Canada, to say nothing of such countries as France, Germany, and other continental states, including even little Denmark, have found it a wise provision, surely the necessity is even greater for an imperfectly developed country like New South Wales? Experimental farms and schools of farming are badly wanted, and must be founded, if we are to keep pace with the achievements of other communities, utilize to the full our splendid possibilities, and hold our own in the march of material and mental progress.
I have already spoken of the wasteful methods in vogue with the New Zealand farmer; as, for instance, in the disposition of straw, neglect of manure, disregard of draining, and so on; but a much more serious matter is the exhaustion of the land in many of the earlier settled districts. Continuous cropping without rotation or rest has worked its usual result in Otago, Canterbury, and Southland, as in County Cumberland in New South Wales, and in other parts of Australia. The rotation of crops is part of the alphabet of agriculture; but it would seem as if Australian farmers were really, in some respects, ignorant of their first letters. Or is it that they are too lazy, or too greedy? "Soft words butter no parsnips!" Anyway, I believe soft soap is a poor salve. "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful." It is the veriest folly to imagine that any soil, even the richest, can be cropped year after year with the same crop, and not become impoverished. Wheat,
