THE FARMERS HANDBOOK 



The district is mainly pastoral, and it is considered one of the best wool- 

 yrovdr.g diet -"'cts ia the State. A little dairying is carried on, but this 

 industry can be said to be only in its infancy. 



The principal crops are potatoes, maize, and fruit, such as apples, cherries, 

 &c. Potatoes are pretty extensively grown in some districts, such as Guyra 

 and the counties of Sandon and Gough. 



Timber is plentiful throughout the district. Of the softwoods, pine, 

 cedar, rosewood, silky oak, and coachwood were the most common ; with 

 blackbutt, tallow, woolly butt, grey and red guru, and stringy bark among 

 the hardwoods, but, excepting in the inaccessible places, these timbers have 

 been well culled. 



In the Invei'ell district, box, apple, ironbark, and white box are the 

 principal timber trees ; in the Tingha district, stringybark, red and white 

 gum, box, and pine ; and in the Bundarra and Ashford districts ironbark, 

 gum, box, and apple are the common timbers. 



With the exception of box, all the New England timbers are very hard to- 

 burn, and the cost of cleai'ing is thereby much increased. Ringing and 

 killing costs from 5s. to 15s. per acre. The preparation of land containing 

 dead timber for the plough costs from £1 to £4 per acre. When not ring- 

 barked, the timber, being mostly hardwood, is usually grubbed, felled, and 

 cut up. 



The supply of fencing material is good, on the whole ; scarce in parts. 

 The best woods for posts are ironbark, stringybark, oak, blackbutt, and red 

 gum. Posts should not be too slight, should have as little sap wood as- 

 possible, and the bark should be removed from most timbers to prevent 

 the sapwood rotting. White ant is fairly prevalent in the district. Charring 

 the bottoms of posts and applying of coal tar are means used for the- 

 prevention of wdrite ant. 



The cost of cattle-proof fencing, four plain or three barbed wire, is from 

 £30 to £45 per mile. For 6 or 7-wire sheep fence, £40 to £60. Rabbit- 

 proof fence costs about £100 per mile. 



The cost of well-sinking runs from 15s. to £1 per foot ; but there are 

 not a great number of wells in the district, except for household purposes, as. 

 the country is fairly well watered. 



Excavating for tanks costs from Is. to Is. 6d. per cubic yard. 



The native grasses are good, but, in general, rather coarse. The herbage 

 is greatly improved after ringbarking. The best English and other imported, 

 grasses do well. 



The roads are for the most part hilly, with fair gradients as a rule. In 

 ordinary seasons they are hard. The cost of transport is from Is. to 2s. per 

 ton per mile. 



The district is well watered, and is suitable for dairying. With regard, 

 to pests, dingoes and rabbits are fairly common. Prickly-pear is bad in 

 certain districts, such as about Tenterfield, Tooloon, and the head of the- 

 Clarence River. Blackberry is found in patches all over the district. 



The seasons are regular, and, as the records quoted show, without violent 

 inequalities. Inverell provides a good centre for marketing produce in 

 the west. The northern railway line runs through the centre of the district ; 

 and this main line will, doubtless, eventually be connected with the coast 

 from Guyra to Kempsey, and from Guyra to Inverell, thus affording ready 

 access for starving stock in drought times to and from the coast. 



