icy 



along its course for ten miles, the same kind of soil extends, and it 

 is closely settled, and largely under cultivation. There, full in view 

 of the road, are the farms of men who have made farming pay, in 

 spite of the absence of a railway ; whose homesteads, extensive 

 barns, machinery sheds, and stacks of hay, attest the success of land 

 settlement in Western Australia. Now, as to the profitableness of 

 farming in the Marradong valley, which there is every reason to 

 believe will not much longer remain isolated, Mr. James Munday, 

 who is not ashamed to admit that he began with little or no capital 

 except his brains, energy, and a strong pair of arms, says : " I can 

 crop at a prolit here, 60 miles from Jarradale by road, and not only 

 rear a family of nine young children, but get ahead a bit in the 

 world, after selling my stuff delivered by wagon. I am clearing 

 more land this year, and besides my own farm I have leased this 

 year Captain Fawcett's property at Mokine. I made enough money 

 out of last year's harvest to be able to buy this season a winnower, 

 a double furrow stump-jump plough, a chaffcutter and horsew r orks." 

 Onwards past Mokine another belt of live miles of forest is entered. 

 Emerging from the forest, the trees in which suffer in comparison 

 of those at Camballing, there is at the foot of the hill a superior 

 blackboy fiat in the valley, some selections upon which have lately 

 been taken up. Thence the road passes through 2000 acres which 

 have been reserved for the Quandinning common, and several large 

 sheep pasturage properties. Sixteen miles from Marradong 

 the Williams is crossed upon the Quandinning bridge, which 

 has been erected by the Public Works department to make 

 the stream passable for the settlers in the winter season w r hen 

 the river runs a banker. The flats of the river are well 

 drained and yield heavy crops ; they are largely cultivated. Fifteen 

 bushels of wheat per acre is reckoned a fair yield ; this quantity is 

 often exceeded by early-sown crops. The clearing on the flats is 

 heavier than it is away from the river, and corn is in cases grown 

 among the dead trunks of standing trees that have been ringed. 

 Three miles from Quandinning Daylerking is passed. There is a 

 Government school there. Some excellent farms are in this 

 neighborhood. Beyond, the country is chiefly occupied by sheep 

 farmers, but some cultivation is also carried on. The largest holder 

 of both freehold and leasehold estate is Mr. W. Lavender, at 

 Boranning (otherwise known as Williamsburgh), 70 miles from Pin- 

 jarrah. He has about 200 acres cleared, out of a pastoral property 

 of 70,000. His return is from 16 to 20 bushels per acre of wheat, 

 and 25 to 30 bushels per acre of barley. When he is able to 

 manure his land with stable refuse it yields from 25 to 30 bushels of 

 wheat per acre. On fallowed ground he has harvested from 40 to 

 50 bushels of oats per acre. Some of his ground has been cropped 

 for 25 years. He says that onions and potatoes would grow splen- 

 didly along the river flats. Mr. Lavender has some thousands of 

 acres which are highly suitable for cultivation. 



