CHAPTER V. 



FENCING. 



VARIOUS KINDS OF FENCES, AND How TO ERECT THEM. 



The new settler will find it is necessary to do a certain amount 

 of fencing as soon as his clearing is done. Whenever possible the 

 ploughing should be done before the fence is erected. There are 

 two reasons for this appearances, and protection of the fence 

 from fire. If the fence is put up before ploughing it will not be 

 possible to plough much closer to the fence than 18 inches, and if cul- 

 tivation is followed subsequently on the other side of the fence this 

 will mean that there is an unsightly strip of unbroken scrub ground 

 three feet wide, and the length of the fence, dividing two otherwise 

 neat and refreshing-looking cultivation paddocks. When the 

 ground along the fence line has not been broken it is much more 

 difficult to keep it free from undergrowth, and consequently danger 

 of the destruction of the fence by fire is greatly increased. In 

 boundary fencing, or in dividing off large paddocks intended for 

 grazing only, the line should be cleared to a w r idth of six feet of all 

 scrub, and trees or limbs overhanging the line should be felled and 

 removed by burning, or be pulled oft" before the fence is put up. 

 It is a great comfort to feel, in the hot summer months, when bush 

 fires are of daily occurrence, that the fences are clear of scrub and 

 combustible matter generally, and if a plough furrow, no matter 

 how rough or crooked, has been run in the spring on each side of 

 the fence, and as near to it as possible, so much greater is the 

 sense of security. 



There are many styles of fencing in use in Australia, and as 

 many or more are the varieties of timber used for posts. The 

 choice of timber is not by any means restricted to two or three 

 varieties in this colony, but most of the fencing is either put 

 up with jarrah or jam posts, except in the nor'-west, where 

 iron standards are used, timber not being available. The 

 wood of the raspberry jam is practically indestructible, 

 and its strength is as surprising as its durability. Where 

 this timber is found growing nothing better can be used, but the 

 settler must make the best use of the timber readiest to his hand. 

 The jarrah tree is widely distributed over the south-west division, 

 and split posts of this timber are very desirable. There is, however, 

 jarrah and jarrah, and some discrimination is necessary ; for instance, 

 jarrah is found in some cases to rot off at the surface of the ground, 



