90 Sheep Land Values. 



ledge with that of A, and thereby decide whether or not 

 he is adapted for the particular venture. He may find 

 that, expressed in money terms, it may mean a differ- 

 ence in value of 5 or 10 an acre. It may be set forth, 

 therefore, that one man may make a splendid living 

 out of land that another has failed on, and it may be 

 observed, broadly speaking, that a leading influence 

 definitely operating towards the increase in land values 

 is individual skilfulness, and towa.rds the stagnation of 

 values individual lack of knowledge. Successful effort 

 is what counts. 



Irrespective of the personal equation, however, land 

 that has often changed hands at certain prices gets re- 

 garded as being of that standard value by the producing 

 and business community, and there is something to be 

 learnt in the tendencies of land value of recent years. 

 The value of good sheep land has risen very much as 

 compared to a dozen or fifteen years ago; quite natur- 

 ally, too, for the products of such land have gone up in 

 price. 



Conditions throughout the Dominion, with its many 

 latitudes, varieties of climate and soil, and nature of 

 access, make it not easy to quote a standard price for 

 sheep country, but it seems as if in most parts a cross- 

 bred ewe is made to carry a responsibility of 6 up to 

 10 capital expenditure. It may be difficult to get in 

 any part of New Zealand really reliable two-ewe-to-the- 

 acre country, purely pasture, favourably situated, for 

 less than 15 an acre. There is therefore the capital 

 expenditure of 15 per acre for the land and 2 for the 

 ewes, total 17, which the farmer will look to provide 

 an annual return of, say, 12/- to 15/- for wool, and, say, 

 20/- to 30/- for lambs. This is a gross return, striking 

 a mean, of 38/6, or 11% on capital, from which has to 

 come management, upkeep and living expenses. In 

 quoting figures the writer wishes to state that it is done 

 suggestively. Figures are but statistics, it is well 



