht?ep, andunions insist there are sufficient roustabouts toensure the smooth running of the shed.

Shearing a sheep nith hand blades Pt Augusta.

"Downy Mildew" or "oidium" was a major-problem for vinegrowers at this time. The ClareBranch heard a paper from Mr R. C). Knappsteinon 19 August on the subject of combating thisdisease.

Some varieties are more subject to attack thanothers, and those vines which are most suscep-tible to black spot are also most prone to downymildew. The disease, like many fungus diseases,depends on the weather conditions for itsdevelopment. If the spring and summer are hotand dry, the chances are that the disease willnot develop. But, on the other hand, if moist,sultry weather conditions prevail, then thosegrowers who have neglected to spray will realisethe damage and remarkable rapidity of thespread of the disease . . . its presence can bedetected by the oil spots or . . light-colouredpatches on the leaves . . . growers recommendthe use of Bordeaux mixture to combat thedisease. It is not so easily washed off the foliageas Burgundy mixture, and, therefore, retains itsvirtue as a fungoid preventive over a morelengthy period. The strength recommended is10 Ib bluestone to 50 gall of water, with enoughlime added to make the mixture alkaline . . . Thestyle of pump to be used rests with the growerhimself. If he requires a pump for sprayingorchards as well as vineyards, he can use a handor a motor power plant, but if the pump isintended for vineyard spraying only, a horse-drawn tractor spraying1 machine is generallyused. The pump of this machine is worked offthe axle of a wheel with an eccentric or crank.In the eastern States where only vines aresprayed, the horse-drawn tractor is in generaluse, and gives thorough satisfaction. Thesemachines are capable of spraying large areasquickly, cheaply, and thoroughly. The rear ofthe machine is equipped with horizontal arms,which reach right over- the vines on each side ofthe machine, and on these arms droppers arefastened, which hang vertically, and are adjust-able to any desired height or width. Spraynozzles are fitted on these droppers and can beset to spray in any direction which the operator-chooses. With some machines one row at a timecan he sprayed, and with others two completerows can be finished in the one operation. Thespray nozzles should be so arranged that theypoint slightly downwards and backwards. Theidea of spraying downward is because thedisease always starts on the upper surface ofthe leaf, so we have to put the Bordeaux mixtureon the top of the leaf to prevent the spores fromdeveloping. The first spraying for the seasonsshould be carried out when the young shoots

Mr L A Chappie, Champion Grape Vine Pruner lleftl and Mr H von Bertouch, Champion fruit Tree Pruner Irightl.

are about a foot long, or when it is possible todistinguish the young hunches. The secondspraying is usually carried out about theflowering stage, and followed later on byanother just before the grapes begin to colour.(JASA, October 1921, pp. 248-249.)A series of pruning competitions were organised

by the Agricultural Bureau on the River MuiraySettlement in June 1921. Both fruit trees and grapevines were pruned in the competitions at Waikerie,Moorook, Berri and Renmark. The three bestcompetitors from each branch took part in aChampionship Competition at Berri on 14 June.The judges of this final contest, Messrs S.H. Levienof Renmark, and C. G. Savage of the GovernmentExperimental Farm, looked for the selection andtreatment of fruiting wood, shaping of the vine ortree, and clean cutting in all cases. They were alsointerested in the treatment of leaders in treepruning, and the twisting of canes in sultana vines.Two classes were judged, fruit trees and vines.

The silver cups donated by Mr H .S. Taylor ofRenmark were won by Mr H. von Bertouch for thetree section and Mr L. A. Chappie in the vinesection. Both gentlemen were from Berri.

A great deal of interest was shown in all thelocal competitions as well as the Championship.Pruning competitions became a regular feature ofAgricultural Bureau life along the River Murray,and were soon introduced to other parts of theState.

Competitions became an increasingly impor-tant part of Bureau life during this period. The"Suntyne" company arranged a Combined Drilland Cultivator Competition through the Agricul-tural Bureau on Yorke Peninsula. Each cropentered was to be of 100 acres and contain nomore than three varieties of wheat. The scale ofpoints for judging was—

Apparent yield 65Trueness to type and purity 5Freedom from disease 10Freedom from defects, evenness, conditionand appearance 5Cleanliness 15Mr Greenslade of Urania won with a crop of

Major wheat. The report published in the Journalof Agriculture of South Australia included two listsof wheat varieties suitable for different soils:

In typical South Australian calcareous condi-tions, i.e. limestone soils with comparativelylow average annual rainfall (14 in to 18 in) thetype of wheat giving best average returnsconsists of those varieties with tough, more orless willowy straws, and tough, shiny chaff, andwhere these conditions obtain, the followingvarieties should improve the yields:—

Caliph I .ale ( i l u v n sCurrawa Leak's RustproofSultan Walker's WonderFelix King's Red or King's White

In heavier textured soils not supplied with anexcess of lime and having an average annualrainfall of 16 in to 20 in or more, the stillerstravved, more flaggy wheats with softer' chaffgive better- grain yields without the sametendency to lodge as happens with some of theabove-mentioned varieties, and for these condi-tions the following varieties are recommended:—

Federation CurrawaUnas Yandilla KingMinister CaliphMajor

UASA, December 1921, p. 402.1In 1924 the Government, recognising the value

of competitions, decided to subsidise wheat cropcompetitions. They agreed to help branches of theAgricultural Bureau secure suitable judges andpay rail fares for the judges to travel to and fromthe competitions. They would also allow amonetary grant of 10s per entry up to ,£25 perannum, provided the branch collected an equiva-lent amount. Although the competitions wereorganised by the Agricultural Bureau, all farmer'swere welcome to take part.

The first branch to accept this subsidy wasMiltalie in the 1923/24 season. The competitionwas open to all wheatgrowers in the FranklinHarbour District, and the minimum area to beentered was 100 acres (the Government schemeonly required 50 acre blocks when it set out thecompetition conditions later in the year). Fourteenfarmer's entered the competition, and thefollowing awards were made:

1st P. C. Wake, Elbow Hill -Gluyas and Carrawa

2nd J. S. Jacobs, Miltalie -Carrawa, Warren and Major

3rd J. P. Story, Miltalie -Carrawa, Bluey and Major

Soon, branches all over the State took advantageof the Government scheme, and wheat cropcompetitions became very popular. From adver-tising the methods of sowing and fertilising ofwinning crops, other farmers learnt how to makethe best use of their land and average yieldsgradually increased.

A new plan to subsidise pure-bred bulls wasinstituted in 1924 to aid dairy fanners. This timethe bulls were purchased by individuals ratherthan branches of the Agricultural Bureau as theyhad been in the subsidy scheme introduced in1900, but were still expected to be available toservice "outside" cows during the first 12 monthsafter pur-chase. A fee of not more than 10s couldbe charged. The Government subsidy reimbursedthe buyer for 60% of the purchase price, a verygenerous offer.

The 1924 Congress included a Women's sessionfor the; first time. By this time there were eightbranches of the VVAB. Dr Gertrude Halley, MedicalInspector of Schools, addressed the Women'sSession first. In her discussion of The Health ofCountry Children she spoke on the importance ofstrength and sanitation.

She explained how infectious diseases spread,and the importance of building the body up tooffer strong resistance to disease germs.Country people got plenty of fresh air in the daytime, but, since most human beings, on theaverage, spent four months of the year in bed, itwas equally important to have well ventilatedsleeping quarter's. The closet! bedroom windowwas seen in country districts more often thannot. Children walking long distances to school,especially after milking several cows, needed ahot meal at night and a hot drink beforebeginning school work. Rheumatism was alsoprevalent in country schools, where children

Winners of theGeranium Branch CropCompetition, 1928.Back L-H: Mess/3 WalfyBeelitz, Uoyd Prouse,Eric Williams, ArtyBeelitz.front L-R: MessrsO Prouse,Viv Polkinghome, — Cross.

99

were accustomed to sit in their damp shoes andstockings. (3ASA, November 1924, p. 342.)There followed a discussion on agricultural

education for women. Some of the people presentbelieved that women should concentrate on thehome and sidelines such as gardening, butter-making and poultry. Others, however, saw theneed for women to become involved in all aspectsof agriculture. The Waite bequest had providedfor a women's agricultural college as part of itsprogramme, but as yet nothing had come of it. Ashort course in rural domestic science was avail-able, but had not received Government approvalat that time. The conference resolved that "theDepartment of Agriculture adds to its staff someexperts who could come and give practicaldemonstrations to our Branches — particularly awoman doctor to give health talks, and anauthority on domestic science". (JASA, November1924, p. 344.)

The session was then addressed by the secondspeaker, Mr W. L. Davies from the KalangadooBranch of the Men's Agricultural Bureau. Anadvocate of women's rights, he pointed to thepoor regard in which women were often held, ina talk entitled A Plea for the Farm Women. Thesewomen who had worked so hard and sacrificedso much, deserved better, yet he had seen mentreat their stock with more kindness than theirwives.

There were many settlers who went on the landwho, to his mind, seemed to start at the wrongend of the job. He knew only too well that fundswould not allow them to do all that they wouldwish, but there were some who seemed to thinkthat, while Dobbin must have a nice warmstable, anything would do for mother and theyoungsters until they could get a start, and thestart often took so long to accomplish that bythe time the nice big new house was built theyoungsters had scattered and mother somehowdid not seem to have much appreciation left forher altered circumstances.He once knew a man who would never leave hishorses to stand in the dray for 10 minuteswithout slipping the nosebags on their heads,yet for 20 years his wife milked anything up tohalf a dozen cows in a bail in the open withouta roof of any sort to shield her from the rain andsun. And that was in a timbered country, andwithin a short distance of enough thatch tocover acres of sheds. (JASA, November 1924,p. 344.)This first Women's Session was very popular

and became an important part of the AgriculturalBureau's Annual Congress for many years.

Six years later, the Minister for Agriculture, Hon.S. R. Whitford pointed out that only 18 of the 300branches of the Agricultural Bureau wereWomen's Branches. He was concerned withraising the status of women and believed thatthere should be as many women's branches asmen's; however, this equality was not to comeabout until 1935 when there was a suddenincrease of members in the WAB.

One thing South Australian farmers had inplentiful supply was eucalyptus. On KangarooIsland in particular the oil from these trees wasdistilled and proved to be a profitable business.Mr H. J. Wiadrowski pointed out to the McGillvrayBranch that it was a better paying propositionthan growing cereals under the presentconditions:

the oil industry is not so much at the mercy ofthe weather. Payable returns can be obtained inthe driest seasons, and very wet years, when thegrain crops are swamped and water-logged, arethe most profitable for the distiller . . . One manwith a properly arranged distillery and a vat of1,000 gall capacity, can easily produce five tonsof oil per season. At the low price of Is 3d perpound, this equals £700. It requires 448 stills ofleaf to produce this amount of oil, averaging25 Ib per still, which is not a high average.Cutting the leaf costs 12s per still, or a total of£26816s which leaves the distillier £4314s forhis work and the use and upkeep of two horses.I have not allowed anything for depreciation ofplant, because this, on a properly erected distil-lery, is very little. The above return is based ona very low price, for on present prices the netreturn would be £5714s for the same quantity.The complete plant necessary to produce thatquantity could be erected for £300, and depre-ciation at the very outside would not be morethan 10 per cent. These calculations have beenbased on a man working a "still" for 10 monthsa year and five days a week, doing two "stills"per day, which can easily be done in nine hours,allowing for carting, and if a settler has anabundance of raw material, he can increase theoutput by one third . . . Regarding wool produc-tion, I consider that this can be carried on justas successfully in conjunction with oil produc-tion as with grain, for I am fully convinced thatit would be a profitable investment to cultivatethe leaf country and grow fodder crops forgrazing purposes. This would not harm themallee to a very great extent, and the remaindercould be cut more frequently and yield consid-erably more oil owing to the cultivations. (JASA,August 1924, pp. 89-92.)

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The first Kangaroo Island Conference was heldat Kingscote on 21 February 1925. Delegates fromall over the island attended, as well as severalofficial guests including Mr C. A. Loxton (ChiefInspector of Stock), Mr W. J. Spafford (ChiefAgricultural Instructor), Mr A. H. Codrington (WoolInstructor of the School of Mines) and Mr H. J.Finnis (Secretary of the ABA). Mr Finnis spoke onthe usefulness of the Agricultural Bureau,especially with regard to district conferences. Aquestion and answer time then followed, duringwhich delegates picked the brains of the visitingexperts. Mr Codrington then addressed the group,and Mr Loxton gave a veterinary demonstrationwhich included a post-mortem examination of ahorse. Mr Spafford also gave a talk on Top Dressingof Pastures and the day ended with a FreeParliament session. The visiting officers inspecteda number of farms in the area, offering usefuladvice on stock and agricultural problems as theywent.

The June meeting of the Glossop Branch tookthe form of a show of produce in 1925. Theseshows were popular in the early days of theBureau but had dropped off over the years. AtGlossop the idea was for everyone to exhibit theirproduce regardless of its quality. This was believedto be of real educational value, since observerscould see the difference resulting from differenttreatment and growing conditions. No entrancefee was required, and no prizes offered. Certifi-cates were granted to the best entry in eachsection. The vegetable section proved a "revela-tion" - 70 Ib marrows, 2 Ib carrots and 2 Ib onionsrevealed the fertility of the rich soil in the district.Three hundred people attended and enjoyedthemselves so much that the "Glossop Show"became an annual event.

On 23 January 1924 the Minister of Agriculture,the Hon. J. Cowan, had proposed strengtheningthe ABA with several new members. Heannounced a plan during a speech at the StateExperimental Orchard at Berri which the Boardwas inspecting. He named five men whom heconsidered desirable :-

H. S. Taylor, Renmark- Representing theIrrigation SettlementsBoard

A. B. Feuerheerdt, Representing the SouthNaracoorte- EastP. H. Jones, Pinaroo- Representing the

mallee farming areasJ. Wallace Sandford- Representing the dairy

industryC. A. Loxton- Chief Inspector of Stock

However, a change of Minister resulted indrastic cuts the following year. Six members of theABA were due to retire due to the effluxion of time.They were W. S. Kelly, Captain S. A. White, ColonelJ. Rowell, A. M. Dawkins, George Jeffrey and thePresident of the Vine Growers' Association. TheHon. T. Butterfield, the new Minister of Agricul-ture, decided that only the last named would bereappointed. All of the unofficial members (H.Wicks, C. J. Tuckwell, L. Cowan, J. W. Sandford, P.H. Jones and A. B. Feuerheerdt) resigned on thegrounds that it was impossible to carry out all oftheir duties in a responsible fashion with so fewon the Board. The governing body of the Agricul-tural Bureau was again named the CentralAgricultural Bureau.

The reduction of the Board was deplored bymany of those involved. W. S. Kelly wrote to thelocal papers criticising this move, and Butterfieldfelt it necessary to defend his unpopular decisionat the 1925 Congress. By this stage, he had a groupof five men to advise and consult him in hisministerial duties. The CAB was comprised of DrA. E. V. Richardson, F. Coleman, A. M. Dawkinsand H. S. Taylor, all members of the old ABA. Heintended to add another member, H. N. Wicks, anenergetic young fruit grower from Balhannah.

The annual appointment of members of theCAB was announced at the October Meeting. Atotal of 13 men was to make up the Board,representing different geographical areas andindustries of the State. This time the memberswere to be F. Coleman, Saddleworth; P. H. Jones,Pinnaroo; A. M. Dawkins, Angle Vale; H. N. Wicks,Balhannah; H. S. Taylor, Renmark; R. H. Martin,Kensington Gardens; R. Wiese, Mundalla; Prof. A.J. Perkins, Director of Agriculture; W. J. Colebatch,Principal, Roseworthy Agricultural College; Dr A.E. V. Richardson, Principal of Waite ResearchInstitution. A further gentleman was to beappointed to represent "general fanning" and twomore to represent dairying.

The new constitution and duties of the CentralAgricultural Bureau were set out in the Februaryissue of the Journal of Agriculture of SouthAustralia in 1926. The list of duties give us someinsight into its own interpretation of the role theCentra] Bureau should play.

Duties

To supervise and act as a Central Board ofControl of the Agricultural Bureau of SouthAustralia.To consider any matters which the Hon.Minister may from time to time refer to theBoard, and to report thereon.

101

To organise and attend Congresses and Confer-ences and other special meetings related to thework of the Agricultural Bureau.To promote the interests which the membershave been appointed to represent, and takesuch action as may be expedient in connectiontherewith.To submit the Hon. the Minister of Agriculturean annual report of the work of the Bureau.IJASA, February 1926, p. 650.)By this time the North Yorke Peninsula Field

Trial Society was an established part of the ruralyear. On 12 January 1927 the trials were attendedby over 5,000 people and more than 1,000 carswere lined up. Improved transport facilitiesenabled more people to travel greater distances;the fine reputation of the trials encouraged themto take advantage of this convenience. In 1900 theGovernment had awarded 120 acres along therailway line to the society. Sixty acres of this landhad been divided into 13 plots which were sownwith Belgian Wonder wheat for the 1926/27 season.Tractors and harvesters were tested in 1927 withgenerally good results. Of particular interest wasHannaford's wheat pickler and grader which wasalso on view that day.

In 1927 the Superphosphate Associat ion(Wallaroo-Mt Lyell Fertilisers and the AdelaideChemical and Fertiliser Company offered ninetrophies for Improved Pasture competitionsthroughout the State. There were to be fivedistricts in the competition, coinciding with theareas to which District Agricultural Instructorshad recently been appointed. These were Central,Northern, South-Eastem, Eyre Peninsula and theMurray Mallee. Two prizes were to be offered ineach district for Natural and Sown Pastures,except the Murray Mallee in which only one prize

SUPER h&s helped to build upyour Districts brosperitu.euid:—

for any pasture was offered. For the purpose ofthe competition, a "Sown Pasture" must not beless than 5 acres in extent, "Natural Pasture" notless than 10 acres and at least 20 acres wererequired in the Murray Mallee. The judges wereto be the District Agriculture and Dairy Instruc-tors, and the competitions would be administeredthrough the Central Agricultural Bureau. The scaleof points was set out:-

Natural SownPasture Past uit;

1 Bulk of Pasture availableper unit of area

2 Quality of pasture-al lype of plants presentbi Feeding value of plants

3 Freedom from uselessp lan t s

4 General can: of Pasture5 Area Offered for

competitionTOTALS

40

1515

ID111

10100

1510

II)

10100

For the Sown Pasture entries 2 points shall beallowed for every 5 acres, or portion thereof, upto a maximum of 10 points.In the Natural Pasture entries 2 points shall beawarded for every 10 acres, or portion thereof,up to a maximum of 10 points.In the Murray Mallee entries, 2 points shall beawarded for every 20 acres or portion thereofup to a maximum of 10 points. IJASA, February15,1927, p.746.1The first conference on the Far West Coast was

held at Ceduna on 10 February 1927. Despitetemperatures of 112 degrees F in the shade, astrong north wind and a call for volunteers to fighta bushfire, the conference was a success. Approx-imately 80 delegates attended from the Goode,Maltee, Smoky Bay, Charra, O'Loughlin andMudamuckla Branches. Also present were Mr R.Wiese (Member of Central Agricultural Bureau),Prof. A. J. Perkins (Director of Agriculture!, Mr H.B. Barlow (Chief Dairy Instructor), Mr H. D. M.Adams (District Agricultural Instructor), and MrF.C. Richards (Assistant General Secretary, CentralAgricultural Bureau).

After an opening by Mr Wiese, Mr J. W. Blumsonof Smoky Bay read a paper on the Conservation ofWater and Fodder. He emphasised the necessityfor water tanks in that area; to cart water requiredfar too much time and labour. Underground tankswere useful provided they were covered. He alsorecommended storing cocky chaff to use whenhay chaff was in short supply.

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This was followed by a paper on Stock Breedingand Raising by Mr E. Pfeiffer of the Goode Branch.He reminded his audience that breeding alonewould not ensure success; proper care and atten-tion must be paid to livestock. The combinaton ofsheep and wheat worked well, and oats sown oncountry affected by take-all provided excellentfeed for breeding ewes. It was important not tooverstock —fewer well-fed sheep were more profit-able than a large number of half-starved animalswhich would be more prone to disease.

Another member of the Goode Branch, Mr L. B.Hughes, then spoke on the subject of Red Rust.Although some growing conditions seemed morelikely to produce rusty crops, the answer lay ingrowing rust-resistant varieties. A Free Parliamentsession followed, then Mr W. Pfeiffer of theO'Loughlin Branch read a paper on scrub clearing.He suggested that the Government should providefinancial assistance to men who cleared malleescrub blocks, turning it into profitable agriculturalland. The benefits of their work would be enjoyedby generations to come and the whole State wouldprofit from their efforts. This is particularly inter-esting in the light of today's stringent restrictionson clearing scrubland.

A series of questions (from the branches) andanswers (from the visiting experts) started off witha discussion of coast disease. As far as was known,it did not seem to be related to deficiencies in diet,as many experiments with different feeds had notprevented the disease. However, post-mortemexaminations of stock .had revealed stomachworms. Thus regular drenchings with a solutionof 1 per cent copper sulphate were recommended.It would be another 10 years before stock ownersrealised it was the copper sulphate that mattered,since coast disease was caused by a mineraldeficiency. Other questions related to the culti-packer for preparing seedbeds, Jersey cows andflyblown sheep. The local farmers enjoyed thisopportunity to get expert advice on the problemsthey faced. All in all it was a very informative day.

The proven benefits of applying superphos-phate to crops led to its use on grasslands as well,where it also increased growth. However, a fastmethod of application was necessary to make itworthwhile. A broadcasting machine was devel-oped for this purpose, and demonstrations of itwere held under the auspices of the AgriculturalBureau. One such demonstration took place onthe property of Mr C. W. Ness of Second Valley on14 March 1927. Over 70 people attended, includingMr R. Hill, the Agricultural Instructor, Mr F. C.Richards, Assistant General Secretary of Central

Agricultural Bureau, Mr S. R. Cockburn repre-senting the Superphosphates Association of SouthAustralia, and Mr May of May Bros, Gawler. Sixacres were topdressed at a rate of one bag ofsuperphosphate per acre. When attached to ahorse-drawn trolley, the machine could be usedto treat 40-50 acres in a day and up to 160 acreswhen used with a motor lorry. An arrangementwas made to return to the site the following springto see the effects of the day's work.

A Fallow Competition was conducted atKapunda on 4-7 March 1927. Of the 24 entries,many could be greatly improved. Mr R. Hill,Agricultural Instructor, judged the competitionand reported that

The outstanding fault, in the majority of cases,was that fallowed land had been sadly neglectedduring the summer months. The moisturecontent of the different types of soil supportsthat belief, and, if this is studied, it will be seenthat the type of soil which is of a self-mulchingnature contains the highest percentage ofmoisture, even though the cultivation given hadlittle to do in bringing that about. With moreattention given to the necessity for having ashallow, loose mulch during the whole of thecultivating period, more moisture can beconserved, and, in addition, the depth of culti-vation can be regulated, and a firm "seedbed"established at the correct depth. The estab-lishing of a seedbed is very important, and itshould be at the depth that it is intended to sowthe seed. (JASA, May 16,1927, p. 1035.)Winners were:

l.F.H.Poysden2. E. R. Jonsen3. R.&.W.Hughes

It could be expected that local farmers wouldlearn a lot from the competition, and greaterbenefits from fallowing would follow.

Another Fallow Competition was instituted atPinnaroo the same year. The judges awardedequal points for cultivation, absence of weeds,mulch and moisture control. The most successfulfallowing was on the property of Mr P. J. Edwards,second was Mr Angel, and third Mr H. F. Ahrns.

On 29 April the first of a series of agriculturallectures was broadcast on 5CL Adelaide. Thesuggestion for such broadcasts had first beenmade by Mr W. A. Read, Balhannah at the 1926Hills Conference at Tweedvale. The other Bureaumembers present agreed it was a good idea andthe resolution passed. The 20 minute lectureswere to be given by technical officers of the

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Department of Agriculture, Roseworthy College,Waite Institute, School of Mines and the Stock andBrands Department. Broadcast on Fridays at 9.15p.m., they were a useful source of information.From 21 May 1928 the time was changed to 7.40p.m. (and 8.30 p.m. in the summer) on Mondays.These lectures continued to be broadcast on aweekly basis until they were cancelled inNovember 1929 to allow other subjects air time.

The success of pruning competitions in theLower North and River Murray Valley led to JuniorPruning Competitions being arranged. TheMcLaren Flat Branch organised a contest for boysunder 15 years, and one for boys between 15 and18 years on Mr I. Ingoldby's property. The MurrayBridge Branch arranged for the High School boysto compete pruning vines, apricots and peaches.

The State Wheat Crop Competitions were verywell supported by this time, and in 1928 the RoyalAgricultural and Horticultural Society offered ashield for a Championship Wheat Competition.The best crop in the whole of the State would winthe shield, and it was to be kept by the winner's

HAMPION CROP

The shield donated by the Royal Agricultural andHorticultural Society for the Champion Wheat CmpCompetition.

branch until the following year. The first season itwas won by Mr F. V. Trenorden (Mundalla Branchiwith a crop grown at Bordertovvn.

Yet another change in name was in store for thegoverning body of the Agricultural Bureau. At the1928 Congress the Minister of Agriculture, Hon. J.Cowan, announced his proposal to rename theCentral Agricultural Bureau the "Advisory Boardof Agriculture". His reason for this was that theBoard was to regain its function as an advisorybody to the Minister of Agriculture. It was animportant aspect of their work, as the collectiveknowledge of the men involved amounted to avery useful resource. The meeting on 30 January1929 marked the changeover from the CentralAgricultural Bureau to the Advisory Board ofAgriculture.

The Agricultural Bureau had always seen itselfprimarily as an educational institution - meetingswere arranged specifically for the exchange ofknowledge. Mr W. J. Dalby of the Rhvnie Branchalso saw the Agricultural Bureau as an organisa-tion ideally suited to instructing young peopleintending to go on the land. He explained ascheme already in action at Rhynie whereby theAgricultural Bureau members imparted theirknowledge to the boys and girls eager to learnfrom them.

I venture to say that at any centre where aschool exists, and a Branch of the AgriculturalBureau is established, two or three at least ofthe Bureau members are qualified to giveinstruction to a class of boys or girls in somespecial branch of industry . . . the RhynieAgricultural Bureau, which acts in conjunctionwith the Rhynie Project Club, and subjects onwhich lectures have been given by members areveterinary anatomy, woolclassing, and pruning.In addition to the above subjects - which aretaught practically as well as theoretically - arestock breeding ( c a t t l e and sheepl , f ru i tpreserving, cake making, etc . , . The BureauSecretary, when arranging for an agricultural,horticultural, viticulture], wool, sheep, or cattleexpert to visit the district, and give a practicaldemonstration before the Bureau, advises theSecretary of the Project Club, who is the localteacher. The children in the class receivinginstruction are notified, and they attend thepractical demonstration and the meetings ofthe Bureau, take notes, and ask their instructorquestions at the next lesson. So eager are theboys and girls that the attendances have beenexcellent, a keen interest displayed, and resultsbeyond expectation. Rhynie girls have won

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prizes for cooking, preserving fruit, sweets Agricultural Bureau). Two papers were read,making, and table decoration at the Auburn Drying apricots by Mr A. Ash of the WilliamstownShow. The boys have won prizes for wooljudging (Merino), sheep and cattle judging atthe Auburn Show, and a Rhynie boy was runner-up in the cattle judging at the 1927 AdelaideShow. They have also won prizes for collectionsof vegetables at Auburn and Tarlee Shows. Twoboys who competed in the juvenile vine-pruning competition at Messrs Sobels'Vineyard, Watervale, last July, gained third prizefor rod and spur pruning, and first and secondin spur pruning. Both Rhynie boys were under14 years of age, and secured 92 points. When itis considered that the winner of the men'ssection of pruning gained 94 points, and theboys 92 and 87 respectively, it shows the interestthey take in the subject, and how well theylearned their lessons. (JASA, May 1928, p. 956-7)The Bureau was not only an educational organ-

isation, however. Meetings were also anopportunity for social contact between men in adistrict. Some branches emphasised this aspect ofthe Bureau more than others. The Kanni Branchserved a small community south of Waikerie inthe Riverland for a few years. A relatively isolatedsettlement, the residents enjoyed a chance to gettogether. At the end of Bureau meetings themembers removed their jackets and boxing gloveswere produced. They proceeded to have an invig-orating warm up session before going home. TheRosedale Branch also enjoyed the social elementof their meetings. To generate a friendly, hospit-able atmosphere, cigarettes and soft drinks werehanded around to those present. This practicecontinued until 1957, when they decided that ateach meeting, two members should be rosteredas hosts to provide tea and biscuits for the others.This lighter side of Bureau life encouraged goodattendance and broke the ice for those who werenew to the area or shy about discussing theiropinions and ideas in front of the whole groupduring the formal part of the meeting.

The first conference of non-irrigated fruit-growing branches was held at Nuriootpa on 16November 1928. The branches representing thiscategory included Angaston, Watervale, Lyndoch,Willamstown and Light's Pass. Ten official guestswere also present - Messrs H. N. Wicks (member,Central Agricultural Bureau), W. J. Spafford(Deputy Director of Agriculture), G. Quinn (ChiefHorticultural Instructor), R. Fowler (Manager,Blackwood Experimental Orchard), C. H.Beaumont, E. Leishman, J. B. Harris and H. H.Orchard (Horticultural Instructors), H. C. Pritchard(Secretary) and F. C. Richards (Assistant Secretary,

Branch, and Manurial Tests with Vines in theBarossa Valley by Mr D. G. Quinn (Viticulturalist,Roseworthy Agricultural College). The rest of thetime was taken up with a Free Parliament and aquestion and answer session during which localhorticulturalists could obtain advice from theexperts present.

It was around this time that fruit growers wereseriously considering the overseas market for theirfresh product. Apples in particular were an idealfruit for export, provided suitable packing couldbe arranged. To this end, Mr R. Hall read a paperon The need for a Uniform Apple Pack at a meetingof the Lenswood and Forest Range Branch. Heconcluded that the "cheek pack" was best becauseit avoided much of the bruising caused whenapples were packed flat. It was also necessary tomake this method of packing general so thatagents could purchase large quantities of regularquality produce for distribution amongst theiroverseas buyers.

Tractors were gradually becoming part of therural scene during these years. Although by nomeans common, they were definitely here to stay.In 1923 a McCormick-Deering tractor was adver-tised for £.600, still a lot to pay when horses werecapable of doing the job. However, the Fordsontractor could be bought for £,250, a much moremanageable figure. Thus the Fordson became oneof the most popular tractors in the post-warperiod.

The debate continued, however, and manyfarmers preferred to stick to horses rather thanventure into the unknown. Papers read at ameeting of the Clare Branch in 1929 show us bothsides of the debate. Mr L. Hauschild spoke infavour of horses, "they are surer, safer, and morereliable". (JASA, March 1929, p. 742.) He pointedout that the use of tractors meant money goingout of Australia to buy the machines, fuel, oil andgrease. Mr A. V. Preiss, on the other hand, saw onlythe advantages of motorised farmwork. Tractorsdo not tire after a few hours work, and do notrequire food and water.

The tractor is very convenient for the newsettler, as he has no need to make provision forwater, avoids the expense and trouble of gettingchaff, and, when not in use, does not have to[be] fed and looked after, leaving the farmer freeto do more clearing, fencing, etc.A light lorry load capable of carrying 25 to 30bags of wheat is very necessary to work inconjunction with the tractor. With it practically

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all the carting on the farm can be done. It caneasily outdo a team of eight horses when wheathas to be carted long distances. It is also veryhandy for carting out seed and super at seedingtime. The power farmer has a freer life, nothaving to always be at home to feed and waterhis horses. At Saturday dinner-time he can stophis machine and leave it until Monday morningwithout any attention whatsoever. Years agoone heard of the drudgery of farm life; todaythat is all done away with, thanks to the motorcar, motor truck and tractor. (JASA, March 15,1929, p. 744.)Water was a major concern for farmers keeping

stock in those days, just as it is now. The decisionfor some was whether to use wind or motor powerto raise underground water from wells. Twopapers, one in favour of each, were given at theLight's Pass Branch. Mr W. Koop believed theanswer was to use windmills.

Under local conditions wind power is thecheapest method of raising water. While thewind is blowing the storage tanks are filledwithout cost or attention. An engine requires

Windmills provided the most effective means ofpumping water in many instances.

attention in oiling petrol or kerosene, and mustbe stopped at night, for it is not safe to leave itunattended for longer than one hour. Mostwomen will not undertake to start or stop anengine, whereas a mill can be easily handled.The windmill can be left open day and nightwithout any danger of damage, because it isfitted with storm regulators, which close themill in case of a storm, provided the furlingarrangements are in working order and weightsproperly adjusted. Continuous stormy weathercan be easily overcome by closing the lever halfdown and tying it to the stand with a piece ofrope. Windmills can be used for all classes ofirrigation, there being all sizes of mills andpumps to suit small or large plots. A 14 ft millwill pump equally as much water as a fair sizeengine in a full day's pumping. Where the watersupply is limited the windmill, by pumping aslower stream, will give the well a better chanceto keep up a supply. For a small block of lucerneor vegetables a 7ft or 8 ft mill can be successfullyused provided a fair size storage tank is erected.For the latter I advise nothing less than 2,000gall. If watering is properly regulated, it will bepossible to water from one to two acres,provided the water supply is good. Storage tanksare most necessary when erecting a windmill,because calm days have to be amply providedfor. Care of Windmills - Drain old oil once everyyear, and replace with new oil. This will doublethe life of the wearing part of the mill. There areseveral oil holes and grease cups which needattention every two or three months. See thatthe oil pump is in working order. The old typemill needs regular oiling on account of it beingexposed to all weather. The engine needsregular attention every day. There will be verylittle difference in the cost of the two outfits, butrunning expenses will differ to a great extent.(JASA, January 1930, p. 545.)

This was followed by Mr K. Ellis' paper extollingthe virtues of engine power. He concluded withthis list of advantages:

Water at your command, and not influenced bythe vagaries of the wind. A very marked savingof time. The pump engine can be used for otherwork than pumping. A tractor can be used quitesuccessfully. Erection of plant is a very simpleoperation, initial cost being very little more, ifany. An engine and pump capable of lifting1,000 gall, per hour for £50, running expensesabout tuppence ha'penny per hour. An all-round increase in pumping efficiency. Althoughthe cost may seem rather large, this will amply

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repay itself by the increased efficiency obtained.IJASA, January 1930, p. 545.)As the world economic situation deteriorated

and farmers experienced a few dry years, theirinterest turned once again to farm sidelines. A fewextra pounds here and there could make all thedifference. In the wheat growing districtsemphasis was on keeping a small mob of sheep,in the higher rainfall areas, farmers turned to pigsand dam < a t l l e to supplement t h e i r incomes. MrLutz of the Koonibba Branch reported on theprofits obtained by him from various sidelines. He

referred to sheep, which he said were a verypayable asset to the farmer, but too often theholding was over-stocked. For their district heconsidered a flock of 100 sheep ample for theaverage farm. He kept six cows, four of whichwere always in milk. He admitted that the cowswere a tie and involved a good deal of time andcare, but 12 months returns from them hadnetted £75 in 1928 and £55 in 1929. On accountof adverse seasons the number of cattle had tobe reduced, and the sale of surplus cows hadreturned £37 10s. Pigs were a very profitablesideline, but required proper care and attention.In the last two years his pigs had returned £61.One hundred and fifty laying hens had broughtin £87 in two years. Sundries such as skins, fat,etc. had brought in £21 for two years. With theamount received for wool from sheep, thesidelines on his farm had returned in revenue£403 for twoyears, thus proving that, conductedon sound principles, side lines could be madea profit earning activity of farm management.From such an experience, and on a one manfarm he was convinced that with a return to

normal seasons he could confidently lookforward to a return of £270. IJASA, December1929, p.466J

1929 turned out to be a severe drought, coupledwith a worldwide Depression. The effects of theWall Street Crash filtered through to South Austra-lian farmers as they embarked on the new decade.This paper given at a meeting of the Pt ElliotBranch by Mr A. M. Fuller in February 1930 sumsup the situation.

It is needless for me to remind members thatwe are passing through a period of extremedepression. The season in this district has beenfavourable, but we are conscious of the fact thatthe greater part of the State has suffered consid-erably as a result of drought, which hasextended over a period of years, and in 1929many farmers received no return whatever fromtheir farms. On many holdings in the pastoralcountry flocks have been considerably reduced,while on others it has not been possible to canyany stock owing to the bad seasonal conditions.The result of the adverse season means veiyreduced average crop returns, reduced woolclip, and reduced lambing. The effect of reducedproduction, from the State point of view, wouldnot be so serious if prices were normal, but weare all too well aware of the fact that we have toaccept prices that are below cost of production,This is not only a serious blow to the State, butto the individual producer. Fortunately, the manon the land is an incurable optimist, alwayshoping the next season is going to lift him outof the financial hole, and I confidently believethat 1930 will see the return of normal seasons

1929Farmers 'Schoolat RoseworthyAgricultural College.

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and a return to prosperity. (3ASA, May 1930,p. 932)

If the '20s were a decade of competitions, the'30s can be seen as a decade of field days. Withmore cars around to make travelling faster andmore convenient, members of the AgriculturalBureau could move about more easily. Going fromone farm to another became a simpler operation,so they were keener to get out and see forthemselves the results of experiments. Membersof the Agricultural Bureau enthusiastically sup-ported these events. Everywhere branchesorganised field days as part of their annualprogramme. Unfortunately, towards the end of the'30s farmers found themselves in such a toughposition that many could no longer afford toregister cars or buy petrol for them. But by thistime field days had become so much a part ofAgricultural Bureau life that many memberscontinued to attend if at all possible.

Difficult years were ahead, especially for wheatgrowers. In January 1931 the lowest prices everrecorded were reported in the Journal of Agricul-ture of South Australia - only 2s per bushel. Sixyears previously, in January 1925, the peak pricewas 6s 9d per bushel, almost three and a half timesas much. The reason for these low prices restedin the North American Wheat Pool. It had built upa surplus of wheat in previous years which wassuddenly released to swamp the marketplace; notsurprisingly, buyers took advantage of the situa-tion and bought as cheaply as possible. Ironically,in the mid 1980s Australian wheatgrowers findthemselves in a very difficult situation; again it isthe foreign marketing policies which are largelyresponsible. Fortunately for some farmers in the1930s, wool prices stayed up and even until 1937sheep were a better proposition than wheat formost. In order to try to ease the situation, theGovernment passed a Wheat Bounty Act in 1931.A bounty of fourpence ha'penny per bushel waspayable on all wheat from the 1931/32 harvestsold, or delivered for sale, on or before 1 October1932.

The first cinema lectures conducted as part ofthe Agricultural Bureau proceedings occurred in1931. The Shell Company arranged the first onefor the Owen Branch on 3 June, and this wasfollowed by another on the 17th arranged by theVacuum Oil Company. Both were a resoundingsuccess, with attendances of over 100 at eachscreening. The Vaccuum Oil Company alsoshowed their film at meetings of the Wasleys,Riverton and Balhannah Branches of the Agricul-tural Bureau that winter.

Although the convenience of motor power wasgradually winning over farmers all across the State,the difficult financial position caused manyproblems. A cheaper fuel was necessary if theywere to continue using tractors. At least horsescould be fed from their own land, even if it didtake much more work. The problem for mostfarmers at this time was finding ready cash to payout for tractor fuel. One way of overcoming thecost of fuel lay in the use of wood produced gas.Wood burners could be attached to the machinesand the gas given off used to propel the tractor.Trials were held at Enfield in April 1931 to deter-mine the relative costs of petrol driven and woodgas driven tractors. The results showed that, foran average day of eight and a half hours actualworking time, the petrol driven tractor cost £14s 1i/ad to run, whereas the wood gas driven tractorcost only Ss 2d. These costs were calculated usingthe going prices of wood at £2 per ton and petrolat 2s per gallon. Clearly, if one were to continueusing the tractor, it was necessary to thinkseriously about converting it to wood gas.

A paper comparing the working costs ofkerosene and charcoal gas tractors was given at ameeting of the Petersville Branch in November1931. It was pointed out that using charcoal gasreduced efficiency by approximately 20 per cent.Even so, the cost of running a gas producer tractorwas reckoned to be half that of a kerosene tractor.The reader finished off by reminding his audienceof the wider significance of using producer gasrather than kerosene.

This question is of national importance toAustralia; all our oil fuels are imported and alarge percentage of money spent in these goesout of the country, whereas charcoal gas isdeveloping a local industry and not sendingmoney overseas for something which is notessential, therefore it is as economically soundfrom a national standpoint as using horses andmuch cheaper and more efficient. (JASA,January 1932, p. 192)In a similar discussion at the Pinnaroo confer-

ence held at Jabuk in 1932, Mr L. Foale of Parillaestimated that,

With the gas producer, the tractor loses from 15per cent to 20 per cent of the power whenworking one machine only. It would work a 28row combine or cultivator and a 16 furrow gangplough, but the pace is reduced from 30 percent to 35 per cent, which means that insteadof doing from 5 to 6 acres per hour with petrolor kerosene, with the gas producer, taking intoconsideration that a stop to refuel must be

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A \\'(jod gas tractorpulling a si\-fiirruwplough.

made every 1 to 11/2 hours, the acreage perhour is reduced to from 3V4 to 4 acres with thewider machines and 21/2 to 3 acres per hourwith a 16 furrow gang plough. This gives someidea of the difference in the work which can beaccomplished by the two fuels.

Costs

One acre on petrol with petrol at 2s 1 i/^d pergallon landed on the farm, including oil, costapproximately Is 3d per acre; and on keroseneat Is 4d per gallon, which had to be carted fromstation or depot, including oil, works out atapproximately Is per acre.A variation is also made if the working is light orheavy. My costs and working are based on amedium working of the land, on carbonmonoxide gas produced from charcoal andwater, with charcoal at a saleable value of £2 10sper ton. The charcoal before being used mustbe rescreened and broken to a size a little largerthan a walnut. This procedure entails a fairamount of work.Fallowing with an 8-furrow heavy fallowingplough can be done for 5«/zd per acre, culti-vating fallow with a spring-tooth cultivator 3dper acre, with a 16 furrow skim plough 4i/2dper acre, seeding with a 20 row combine 3i/adper acre. These figures are approximate, but atthe same time are very close to the mark. Whenthe farmer makes his own charcoal, these costsare reduced very considerably, as the stumpsmust be carted off the land and can be cartedstraight to the pits for burning. The only outlaywhen Ihc farmer makes his own rharcoal is 1 to1V2 gallons of petrol per day, used for startingthe tractor after each stop to refuel. (JASA,August 1932, p. 72.)

Although gas producers were not nearly asconvenient as petrol, they were certainly cheaper,a major consideration when ready cash wasseverely limited.

By 1931, South Australian farmers were alreadyfeeling the full effects of the Depression. Manycould not afford to register their cars; those whowanted to attend meetings of the AgriculturalBureau needed branches close to home. Thev hadto be able to travel to branch meetings by pushbikeor horseback. The Bureau members living nearBelvidere found great difficulties in travelling allthe way to Strathalbyn to attend meetings, buttheir application for a local branch of their ownwas refused. However, their enthusiasm was notso easily dampened, and they defied the AdvisoryBoard's decision and went it alone. Hearing ofthis, Mr Pritchard, Secretary of the ABA attendedtheir meetings on 23 June 1931. He travelled as far

I

Members of the Belvidere Branch in 1987.Hack L-R Messrs John Westlake, Don Nan, Lanrt;Wakefivld, Bert Michnlmoi-e.r'runt L-H: Messrs Jim Matt iSed, Charles MichelmoivIPmsi, Ian Clifgffett.

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as possible by train, then walked the rest of theway to meet these determined men. Impressed bytheir dedication, he announced that they couldofficially form the Belvidere Branch of the Agricul-tural Bureau.

Questions of finance and economising werefrequently discussed at Agricultural Bureaumeetings during this period. Producers werefeeling the effects of the Depression after a run ofpoor seasons. They strove to find more efficientmethods of production; many advised theircolleagues to do everything properly the first time,rather than trying to cut corners which inevitablyled to further work and expense, coupled withloss of time and production. The question of bulk-handling grain was raised again as a measure tocut costs in the long term. In particular, manypapers were given at meetings on book-keepingfor farmers. It was considered essential forproducers to keep a close check on their financesto ensure money was not wasted. By maintainingrecords it would be possible to identify areas inwhich costs could be reduced.

Mr R. H. Hall discussed precisely this in hispaper Book-Keeping for Blockers at the WaikerieBureau.

None of you are growing fruit as a hobby - youare all trying to make a profit out of it. But howmany growers know whether they are actuallymaking a profit from the block as a whole, orfrom any particular part of it, or from any one ofthe varieties of fruit grown? It is here that theadvantage to the fruitgrower of a good systemof book-keeping becomes apparent. By its aid,one may discover whether a particular area isreally paying its way, or not, and thus be led tomake any alterations in one's methods that maybe necessary. The accounts may even show that,in a particular case it would pay to grub out acertain variety and substitute something else,although in such an extreme case, one's ownobservations, as practical growers, of the treesor vines concerned, should be sufficient to guidethe decision. It does not necessarily follow,however, that maximum crops mean maximumnet returns - the cost of production must betaken into account. (JASA, February 2, 1938,pp. 681-2.)

Similar issues would continue to concernAgricultural Bureau members right up until warwas declared in 1939.

Mr R. H. Hughes of the Kapunda Branch read apaper entitled Practical Economy on the Farm atthe Lower North Conference in 1932.

With the majority, that cry of "Economy"amounts to an almost prohibition of expendi-ture of any kind, but for the purpose of thispaper, I prefer to keep to the dictionarymeaning, "judicious expenditure of money",that is to say, where energy or money wiselyspent on any farming operation will increasethe profit, by all means spend it if available, andcontrariwise, where it will not return a goodprofit then try and find some more profitableoutlet for it.

At the present time, when all agriculturalproducts are at low prices, it behoves everyfarmer to look into costs of production of eachline and see that each line is returning him itsmaximum production in both quantity andquality. If it is not, then he should seek out thereason and endeavour to correct the faults.When prices of our products are low andbankers are cutting down overdrafts or refusingto advance money, which till recently, was easilyobtainable, there is only one place to look forredress, and that is ourselves and our methods. . . Having dealt with the main farming indus-tries, consideration can be given to a fewpractices which can be more generally observedfrom an economical standpoint. Most farmershave horses, and the headlands are usually cutfor hay. It is suggested that these be sown withgood hay wheats; the difference in quantity andpalatability as compared with grain wheats iswell worth while. If the farmer is not sure of thequantity he will require, or the likely quantityon the headlands, he can sow a patch of dualpurpose wheat and so avoid cutting into desir-able areas of grain wheat - usually the heaviestportion.

Another often neglected point is the overhaulingof implements and machinery in slack times -having them ready to start work when required.Many small jobs can be done by the farmer,providing he has the time. If left, it often meansa delay and the expense of a visit to theblacksmith at perhaps a critical time. Anelementary knowledge of tools, etc., and a littlepractice will lessen the blacksmith's bill. It issound economy to keep all vehicles andmachinery well housed when not in use, andall tools in their places to be immediatelyavailable when required.An economic aspect of great importance butvery difficult to define is the dividing linebetween efficiency and extravagance - as towhen a farmer is justified in increasing his plantfrom a one-man outfit to say a two-man outfit,

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either wholly or in part. The increase meansadded expense in plant, wages, insurance, etc.,and before such a step is justified, one must beconvinced that either there is enough work tokeep the extra plant and labor employed, orthat the risk of delayed seeding and harvesting,owing to time taken with a single plant is toogreat — having in view the principle that a cropshould be got in and taken off at the ideal timesor as near as possible. There is much ofeconomic interest in this subject, whichresolves itself into the question of whetherfarmers have the ideal plant for working a givenquantity of land efficiently and no useless stockor unused plant. The latter may be called non-paving lodgers and therefore uneconomic.tJASA, March 1932, pp. 910-12.)

It could almost have been written today.

Mr R M Harvie, Appila Branch, took a similarline in his paper read at the Upper North Confer-ence held at Booleroo Centre in July 1935.

Farming at present is a non-payable propositionand one is often at a loss to know just whereeconomy begins or ends and whether moneyspent for extra labor or plant is really economyor extravagance. Unless the farm is too small, itpays to employ. Economy lies not so much inrigidly curtailing all expenditure as in spendingwisely and putting money into farming opera-tions that would show more profit. Very often itis false economy to persevere too much withold harvest machinery, when it has becomebadly worn and especially when the haivester

becomes a wheat waster. A farmer could easilylose enough wheat to pay a deposit on a newmachine. The same applies to employing menin the harvest operations who are careless abouttheir work. Power farming is too expensive atthe present price of wheat. During the last fewyears the horse breeders have had a goodharvest, so by using horses and breeding acouple of foals each year one would again beeconomising. All harness leather should be welloiled with neatsfoot oil. The cost of the oilwould more than doubly pay for itself. Good oiland a good oilcan should be a golden rule withall farmers. Oil is cheaper than bearings. It is notrouble to get a man to oil a machine well if hehas a good oilcan to do it with, and a fewshillings spent in that direction may meanpounds saved in bearings. It is often goodeconomy to have an assortment of nuts andbolts on the farm, and a pound or two spent inthat direction is a good idea. A good supply ofscrap iron would be most useful at the farmsmithy. A pound or two spent to secure an oldmachine at a sale would often return 10 timesits value in bolts and iron that one could get outof them. A good set of wrenches and propertools saves time when making repairs. Oneshould always work with a system and keep upthe seasonal jobs, especially field work. See thatthe harvester and binder are in perfect orderbefore commencing work with them, because,really speaking, time is economy, more so whenone loses the time during the harvest. A substan-tial economy could be effected by farmers

Members of the AppilaBranch in 1987.Back L-R: Messrs Wayne,Zwar, Neil Lange (Seel,Philip Harvie, JamesHeaslip, Stewart Botrill.Third Row L-R: MessrsPaul Wui-st IPresI, ColinBacker (Vice Pivsl, JohnWurst.Second flow L-R: MessrsAlan Woolford, BarryHanie, Trevor Stevens,Malcolm Catford, IvanButterick.front L-R: Messrs,Sydney Catfoiri, ArnoldWurst, Bruce Catford,Gordon Klemm.Absent: Donald Bottrall,William Pech, NevilleKlemm.

Ill

combining to buy their own necessitieSj partic-ularly cornsacks. I believe if we were to senddirect to the manufacturers it would besurprising what we could save. Super bags canbe washed carefully and used for seed wheat orfor oats or barley and maybe used for ruggingsheep. Crushed grain for stock is much to bepreferred in economy to the whole grain. Thecontrol of mice and rats, where possible, verygreatly reduces the amount of waste on a farm.It is not always the hard worker alone whosucceeds, but the man who thinks and worksout his problems for himself. Stopping to think.. . helps in the way of economy. (JASA, August1935, p. 110.)

Farmers had to consider every aspect of theirwork if they were to survive the Depression. It isthe small things which combine to make bigsavings, yet a sense of proportion must bemaintained; the producer could fall into the trapof worrying about petty things and end up wastingtime and money. Often the most economical wayin the long run requires a certain cash outlay inthe first place.

Farm finance was still a popular topic of discus-sion in 1938. Mr C. H. Tomkins of the GlencoeBranch gave a paper on Farm Book-keeping andthe part the Bank Plays on 2 August. He recom-mended everyone to keep methodical records ofincome and expenditure, and stressed the impor-tance of keeping such records up to date. He alsoexplained the use of cheques. This concern withfarm finances is just as important in today's ruralrecession as it was in the 1930s, although it isgenerally more complicated these days.

The subject of the Depression and Australianeconomy was a common topic on the agenda ofAgricultural Bureau conferences and meetingsduring the 1930s. It was a useful forum for farmersto corne to terms with their position, and thuslearn to deal with it in the most effective manner.In his paper Back to the Land read at the HillsConference at Mt Pleasant in 1931, Mr E. W.Manner of the Balhannah Branch began byexplaining the current financial position of theAustralian nation.

The outlook of the country is far from pleasing.We have a vast army of unemployed, and we arerapidly reaching the point where one-third ofour men will be out of work - potential wealthproducers with no prospect of a job. Theconditions of our primary producers areparlous, in fact, perilous, due to the unforeseencollapse of world prices. During the past 10years Australia has borrowed approximately 800

millions - the prices for our exportable produceduring this period have been relatively high; sothat our apparent income appeared large, andthe people were lulled into false security.The first cause of the crisis today is the accumu-lated debt of £1,200,000,000 - a debt ...equivalent to £1,100 for each family of five . . .Prices for our primary produce have slumped -loan market closed - and we look in vain to oursecondary industries to bridge the gulf. Fornearly 20 to 25 years these industries have hada protective tariff, and behind this wall we havepiled up uneconomic industries and an indus-trial system which cannot conform to the dropin world prices. (JASA, September 1931, pp. 215-6.)

He went on to demonstrate the importance ofagriculture in the Australian economy, particu-larly in South Australia where there was no heavyindustry at the time apart from Holden's factoryand the Port Pine smelting works. He saw theanswer in developing the surveyed, but as yetundrained, land in the South-East. The Govern-ment could implement a plan whereby theunemployed did the work necessary to developthese areas in return for their keep and clothes.Their pay would be deferred and later negotiableon that land. Although the conference did notentirely applaud his idea, it is interesting to seesomeone searching for practical and tangible waysof coping with these problems.

A discussion of how best to face the Depressiontook place at a combined meeting of theWarramboo and Kyancutta Branches in August1931. Here the emphasis was on the producerrelying on his own efforts, since the Governmentwas in no position to aid them. Mr E. Dyke of theKyancutta Branch opened the meeting with apaper recommending certain measures.

In connection with the present depression itappears that the producer has to rely on himselfalmost entirely, because the Governmentcannot assist. Still, we should do our best to tryand get a sales tax on flour consumed inAustralia, the money raised thereby would helpthe farmers a little and would make very littledifference to the cost of bread, cost of makingup and delivery being some of the chief itemsin the price of bread. It does not seem likely thatwe shall get any reductions in rail freight. Boardfreight on super — one of our big items ofexpenditure - does not seem to vary much inprice, although wages are inclined to drop. Inconnection with super, I think we should pushthe matter of getting rid of the local agents'

112

commission if we order direct from the firm. Asto cropping, it seems a good proposition tofallow more and crop a smaller acreage. Growmore oats for early sheep, feed and raise morelambs for export. Everyone is not able to makethe best use of their land at present, becausethey have not enough sheep-proof fencing, andthey have to keep on cropping the same landfrequently to get shoots under control. Butter isvery cheap locally at present, but as the PortLincoln branch of the Government ProduceDepartment is shortly opening up to take cream,it should make things a little better. Eggs seemto be in even a worse position, but we may lookto the same quarter for help before very long.Also at some future time we shall have a salethere for pigs, but at present the supply is notvery large, and probably we shall have to dosomething to provide the required class of pigfor the trade. Much more could be done inconnection with the growing of vegetables forhome use and sale to those who are unable togrow their own, and most farms could establisha small fruit garden. We have to grow everythingpossible that we use, thereby saving money, formoney saved is money earned. Something mightalso be done by co-operating in furnishing farmrequirements. IJASA, October 1931, pp. 390-1.1

A lively exchange followed between themembers. Mr Bundle of the Warramboo Branchreminded those present that sidelines on the farmcould make an enormous difference to theirsituation and were well worth considering.

Pigs were an ideal sideline in many cases.Farmers could keep them in most areas of theState, particularly if they had dairy cows as well.The waste products from the dairy, such as skimmilk, made excellent pigfeed. Mr T. R. Welbourneof the Narridy Branch offered advice on pigs at theMid-North Conference. He recommended keepingTamworth pigs rather than Berkshires, which hadbeen popular in previous years. Alternatively, theCanadian Berkshire crossed with a Large Whitewas a suitable baconer for export. Baconers wouldbe ready for the abattoirs 20 weeks from birth ifthey were properly cared for. He suggested thefollowing programme of feeding:

The following is the method I adopt to putbaconers on the market in 20 weeks. Feedingsix pigs in a sty, they get three gallons of skimmilk morning and evening, with as much soakedbarley as they will comfortably clean up. Mid-day, soaked barley and a little meat-meal. Whenthe pigs are 15 weeks old the meat-meal isincreased to 5 per cent.

Pigs \vere recommended as an ideal sideline at this time.

The cost of meat-meal is practically nil. The pigsfatten on 41/2 bags of barley, whereas, withoutmeat-meal, 5 bags are required. Today half a bagof barley is worth 3s 6d, and it would not costthat for meat-meal per pig.In a Victorian test four pigs were put in a styand fed on wheat. Four more were fed on barleytwo-thirds and wheat one-third, with freeaccess to meat-meal. In 90 days the pigs fed onthe mixture put on 100 Ib more than the pigsfed on wheat alone. The cost per pound ofbacon was the same, as the mixture-fed pigs atemore, but to be able to increase the weight bv25 Ib per pig is a consideration worth noting.The New Zealand experiment was with regardto Tamworth piglets running with the mother.One litter was kept shut up, while the other wasallowed grazing. The closed pigs at eight weeksaveraged 22 Ib and the grass-fed ones 35 Ib.(JASA, May 1935, p. 1,268.)At the time of wilting, good baconers brought

approximately 50s per head.On 18 February 1932 the River Murray Swamp

Settlers held their first conference. Since the floodsof 1931, settlers in the irrigated Lower River swamplands now had to replant their acreage. Themembers of the Agricultural Bureau met withrepresentatives of the Department of Agriculture,Waite Research Institute and the Council forScientific and Industrial Research. Mr P. J. Daily,member of the ABA, took the chair. In his prelimi-nary address he discussed drainage, a subject ofmajor importance to irrigated farming. Hereminded his audience that it was a mistake toirrigate any more than necessary, for waste water

113

must only be pumped back to its source. Prof.Perkins then opened the conference.

The first paper for the day was read by Dr A. E.V. Richardson of the Waite Research Institute. Hespoke on Pasture Improvement, and his remarkswere supported by Mr Trumble, one of hiscolleagues. Mr W. J. Spafford, Deputy Director ofAgriculture, then discussed The Seeding of Perma-nent Pastures, The Soils of the River MurraySwamp Areas was the title of a paper by Prof.Prescott, also of the Waite Institute. His commentslargely related to a publication issued by theCouncil for Scientific and Industrial Research. Thelast paper before lunch was delivered by Mr H. B.Barlow, the Chief Dairy Instructor, on the subjectof The Management of Dairy Herds on IrrigatedAreas.

The afternoon was occupied with a Free Parlia-ment during which a variety of topics werediscussed by Bureau members, and a lecture,accompanied with lantern slides, on the pigindustry. This was given by Mr R. B. Kelley, whoattended the conference on behalf of the Councilfor Scientific and Industrial Research. Thosepresent decided the conference was a greatsuccess, and resolved to make it an annualfunction at Murray Bridge.

Heavy frosts became a major problem for fruit-growers in the Barossa Valley in this period. Acommittee to find ways of combating frost waselected by the 1933 Non-Irrigated Conference.On 30 October 1933, the first save was made onone acre of apricots by using Lard Pail TypeHeaters burning oil. Soon there were over 10,000of these heaters in the district, and the South

Australian Frost Combating Committee continuedto function for many years.

Country people are known for their generosity,particularly when neighbours are in trouble. TheAgricultural Bureau is made up of such people,and evidence of this was seen in November 1931when the Mundalla Branch organised a workingbee to clear away the ruins caused by fire on thefarm of Mr R. Wiese. Thirty-eight men turnedup to work and prepared a site for the newhomestead. They carted and stacked 24,000 bricksand crushed 100 yards of stone that day.

Debates became a popular form for runningmeetings of the Agricultural Bureau during thisperiod. Not only were they an entertaining way ofdelivering informative speeches, but they alsoprovided some variety in the branch programme.Members of the Wilmington Branch debatedwhether wheat or wool was best for their area.Messrs M. Christopherson and G. A. Stephensargued in favour of wheat over the sheepsupporters, Messrs J. A. Hampel, F. Scott and G.Fraser. The adjudicator, Mr W. Zimmerman,decided in favour of wheat growing, but only by anarrow margin. Mr Christopherson had describedthe enormous benefits accorded the Wilmingtondistrict by the wheat industry; the Governmenthad built a railway line to the town to transportthe grain, a flour mill had been erected, and thedistrict grew large enough to support its ownbutter factory and an implement factory. In dryseasons the sheep owners relied on cereal growersfor chaff and hay to feed their livestock. To counterthese arguments, the opposition pointed out theeconomic aspects of sheep versus wheat, quotinga profit of £69 5s in favour of sheep. The long term

Members of the MundallaBranch at a working heeon Mr H Wiese's farm,1931. Y * *\Crl* * *%

114

arguments won the day, however, and wheatgrowing was deemed better than sheep grazingwhen the whole community was taken intoconsideration.

The Coonalpyn Branch debated the pros andcons of mouldboard ploughs and disc imple-ments. A team made up of Messrs C. T. George, E.Fox and H. Mincham debated in favour of mould-board ploughs, while Messrs C. Todd, sen., C. L.George and R. V, Potter spoke of the value of theformer.

Chas T. George stated that with the disc culti-vator, one could go over the land in half thetime taken with the plough and with equallygood results, because it would not choke withrubbish, it would chop down the shoots, workthe land to a finer tilth in the two operations,was lighter in draft and was altogether thebetter machine in scrub country.C. Todd, sen., said that the stump jump mould-board plough, when set so as to run true andworked under the conditions it was built for,gave excellent_re_sultSL_It_ was ideal forj:learingout the bottom of the furrows, leaving no ridges.All the ground was moved and well turned over,leaving a level bottom, which the disc imple-ment would not do. The plough would pullmore stumps than the disc and in ploughinggrass and weedy land, the mouldboard turnedthe soil well over, covering both grass andweeds. Both types of plough were needed on ascrub farm, because until the land was wellcleared, there was work suited to each.

E. Fox, sen., stated that if it were not for the discplough, hundreds of thousands of acres ofmallee land would still be in a virgin state. Intheir district, if the mallee was rolled directlyafter seeding and burnt in March or Aprilfollowing, and then after seeding, the land wasworked three times with a light disc implementand sown early with Algerian Oats, there wouldbe very little trouble in getting a fire over thestubble . . . In clearing heath land, one ploughingwith a single jump disc plough, heavy type,would not clear the land, but would leave it insuch a state that with ordinary care the yaccaswere not hard to deal with. No other ploughwould do that.. . The disc did turn the soil overas he frequently noticed on the surface with apiece of clay which had certainly come from thebottom of the furrow . . . C. L. George stated thatin new mallee country, the ground was anetwork of roots from 2 in to 4 in below thesurface, and the share mouldboard plough gotunder the roots with the share and tore them

up, thus giving the sown plant a better chanceof moisture than among a network of roots.When a share plough had been used forbreaking up the soil, the wheat or oat plantwould grow right up to the root of the mallee,but when disced, nothing grew within a foot ortwo of the stump. The disc would not destroythe network of running roots, but merelyjumped them if they were of any size. With themouldboard better work was done in slicing thesoil clean from the bottom of the plough andturning it right over, thus helping to kill most ofthe rubbish . . . H. Minchan stated that he useda single jump disc plough as a means ofpulverisation of the soil and it could not beexcelled. He put it into the ground down to afoot deep, and by that method wrenched outpractically all theyacca and small bushes whicha share plough could not remove. A disc ploughwas able to work land that a mouldboard ploughwould not be able to deal with.R. V. Potter stated that the mouldboard ploughleft land a far more level seedbed. In the breakingup of Jey Jand rt left the furrows open to acertain extent, which allowed the "airTto" perco~late through the soil, whereas the disc threwdown the furrows on top of each other in sucha manner that the soil settled down and allowedno aeration. UASA, September 1935, p. 282.)The Agricultural Bureau members then voted

for the winners -19 in favour of mouldboards andonly nine in favour of discs.

The Milang Branch debated against a team ofMessrs I. Echett, M. Pearce and S. Cheriton fromthe Belvidere Branch in March 1934. Their subjectwas Protection versus Free Trade. The Milangteam, in favour of Protection, consisted of MessrsBeasley, A. Mattison and L. Young. They were veryevenly matched - the adjudicator finally awarded82V2 marks to Milang and 82 points to Belvidere.The friendly rivalry resulting from such a meetingresulted in many of the Bureau members consid-ering the advantages and disadvantages ofeconomic policy and realised how such politicaldecisions directly affected their own situations.

A conference of Dairy Producers was convenedat Mt Barker on 12 May 1932. The Department ofAgriculture organised the meeting for thoseinvolved in the dairy industry in the Hills andLower North Districts to discuss issues of mutualconcern. It was obviously something whichmany of the producers felt was necessary, for over150 delegates attended. Members of AgriculturalBureau branches came from Mt Barker, Lyndoch,Jervois, Murray Bridge, Longwood, Gawler River,

115

Rosedale, Milang, Scott 's Bot tom, Brinkley,Hartley, Strathalbyn, BaJhannah, Clarendon, MtCompass, Finniss, VVatervale, Mt Pleasant, Tvveed-vaJe, Cherry Gardens and Langhorne's Creek.Eleven officers of the Department of Agriculture,Roseworthy Agricultural College and the ABA werealso present.

The opening address was delivered by Hon S. R.Whitford, Minister of Agriculture. All of the otherpapers were given by members of the branches,and the officials were present to give advice onthe various questions discussed. Mr J. R. Coles ofthe Longwood Branch began with a general paperon dairy farming. This was followed by Feedingand Rearing Heifer Calves by Mr S. Simcock of theRosedale Branch and Factors which lead to theManufacture of Choice Butter by Mr J. H. Dawkinsof the Gawler River Branch. Then it was time forMr Townsend of the host branch, Mt Barker, todeliver his address on Ensilage. This was followedby Mr C. Lund of the Strathalbyn Branchdiscussing The Cream Separator. Finally, the lastpaper was given by Mr C. Howard, again of the MtBarker Branch, who spoke on Daily Hygiene.

The competitions so popular in the 1920scontinued through the difficult years of theDepression. Potato competitions were organisedat Mt Gambier and Lobethal. The Mt CompassBranch arranged a contest for school boys in 1932.The winner was Linton Jacobs, only seven yearsold, who secured a return of 217 Ib of potatoesfrom 1 Ib of seed potatoes. This consisted of sixCarmen No II Potatoes cut into 50 pieces andplanted on a plot 8 yards by 6 yards in the first

week of November. It was peaty soil which hewatered once and applied fertilisers - a kerosenetinful each of abattoirs blood and bone No. 1manure and superphosphate (45%I, > /3 tin ofsulphate of ammonia, and 3 bags of fowl manure.The closest competitor was Norman Andersonwho managed to produce 209V2lb from his plot

The Yeelanna Branch reported an interestingpregnancy test for cows in April 1933. Mr Adamsof the Department of Agriculture suggestedplacing a drop of milk from the cow in questioninto a glass of water. If it sinks to the bottom, thecow is in calf; if not pregnant, the milk will simplymix in with the water.

Low prices for produce persisted throughoutthe '30s. Those producers growing fruit andvegetables were very' hard hit. In 1933 the Govern-ment decided to subsidise all artificial manuresused for products other than wheat. It was hopedthat, by making this exception, land suitable forother crops would be put in with alternatives.Thus farmers were encouraged to diversify andmove away from the already over-supplied wheatmarket. The subsidy amounted to 15s. per tonfor artificial manures bought in the period 1December 1932 to 30 November 1933.

Prof. Lowrie died in June 1933. He had devotedmost of his working life to agriculture in SouthAustralia and had been responsible for manyadvances in his field of endeavour. His involve-ment with the Agricultural Bureau dated from itsearliest days. Although he resigned from hisofficial duties in 1914, his interest in the activities

The Mount CompassPotato GmwingCompetition, 1932.Winner— Linton Jacobsf left I and Second -Norman Andei-son.

I N ;

The house, shed and tank supplied by the Employment Promotion Council at time of Settler taking possession.

of the Agricultural Bureau and the Department ofAgriculture had continued.

On 5 September 1933, the Lone Gum andMonash Branches called a special combinedmeeting. The members agreed it was necessary totake measures to prevent frost damage in theirarea, since a great deal of their produce was spoiltin cold months. A local committee was appointedto devise a plan of action: Messrs Maddern(Chairman), Telfer (Secretary), Traeger, Ellis,Cocks, Soderberg, Elleway, Brown, Thomas,Whitelaw, L. Bollenhagen, McLaren, Barnes andLock. The secretary sent the following outline oftheir scheme to the Journal of Agriculture of SouthAustralia.

Definite data will be kept throughout the frostdanger period, and "smudging" will be tried outon a systematic scale. Wet and dry bulbthermometers have been provided, from thereadings of which early warnings of danger willbe given at 9 o'clock at night. The committeemenwho represent the groups of settlers in variouslow-lying hollows of the district will be notifiedof the danger, and, having a roster made out,two growers will then keep watch on their drybulb thermometers. Should the temperaturedrop to 31 degrees, all growers in the group willbe called out to stand by, and then should itdrop to 30 the signal would be given to light thesmudge fires and so create a dense blanket ofsmoke, with the idea of preventing the radiationof further heat, and so it is hoped prevent orminimise frost damage. Various methods ofcreating the smoke will be adopted, chief being

the use of residue from the Cobdogla pumpsmixed with old stems, etc., and will be kept,from which it is hoped quite a lot of usefulinfomiation as regards the efficacy of the ideaof smudging will be obtained. UASA, January1934, p. 744.)In June 1934 the Journal of Agriculture of South

Australia printed a report on the Land SettlementsCommittee by W. J. Spafford, Chairman of thatbody. The Employment Promotion Council hadbeen set up on 5 September 1932. The Common-wealth Government had granted £25,000 for theuse of this presence, provided the State Govern-ment subsidise it pound for pound. Of this sum,£.10,000 must be used for developing mining,and the rest for land settlement. Thus the LandSettlement Committee was established as animportant instrument of the Employment Promo-tion Council.

It was decided that the best way to set upfamilies on the land with a reliable income wouldbe on small blocks for mixed farming. Theemphasis should be on egg production, aimed atthe English market. This way the new sort ofproduction would not interfere with existing localindustries. It would be the cheapest way to settlefarmers and promised quick returns to enable themen to become independent as soon as possible.

Once the decision on what type of farming wasbest for the programme was made, the nextquestion was where? To ensure successful egg-laying they needed to be in areas where greenfeed was readily available all year round. Theheavy rainfall areas of the Adelaide Hills was ideal.

117

Here summer fodders such as Chou Moellier,Silver Beet, Mangels and Millet could be grown totide hens over the dry season. It was also necessaryto choose an area covered in scrubland so thattrees would be availabale to provide timber forbuilding and fencing. Finally, the areas decidedupon were:

Echunga 12 blocks)S 91 people

Jupiter Creek 1 block)Bridgewater 4 blocks 27 peopleWillunga Hill 19 blocks 142 people (this

settlement wasnamed 'Yundi', theAboriginal name for'feathers')

Meadows 24 blocks 182 people

Once the block had been surveyed, settlers wentto the areas and worked together to clear sites forbuildings, improved access roads, bridged creeksand cut fence posts. With the groundwork done,a ballot for blocks was taken and settlers given theopportunity to exchange with each other ifdesired. Rent was fixed at 2i/z% of land value. Inthe first year, one fifth of the annual rent was paid,in the second year, one-third of that sum and inthe third year, two-thirds was to be paid, beforethe full amount was due in following years. TheGovernment supplied equipment, livestock anderected buildings.

The simplest of dwelling quarters have beenprovided, consisting of three roomed habita-tions of wood and galvanized iron, with lean-toverandah, with the rooms unlined except forthe ceilings, but with boarded floors andfireplace and cooking stove forming parts of thehome. Close to the cottage is a galvanised ironshed and 2,000 gal tank, and somewhatremoved, a closet.For the proper management of the fowls, fourpoultry houses, capable of carrying 600 layinghens, have been erected to the specifications ofthe Government Poultry Expert (Mr C. F.Anderson).All other buildings, including cellar to hold eggs,cow shed, pig sties, and other sheds areprovided by the settlers from materials on theholdings.

Equipment supplied and work doneThe Employment Promotion Council has madeprovision to plough thoroughly 1 acre ofgardening land, after it has been properlycleared, so that summer growing green fodders

and vegetables can be grown, and arranges tohave 2 acres seeded down with SubterraneanClover and Superphosphate to provide green-feed for a cow.Ordinary gardening, fencing and scrub-clearingtools are advanced, as well as greenfeed cutters,egg scales, and other poultry-handlingappliances.Seeds of vegetables and green fodders, and afew fruit trees are supplied to make certain thatthe homes are provided with vegetables andfruits, and that the greenfeed required by thelivestock is produced on the holdings.Sufficient materials to fence the blocks, andprovide paddocks for big stock as well as somenetting to protect the gardens from rabbits areforwarded to each man.Foodstuffs for the poultry are provided from theCouncil's funds for at least six months after thepullets are supplied.Where settlers prefer sinking for water sufficientrope is provided to assist in the work, otherwisecontracts are let to sink earth dams to holdwater.

Livestock providedThe aim of the Council has been to supply eachsettler with 30 to 40 laying hens as soon as hispoultry-houses and yards are ready to receivethem, so that his family will have a supply ofeggs for home use.During the first spring after occupation an effortis made to secure 400 White Leghorn pullets,eight weeks old, from the July-Septemberhatching, and to add another 200 to the flockduring the second year.When sufficient greenfeed is available to doaway with the need of providing foodstuffs, acow is supplied, and when the cow is inoccupation, a weaner pig is advanced everythree months for one year, making four in all.(JASA, June 1934, pp. 1,380-2.)The total expenditure on each settler is as

follows:Actual Expenditure of an Echunga SettlerTypical of that Area

£ s. d.Dwelling (Shed, Tank, Closet) 97 8 0

Ceilings (Timber, Small flutediron, nails) 4 3 2Ridge Capping (Nails) 0 7 2

Poultry Houses 69 10 0Sand for floors 0 17 6Timber f o r gates 0 9 5

118

£173

s.1515

d.612

Feeding troughsNettingGuttering

ToolsWheelbarrow 1 5 10Mattock a n d handle 0 4 6Spade 0 6 10H o e a n d handle 0 5 6Rake 0 3 1File 0 0 8Fencing B a r 0 7 6Maul Rings 0 0 6Greenfeed cutter (cartage) 1 17 5Broom 0 2 10A x e 0 8 8Egg scales 0 16 4Egg cases (3, cartage) 0 19 4Stencil (share) 0 0 10Wheel hoe and seeder 3 10 6

Seeds, Manures, Trees, etc.Superphosphate and sulphateo f ammonia 1 7 3Seeds (various) 0 18 0Fruit trees 0 7 3Subterranean Clover 1 6 6

FencingCarting posts 0 16 9Netting 2 13 9Wire 1 19 5

Poultry30 hens (cartage) 5 14 5300 pullets 52 10 0

Poultry FeedFoodstuffs (some cartage) 34 5 10Shell grit 0 1 9Lucerne chaff 0 10 6Medicines 0 7 6

Shifting Furniture 1 11 5Miscellaneous

Lease fee, rent, etc. 2 2 6Insurance 0 11 9Subscription to Red Comb(share) 0 1 7Egg-laying Competition( 6 birds) 2 5 0Ploughing 1 2 6Rope 0 3 7Paris Green 0 2 2Cartage (not otherwiseaccounted for) 1 4 1Odds and Ends 2 7 6

£309 18 3Necessary Expenditure Still Required

£ s. d.Yorkshire Fog seed (not yetcharged) 0 3 0

Seeding Subterranean Clover(2 acres)Pullets (300 @3s 9d, includingcartage)Cockerels (3 at 7s)CowPigs (4)Fencing materialsTar (4 galls)Fruit TreesEgg cases (3)Seeds

Subterranean Clover (12lbs)Vegetable

Manures (2 bags super)Foodstuffs (may be required)CartageScythe, handle and stoneRent (30s for two years)Insurance (10s for two years)Red Comb Association -Subscription (2 years)

s.

0

d.

0

561542001

000

101031

0

5 " 01 00 00 0

10 63 65 00 0

127

1400

1400

00000000

0£90 0 0

(JASA, June 1934, pp. 1,386-8.)So, for under £400 each, 60 families were given

the opportunity to make a fresh start in life on theland.

In 1935 the Government again subsidised theWheat Crop competition it had originally organ-ised 10 years previously. Subsidy had to bewithdrawn in 1931 and 1932 because of the direfinancial position in which the Governmentfound itself, and the South Australian Farmers'Co-operative Union had come to the rescue in1933 to ensure that the competition was notabandoned. The Championship award firstoffered by the Royal Agricultural and HorticulturalSociety in 1927 also continued to be part of theCompetition. It had been a good season, and thefollowing year a Millers' Prize was also awardedas part of the Wheat Crop Competition.

The Millers' Produce Company of SouthAustralia made a donation of £5.00 to each of thedistricts conducting a crop competition. However,five varieties would not be eligible for their prize -Gallipoli, Free Gallipoli, Ghurka, Waratah andNabawa. The millers disliked these "weak" wheatsand felt they lowered the standard of Australianwheat. If one of these varieties was awarded aprize in the Government competition, the nextbest would be the winner of the Millers' Prize. Itwas up to the District Committee to decidewhether all of the prize money should be awardedto the winner, or be split into first and secondprizes.

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Tobacco plants givwnby Messrs JohnsonBros, Comaum, 1935.

Many trials had been undertaken to growtobacco in South Australia over the last 50 years.It had not proved to be a great success, althoughin 1935 experimental plots were established in theSouth-East, Adelaide Hills, Barmera, Berri andMurray Irrigation Areas. Virginian types seemedbest suited to South Australian conditions.However, Downy Mildew and Blue Mould attackedthe plots in the South-East and Hills districts.Later, Mr R. Guthrie of Blewitt Spring Branchreported on the possibilities of tobacco growingat the McLaren Flat Conference of 1937. Of the 300acres then planted in South Australia, 150 were inthe Hills area. He claimed it produced a profit of£80/acre. However, the land could produce othercrops more profitably, and interest in tobaccogradually faded away in South Australia. Withimproved transport it could be imported fromother countries more cheaply than it could begrown here.

In 1935 the Government agreed to pay a bountyon oranges to aid the export industry. Two shill-ings per case was to be paid on exports to theUnited Kingdom during that year. However, itwould not apply to Navel oranges shipped after15 July. Only the best quality fruit would be eligiblefor the bounty and it must be properly packedand graded. Despite the stringent regulations, itwas a help to citrus growers at this difficult time.

Skeleton weed was reported to have appearedin New South Wales in 1935. The ABA discussedthis worrying occurrence at their June meeting.

Mr Dawkins drew attention to the damage thatwas being done to wheat lands in New SouthWales by Skeleton Weed, and suggested thatsteps should be taken to guard against its

introduction into this State. Dr Richardsonreported that the C.S. &. I.R., in conjunction withthe New South Wales Department of Agricul-ture, were making investigations at Waggaconcerning the control of this weed. It wasdecided that Mr Clarke, Botanist at theRoseworthy Agricultural College, should beasked to contribute an illustrated article dealingwith Skeleton Weed for publication in theJournal. UASA, July 1935, pp. 1,541.)Skeleton weed is a native of Central Russia, and

was originally brought to Australia around 1917 inbales of hay. Its history in South Australia isdocumented by Rex Penna.It was discovered in South Australia in 1947 atParilla, and by 1949 had spread to 63 properties.By 1951 it had covered 22,000 acres and in 1961crossed the River Murray to be reported at Clare.Eyre Peninsula suffered the weed in 1962 andin 1965 it was Yorke Peninsula's turn. In 1979skeleton weed was reported to be spreading inthe local [Nantawarra and Beaufort] district.(Rex Penna, Fertile Valley to Open Plains: TheNantawarra and Beaufort Districts (Frewville:Peacock, 1982, p. 93.)

For many years farmers all over South Australiahad requested that the Government provide veter-inary services in rural areas. In 1935, the ABAreported that nine resolutions to this effect hadbeen passed at Agricultural Bureau Conferencesover the last two years. The Advisory Boardappointed a committee to look into the matter.This group recommended that the State bedivided into five districts - Central, South-East,Murray Mallee, Eyre Peninsula and Northern.Each should have a permanent veterinary officer

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resident at a centre to be decided upon. Theseofficers should be under the control of the ChiefInspector of Stock in the Department of Agricul-ture in Adelaide. The report was submitted to theMinister of Agriculture and in due course theveterinary officers were appointed.

Pruning competitions continued to be animportant part of the agricultural calendar in thefruit tree and vine growing areas. The RoyalAgricultural and Horticultural Society managed acompetition for boys and youths at Reynella until1931 when the organisation was taken over by theMcLaren Flat Branch of the Agricultural Bureau.

The River Murray Pruning Competition was alsoin full swing at this time. In 1933 W. LangdonParsons had donated a silver cup for a competitionbetween districts. The ultimate winner was to bethe most consistently good pruner over threeyears. The winners were

1933 E A Liddicoat, Moorook 548 points1934 H M Perkins, Berri 539 points1935 C Curtis, Waikerie 549 points

The overall winner in 1935 was Mr C. Curtiswith 1,618 points followed closely by Mr H. M.Perkins, with 1,615 points. The third on the listwas Mr A. Wedd of Mypolonga with 1,613 points.

The Gumeracha Branch held its first DistrictPruning Competition a few years later, on 14 July1938. Jonathan apples and duchess pears weredealt with on the property of Mr J. B. Randell.About 60 gardeners followed the 13 contestants,offering free advice at every opportunity. TheGumeracha Horticultural and FloriculturalSociety presented a cup to Mr H. Stephenson forthe highest aggregate score. In the apple section,Mr J. Hill was awarded first prize, and Mr A. Joycewon the pear section, both of whom werepresented with trophies by Mrs D. C. Norsworthy.The judge, Mr E. Leishman, remarked that thegeneral standard of work was very good, but feltthere was a tendency to prune the apples a littletoo hard.

The River Murray district had developed quitea reputation for its vine fruits by this time. Mr FLewis described the treatment of Gordo vines,which produced fine dried fruit, at the Marchmeeting of the Ramco Branch in 1935.

There are four contributing factors - suitablesoil, age of vines, method of pruning, and drying.Practically all the Gordos in Ramco that areproducing quality fruit are grown on a fairlysteep, loose, sandy northern slope, originallybig pine and mallee country with a naturaldrainage. They were planted in the early days

of irrigation on the Murray and are about 30years old. For some years they were pruned onthe Gooseberry Bush system, which producedquality, but not quantity and later, afterbecoming well established, were trellised byforming a rod on each side of the "crown" on alow trellis, Espalier style, and gradually cuttingout the old spurs on each side of the row. Thisof course left a lot of large wounds which havenever healed over and are now riddled withwhite ants, but this does not seem to affect thevigour of the vines ... Unfortunately, Gordosripen rather late and growers with othervarieties leave them until their racks are clearedof currants and sultanas and they show a highBaume test ... Gordos are practically all dippedin the old style boiling caustic; any othermethod tried so far is too slow in drying so latein the season. They should be dried in the opento get as much sunlight as possible; in fact Ihave seen first class fruit dried on racks thathad no provision whatever for covering fromrain or dew. Much of the sugaring trouble iscaused through rack drying . . . I have had verylittle experience in manuring Gordos and in 28years have applied fertiliser only twice; oncewith Bone Super and once with Complete VineManure, and in neither case did the returnsshow any improvement, but wherever StableManure was used, there was a distinct improve-ment. About three years ago a lot of the vines"went back" so I gave them an application ofSulphate of Ammonia at the rate of 1 cwt to theacre and the same amount the following year.This brought the vines back to normal and I amnow harvesting a record crop. (JASAJ February1936, p.992.)

Vineyards were the topic for discussion at theJanuary meeting of the Light Pass Branch. Mr P.Mader gave his opinions on the best way to goabout establishing a vineyard.

Select and root your own cuttings, because ifthey are purchased from the nursery thevarieties are often mixed. The cuttings shouldbe about 16 in to 18 in long and prepare theplanting trench - which should be 2 ft wide and2ft deep - with a spade in preference to theplough. Fill in the trench - with 1 ft of earth,then set the cuttings in position, leaving onebud above ground level, and press the soil withthe foot very tightly around the cutting. Plantthe cuttings in August in order that the landwill be well soaked before the end of the winterrains. If the soil becomes dry, give an occasionalgood soaking with water. Prepare the site on

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which it is intended to make the vineyard sometime ahead of planting so that weed growth willbe reduced to a minimum. In marking out theblock, a wire is preferred to string, because theformer does not get blown about with the wind.Keep the top soil from the holes separate fromthe subsoil so that when planting the cuttingsthe surface soil can be placed around the rootsof the cuttings. The holes should be 1 ft squaredby 18 in deep. Prune the cuttings back to twobuds, removing as well all the top roots, leavethe others about 4 in long. tJASA, February 1936,p. 992.)

Mr E. G. Lehrman then declared that ploughingwas one of the most important operations in thecultivation of a vineyard or orchard. This is nolonger performed today, but at the time wasconsidered essential.

The River Murray district was also well-knownfor its citrus fruits. It was an area capable ofproducing very high quality fruit, but not allorchardists knew how to get the best out of theirtrees for the export market. Mr E. R. Moss of theBern Branch aimed to set this to rights in hispaper at the Renmark Conference in 1936. Irriga-tion, cultivation and manuring are the three most

important factors affecting the quality of fruit. Thesoil must be kept moist at all times, he began,however,

A word of warning must be sounded here: withthe extra irrigations the water tables may beraised to a dangerous level, so that it is necessaryto be very careful not to overwater. At eachirrigation, as many furrows as possible shouldbe run down each row, all the furrows flowingsimultaneously, which means plenty of outletsin the channels. The water on the majority ofland should not be allowed to run for more thansix hours per row.One good 6 in ploughing of all the land, i.e.,down the rows and another ploughing acrossat the end of July, is all the ploughing that isnecessary, providing that the cultivator is putdown as deeply as possible after each irrigationand rain during the summer. Leave the landalone and do not cultivate during winter; that isuntil ploughing time. This will give weeds - orif cover crops have been planted - a chance togrow, and will give something to plough in forhumus.Humus is an exceedingly vital element neces-sary in all Murray soils, and humus becomes

•':'•

irrigation of citrus trees on a River Murray irrigation block.

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quickly deficient under hot summer conditions,unless it is constantly being put back in someway.

The growing of cover crops between the citrusis the cheapest form of supplying humus untilthe trees become too big and it is practicallyimpossible to grow cover crops on account ofrobbing by the trees and the lack of sunlightwhich is able to reach the crop. When covercrops can no longer be grown, humus must besupplied in some other way. Stable manure ifput on at the rate of 10 to 15 tons to the acre, isexcellent for this purpose. Sheep and poultrymanure applied at the rate of 8 tons to the acreare [sic] also good, but it is often difficult toobtain these manures in sufficient quantities tobe of any value. Lucerne and straw or anyrubbish that can be put into the land and rotteddown, will help build up the humus in the land.(JASA, August 1936, p. 53.)

Blemishes from insect damage must be avoidedas far as possible. This could be done by fumigatingthe trees when pests appear. The other cause ofblemishes is wind; the fruit rubs against twigs andbranches leaving clearly visible marks. The onlyway to avoid this is to plant breakwinds to shelterthe trees as much as possible, and prune off alldeadwood. This way, leaves provide protectionfor a greater percentage of the limbs. Red scaleand sooty mould were the two main diseasesattacking the fruit and spoiling its appearance.Fortunately compulsory spraying in the Bern areakept them to a minimum.

Prof. Perkins retired from his position asDirector of the Department of Agriculture in May1936. He had spent 44years in the South Australianpublic service, 22 of them as Director of Agricul-ture, and 10 years before that as Principal ofRoseworthy Agricultural College. A great deal ofhis work related to vine growing and wine making,but his interests encompassed the whole gamutof agriculture in South Australia. He foresaw theproblems which would accompany a suddenswitch from horses to tractors, and warnedfarmers to go about this momentous changecautiously. He wrote prodigiously, his articlescovering every imaginable subject in agriculture.He was particularly interested in agriculturaleconomics in the last year of his work. His positionwas taken over by Mr W. J. Spafford, also a verytalented man, who had a deep understanding ofthe problems besetting farmers and a practicalapproach to solving them.

The Journal of Agriculture of South Australiaunderwent a renovation at this time. A new glossy

format was introduced in the August issue underthe title The Journal of the Department of Agricul-ture of South Australia. The space allotted toBranch reports was reduced, and more room usedfor long articles and papers given at conferences.

By 1937 wheat prices finally began to recover.MrC. E. Heinrich had discussed the relative profitsof wheat and wool at a meeting of the KilkerranBranch. Even with wool paying only Is per pound,which resulted in a small profit, it was still a betterproposition than wheatgrowing. At the same timeeggs fetched lOd-ls per dozen. The Depressionwas clearly evident for all to see as farmers battledto survive. Farmers obviously needed to increaseproduction while keeping down costs under theseconditions. The Government Research Stationsdid all they could to discover new ways and meansof doing just that. However, they had limited spaceand their soil types and growing conditions werenot always representative of the entire area.Members of the Agricultural Bureau oftenconducted experiments on behalf of the ResearchStation (under their supervision! to enable thescientists to collect more complete information.This way, not only did the research progress morequickly, but the producers also saw for themselvesthe value of new ideas. Sometimes the difficultyfacing Government Research Stations is gettingthe information from the scientific experts out tothe farmers. The research was, after all, intendedto improve practical fanning. The AgriculturalBureau itself also served to bridge this gap.

One of the important areas of research was inpasture improvement. The search for a goodlivestock fodder led to the discovery of Wimmerarye grass. Experiments had been carried out allover the State when this grass was seen to be sosuccessful in the Wimmera district of Victoria. It

Kilkerran Branch Committee, 1987. Bark L-R: MessrsStewart Moody, Ken Heinrich, Neil Kohlhagen. Front L-R: Messrs Robert Davey, Lyall Arthur.Absent: Philip Heinrich.

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The Shoal Bay Branchinspecting pasture on afield Day, 1937. Dotsindicate IL-Ki Mr WillTurner iChairmani, MrG. A. Turner /whosepastune is beinginspected/, and MrK, C. Scott of Departmentof Agriculture.

appeared to be particularly useful in the lowrainfall areas of Eyre Peninsula and the MurrayMallee. Mr J. J. Ferguson of the Parilla Well Branchreported on his experiments with Wimmera ryegrass at the Lameroo Conference in 1937.

Wimmera rye grass, although an annual, is aremarkable grass for re-seeding, even though itmay be grazed heavily. With rotational wheat-growing and adding a small quantity of seedwith the wheat crop prior to being used forpasture, this grass remains dominant over othergrasses. Rye grass produces a greater bulk thannatural grasses although it may be later in theseason in getting firmly established, [but] withgood spring rains, it will give green feed as lateas November. At all times it is very palatable tostock, even after maturity. Experience hasshown that it competes successfully with Barley

grass... Wimmera rye grass is immune to fungusdiseases to which wheat plants are susceptible,namely, Smut, Flag-smut, and Take-all . . . Tohave Wimmera rye grass as a pasture for anindefinite period, it must be cultivated at leastevery second year. When this is done and theseed sown with some cereal such as oats, rye,or barley, with superphosphate, good resultsare obtained. For sowing seed with a wheatcrop, approximately 1 Ib is a very economicalapplication to establish this plant. Like cereals,Wimmera rye grass responds accordingly withthe quantity of superphosphate applied. It is avaluable plant for the prevention of soil erosionof pastures on account of its splendid rootsystem, and eventually it will be used exten-sively and become a National asset in helpingto solve the soil erosion problem UASA, August1937, p. 60.)

Sheep grazing onChou Moellier, one ofthe fii~st pasturesintroduced by theCentral Bureau.

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Similar success was experienced by Mr C. L.Bagley of the Poochera Branch on Eyre Peninsula.

Last season I sowed about 210 acres with thisgrass, 120 with oats and 90 with wheat, gettinga good rain in April this season. The rye grassgrew very quickly until the cold weather set in.I kept the stock off this paddock until it had agood start. Again it has been very noticeablehow the sheep ate the rye grass, right down tothe roots before they started on the mustard orbarley grass, or even the self-sown oats.I have no doubt that the grass planted in thesetwo paddocks has enabled me to keep the sheep(400 ewes and about 250 April lambs) in fairlygood order. To draw a comparison, I haveanother paddock of 150 acres that has not beenplanted with the rye grass; this is the secondyear it has been out of wheat. I have had all thesheep in this paddock at two periods of fivedays each, and had 50 in there for two weeks atanother period. There is no comparisonbetween the paddocks for the body of feed atthe present time. (JASA, January 1938, p. 595.)

Unfortunately, producers were getting morethan they bargained for with this grass, as theyrealised when Annual Rye Grass Toxicity wasidentified in 1956.

Subterranean clover was also gaining popularityas a useful fodder. In his paper on the subject, MrJ. Legoe of the Kingston Branch explained howbest to sow the seed and told his audience that itdid best in areas with a clay subsoil, and wouldgrow well in sandy soils with applications ofsuperphosphate. The discovery of the value ofsubterranean clover 40 years previously was attrib-uted to Mr A. W. Howard of Mt Barker.

Approximately 200 members of the AgriculturalBureau met for a combined Men's and Women'sConference at Coonawarra on 14 April 1937.Delegates came from Mt Gambler, Tantanoola,Penola, Kalangadoo, Robe, Allandale East, Mun-dalla, Kybybolite and Millicent. An impressivedisplay of local produce was exhibited, one of themost outstanding features of which was a rangeof 67 varieties of dahlias grown by Mr R. J. Skinnerof Coonawarra.

The conference was opened by Mr S. Shepherdof the ABA, one of several official guests. The otherincluded Mr W. J. Spafford (now Director ofAgriculture), the District Instructors, and variousother members of the Department of Agriculture.Five papers were read in the morning - TheBracken Fern Problem in the South-East by Mr S.Ockley of the Penola Branch, Pasture Plants by Mr

N. J. McBain of the host Branch, Fencingby MrW.M. Laslett from the Allandale East Branch, SheepProblems by Mr E. C. H. Schinckel of the KybyboliteBranch, and Cure of Foot-rot by Mr W. J. Jenkinsof the Mt Gambier Branch. The district DairyAdviser, Mr W. H. Downes, gave a demonstrationon The Points of a Dairy Cow, and the Depart-mental officers answered many questions put tothem by the audience.

After lunch the delegates were shown overMilne's wine cellars and life memberships werepresented by Mr Shepherd. The evening sessionwas filled with an address illustrated with lanternslides in which Mr R. C. Scott described A Visit toNew Zealand.

Water hyacinth had been discovered growingin the Ramco Lagoon in 1937. An orchardist, MrJock Barratt, spoke to the Waikerie Branch aboutthe necessity of dealing with this weed as soon aspossible. The Branch supported him, backed bythe Ramco Branch and the ABA. In May 1939 theGovernment started work and eventually removed1,000 tons of hyacinth from the river. This was oneof the few successful battles ever staged againstthis most tenacious and damaging of weeds.

A revolutionary discovery was discussed at thePort Victoria Conference in 1938. In reply to aquestion about coast disease in sheep, Mr C.McKenna (Government Veterinary Officer)explained that the disease was now known to becaused by copper and cobalt deficiencies. Sinceonly minute quantities of these minerals wererequired to correct the problem, sheep ownerscould mix up chemicals to be administered in theform of a lick. He suggested the following: 40 Ibferrous sulphate crystals, 5 Ib manganesesulphate, 2 Ib zinc sulphate, 2 Ib copper sulphate,lib cobalt sulphate. These ingredients should beground together and 2lb mixed with commonsalt. Alternatively, 8 oz of the mixture could bedissolved with 2 fluid oz of spirits of salts in 1gallon water and administered as a drench (2 fluidoz per dose). He warned against mixing any formof phosphate with the lick. The knowledge thatcoast disease could be so easily remedied wouldhave an enormous effect on sheep owners incopper and cobalt deficient areas.

One of the other major problems facingwoolgrowers was blowfly strike. Over the years,many experiments had been performed with allsorts of chemicals to control this pest.

In 1908 Mr S. S. Cameron of the VictorianDepartment of Agriculture had recommended theuse of any substance with a pungent aroma tokeep flies away from the sheep. Kerosene or

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Eucalyptus oil were suitable, but ordinary fish oilwas best of all. A few drops sprinkled on the areaaround the tail would result in a disagreeableodour for so long as traces of oil remained on thewool, protecting the animal from flies. Later, weaksolutions of copper sulphate applied to theaffected area were recommended, but sheepwould often be in trouble again. Thousands ofsheep were lost every year through being flyblown.Then in 1929 Mr J. H. W. Mules of Woodsideinvented an operation which appeared to answerthe prayers of sheep owners. It seemed thatMerino ewes were particularly susceptible toblowfly strike, as Mr J. Wallis described in hispaper on the subject given at a meeting of theKalyan Branch.

He found that the most susceptible sheep havea fold of skin about 3/4 in, which extends fromthe sides of the root of the tail downwards andforwards on the belly, where it peters out. Thefolds encircle the vulva about 1 in from themiddle line, and carry wool sufficiently closeup to the inside edge to project inwards andtouch the fold of the other side; the result wasthat the animal could not urinate withoutsoiling the wool, which was practically wetcontinuously and matted together and rottedby bacterial action. As a result the skin beneathbecame eczematous, and at the root of the woolthere was a collection of serous weeping fromthe skin and a collection of pus-like materialwith a putrid odour which was no doubtattractive to blowflies and would be an excellentbreeding ground for young maggots. Mr Mules'procedure is to anticipate the slower breedingmethods by removing the folds by a surgicaloperation. He does it by pinching the fold in thejaws of a "Burdizzo" castrating pincers, andwhile holding it there cutting away theprojecting skin with a sharp knife. There is nobleeding; the sheep, even if full grown, makesvery little fuss, the edges of the wound pressedtogether by the clamp remain adherent and ina few days the clamped edges slough away. Asa result of the operation the ewe lambs grow upwith a clean breech approaching in appearancethat of the Leicesters. Mr Mules' obseivationson grown ewes treated is that where they werepreviously susceptible to attack (sometimesmany times in a season), after the operationthey became to all intents and purposesimmune. (JASA, August 1932, p. 115.)"Mulesing" as it came to be known, saved the

lives of thousands of Australian sheep as itspopularity grew. The first public demonstrationof the operation under the auspices of the Agricul-

tural Bureau took place on 18 March 1937 beforethe members of the Appila Branch. By September1938 public demonstrations of the operation werearranged to take place during the Royal Show sothat Agricultural Advisers could learn thetechnique. Then they would be able to teachsheep owners in their districts the revolutionaryoperation. The demonstrations took place on theproperty of Mr E. A. Thomas, Smithfield. Mr RolloHawkes of "Warenda", Clare performed the opera-tion while Mr Mules described and explained theprocedure.

With a pair of ordinary sheep shears, or ifpreferred, rolecut secateurs, the breech foldscan be quickly removed, and with sufficientassistance, a skilled operator can treat up toabout 1,000 sheep in a day. In this connectionthe sheep should be crutched shortly beforethe operation. (JASA, October 1938, p. 283.)Today it is standard practice on merinos,

despite the opposition of animal welfare groups.On 24 March 1938 the Mypolonga Branch of the

Agricultural Bureau invited other Branches in theRiver Murray Swamp areas to a field day. The partyvisited the canning factory of Mr L. Haynes. Thefactory which had been established 10 yearsbeforehand, was canning 40,000 tins per annum.Dealing mainly with pears and peaches, thefactory was arranged so the fruit was processedas soon as it arrived from the orchard. The groupthen proceeded to the pumping station wherethey had lunch. Mr P. J. Baily, a member of theABA stated that

many people . . . did not have a proper concep-tion of the work of a swamp area on the Murray.It was thought for example, that pumpingstations were merely intended for irrigationpurposes only, and not for the all importantmeans of drainage which made it possible togrow irrigated crops. Through the system ofbarrages, irrigable water would be available inthe spring, right through the summer until theautumn, and this would give greater assistanceto settlers. It was not possible to grow pasturesefficiently without frequent waterings of at leastevery three weeks. (JASA, May 1938, p. 891.)The Agricultural Bureau members assembled at

the property of Messrs H. &. W. D. Davey afterlunch. Here, Mr R. C. Scott (Chief AgriculturalAdviser) spoke to the settlers on the varieties ofpastures particularly suited to the swamps. Thenthey went to the Mypolonga Co-operative Societypacking sheds where the manager, Mr A. H. Burnettdescribed the works. The Society not only tookcare of the packing shed operations, but also

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bought wholesale for the members, and sold theirproduct along co-operative lines on the Englishmarket. The last item on the day's programmetook place at Messrs Voigt Brothers' Orchard. MrA. G. Strickland (Chief Horticulturist) and Mr E.Leishman (District Horticultural Adviser) spoke tothe group on general topics relating to growingfruit in irrigated areas.

The Mt Pleasant Branch hosted a VeterinaryField Day on 3 August 1938. It was an outstandingsuccess, with over 100 people present fromTungkillo, Birdwood, Gumeracha, Woodside,Springton, Eden Valley and the Mt Pleasant districtitself. Mr W. S. Smith, a Veterinary Officer of theStock and Brands Department, demonstrated thevaccination of sheep against entro-toxaemia. Healso performed a post-mortem on an animalwhich had suffered from that disease. He thengave an address, and another post-mortem onInternal Parasites of Sheep. Even during the worstperiods of the Depression, farmers made the effortto attend field days such as this, realising theycould learn a great deal from these practicaldemonstrations.

Although field days were very informative, manyproducers felt they needed more time to absorbthe new ideas presented. The Echunga Branchsuggested that schools specialising in particularareas of agriculture be arranged. The ABA andDepartment of Agriculture supported their resolu-tion and organised a dairy school to be held atEchunga on the 2nd, 9th, 16th and 23rd December.Forty-one members of Hills branches of theAgricultural Bureau enrolled.

The school was opened by the Hon. A. P. Blesing,Minister of Agriculture. He was accompanied byMessrs W. E. Ford of the ABA, W. J. Spafford(Director of Agriculture), H. B. Barlow (Chief DairyInstructor), L. S. Smith (Secretary to Minister), H. J.Apps (District Dairy Advisor) and H. C. Pritchard(General Secretary, Agricultural Bureau). Thesyllabus conta ined both lectures anddemonstrations.

Secretion and Composition of Milk (Mr H. B.Barlow); Breeds of Dairy Cattle, and demonstra-tion on the Points of a Dairy Cow (Messrs H. J.Apps and P. H. Suter); demonstration on Milkand Cream Testing (Messrs W. N Rule and R.Gillespie); Feeding and Management of Cowsand Calves (Mr H. J. Apps); Dairy Bacteriologyand Hygiene (Mr H. B. Barlow); demonstrationon Grading of Milk and Cream (Messrs W. NRule and W. J. Taylor); Common Ailments ofDairy Cattle (Mr H. B. Barlow); Developing NewLand (Mr R. Hill); Breeds and Breeding of Pigs

and demonstration on Types of Pork and BaconPigs (Messrs H. B. Barlow and W. S. McAuliffe);Laying down permanent Pastures (Mr L. J.Cook); Feeding and Management of Pigs (Mr W.S. McAuliffe); Conservation of Fodder (Mr R. C.Scott). {JASA, December 1938, p.499.)

It proved to be a resounding success, and similararrangements were made all over the State to dealwith every aspect of agriculture.

1938 marked the 50th year since the inceptionof the Agricultural Bureau of South Australia. Itwas an achievement of which the members andorganisers could be proud, and they celebratedwith enthusiasm. Five hundred and forty peopleturned out for a dinner in the Apollo Dining Hallin the Adelaide Town Hall on 12 September 1938.

Cereal growers were still experiencing difficul-ties in making ends meet, despite the rise in wheatprices. The familiar cry was heard then as it isnow - "Our costs are too high!" Mr H. E. Broad ofthe Minnipa Branch read a paper entitled TheEffect the High Cost of Super had upon the Farmerand District Generally at the Central Eyre Penin-sula Conference. He set out four areas where costscould be reduced.

First - Rail freights could easily be reduced 50per cent. - they are naturally high comparedwith other States - Victoria 7s 2d, WesternAustralia 5s 3d, and South Australia 11s for thesame distance.

Secondly - The wool and stock firms receive acommission of 2s 6d a ton whether the purchaseis made direct by cash or not.

Thirdly -At present the buyer receives a rebateof 3s 6d if he supplies his own bags. As thesesecond-hand bags take the place of new ones,there is no reason why the buyer should notreceive new value for his sacks, and so obtain arebate of about 7s 6d per ton, being the usualprice of new corn sacks.

Fourthly - at present super is quoted 2s 6d perton higher at Port Lincoln than on the mainland.Why should this be?Super landed at Minnipa today costs £4 4s 4dper ton . . .

Using the suggested reductions offreight by 50%

Stock firm commission to be refundedSurcharge on Eyre Peninsula super tobe abolishedBuyers supplying own bagsA total reduction of

showing that if reductions were made, supercould be landed at Minnipa at £3 6s Id per ton.

per ton

5s 6d2s 6d

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To-day, if a farmer uses 30 tons, the total cost tohim is £12610s, if reduced, 30 tons would cost£99, giving him a surplus of £2710s, whichwould enable him to buy 8Vz tons more superfor the same money.Assuming that the farmer is able to procure8Va tons more super, he is able to sow 200 acresmore wheat on fallow, using a 90 Ib dressing ofphosphate, estimating the yield at 10 bush, giveshim 2,000 bush, more wheat to sell at harvest,and 1 am not going into the matter of profit onwheat growing. With 2,000 more bushels ofwheat to sell he is going to be much better off,and the following year will have 200 acres moreof early feed . . . The freight on 30 tons of superPort Lincoln to Minnipa is £17 12s 6d.Reduced freight on 381/2 tons £11 Is 3dExtra freight on 2,000 bush ofwheat to Thevenard £31 5s OdTotal earning reduced freight £42 6s 3dleaving a credit balance to the railways throughreduced freight of £24 17s 9d. (JASA, September1939, pp. 142-3.1

He then went on to remind his audience thatsuper on pasture land was an important weaponin combating erosion. By maintaining a good coverof vegetation, drifting was much less likely tooccur. He finished off by explaining that thereductions would not adversely affect the stockfirms or super manufacturers:

The stock firms' commission of £3 15s on 30tons would be compensated by the fact ofhaving to handle the extra stock and wool thatcould be produced on the farms.The super manufacturer, by being able toincrease his output by 25%, should be able tosupply super at Port Lincoln at the same priceas at Port Adelaide. (JASA, September 1939, p.143.)Despite the hard times accompanying the

Depression, the prospects of a young man startingout in life were actually better in 1939 than 35years previously, according to Mr E. B. Pitman ofthe Murraytown Branch. He explained why thiswas the case in a paper given at the Upper NorthConference.

Thirty-five to forty years ago . . . Lads starting offfarm work received from 3s 6d to 10s per week,and found, and in working shops, i.e., black-smiths, carpenters, builders, etc., 7s 6d, 10s and12s, and found themselves. Team drivers-seeding time wages used to be 12s 6d to 15s for61/2 days a week - not the 51/2 day week oftoday. Harvest wages were from 18s to 25s for

Murraytown Branch Committee, 1987. Bark L-R: MessrsBrenton Blieshke ISeci, Geoff Arthur (Presl, Merv Blivshke(Past Pr-esl. front L-R:Messrs Hon Orrock tAsstSed, ChrisClark ISr Vice Pn:sl, Don Zwar Ur Vice Presl. Absent: MrP Bowman (Tmasl.

stripper and winnower work, and later onharvesters . . . With all the "founds" of today themoney received is approximately 21/2 timesmore than 35 to 40 years ago. Sheep shearingwas 12s 6d to 15s per 100, and allowing for theextra wool of today's sheep, 17s 6d. Sheep ratesof today are double. Fencing was 4i/2d to 6dper post; today, Is Post splitting was 20s to22s 6d per 100; today £4 per 100. Woodcuttingwas Is9d and 2s 3d per ton; 5s today, and 7f t6 in long instead of 5 ft 6 in. Station wages were15s a week and a sheep a fortnight; yet carefulmen reared families and saved some moneybesides . . . Necessary food and clothing of todayare not on the average 50% dearer that 35 to40years ago. Clothes are only 25%. Whenshearing last year the cost of all clothing thatwould keep a young man reasonably welldressed each year was discussed and the totalon local store prices was £16 10s including £1a year for bedding. (JASA, September 1939,p. 136.)He believed one of the main problems in 1939

was that people were more used to the comfortsand pleasures life had to offer than they had beenpreviously. A higher standard of living had led togreater dissatisfaction. Although not everyonewould agree with his conclusions, the comparisonis interesting.

On 3 September 1939 Britain declared war onGermany. Once again the Australian people wouldbe drawn into battle on the other side of the globe.Many more lives would be lost this time, andgreater disruption and upheaval experienced bythose who stayed at home. Although the outbreakof war marked the end of the 1930s Depression,difficult times still lay ahead.

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