Fkhruary i, 1882.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
1*5 
PIONEKR FARMING AND TEA IN NORTHERN 
NEW ZEALAND. 
TO THE EDITOR OF THE "MELD." 
Sir, — The paper on this subject by Mr. W. Delisle 
H;iy, in your issue of the 9th of July, has just 
readied this part of the world, and, as i have been 
in Northern New Zealand for over three years, I 
naturally read through Mr. Hay's article with much 
pleasure, and can testify to it-: general truthfulness, 
and plain unvarnished description of the early life of 
a settler, which contains the "whole of the truth 
and nothing but tho truth ;' but as he is not, I 
fancy, a resident here now, there are one or two 
important omissions from his article, and one state- 
ment, at least, which is calculated to mislead anyone 
who might be thinking of trying one of tho most 
delightful countries in the world, so far as climate 
is concerned, as well as in many other respects. " I 
trust, therefore, you will allow me to add a few 
things which Mr. I lay has omitted to mention. 
He nays in the beginning of his article, " No land, 
of whatever kind or quality, is now to be had for 
nothing, though at one time Government used to 
grant .small allotments 011 the condition of settle- 
ment thereon." 
Mr. Hay is mistaken on this point; the " Home- 
stead Act," to which ho alludes, is still in force, 
and under it my person of the age of eighteen and 
upwards may select from the blocks of land open 
for that purpose, which 1 shall presently mention, 
50 acres of first-class land, or 75 of eecond-class, and 
for persons under eighteen years of age of first class 
lands 20 acres, or 30 of second class ; no household, 
however, is allowed to take up more than 200 acres 
of first-class or 300 of second-class land under this 
System. The only payment the settler is called upon 
to make is for the cost of surveying and marking 
off his selection ; and a Crown grant or conveyance 
of the land is obtainable under very easy conditions, 
viz., n continuous residence on the laud for five years ; 
the erection <>f a permanent d willing-house, valued 
£50, within twelve months from the commencement 
of such residence; annual cultivation of one- fifteenth 
of area s< looted if open land, or one-.twenty-fifth if 
bush hind. There are some minor regulations regard- 
ing frontiifio to roads, rivers &c , but the above are 
the fundamental conditions, which anyone will readily 
Bee are framed with a view to encourage bona tide 
settlers and fanners, as opposed to hind speculators. 
Between the parallels of 34° and 37 \ with a climate 
wonderfully like Italy or Greece, there are no less 
than twenty two blocks, wging from 400 acres up 
to 8,000 each, and aggregating a to al area of some- 
thing like i'>:!, 1100 acres, open for selection under tho 
homestead system ; and other blocks could easily be 
obtainable from tho Government almost for the 1 king. 
There are signs of this plan of settlement becoming 
more popular than it has formerly been, as several 
selectors have recently come up from the southern 
island. There arc at present in the north about 200 
to 300 families settled on "liouies'oads," with an average 
nta of ISO acres to each family. 
Many settlers aro now taking up land in tho same 
localities under tho "deferred payment By stem, "the 
principal features of which are as follows : — Anyone 
over eighteen year* of age may seleot an allotment 
Of suburban land not exceeding 20 acres, or n >t 
more than 320 acres of rural land, at the upset 
pne« named by Government, whicfl now range for 
rural lands from £1 per acre upwards several blocks 
have been recontly taken up at £1 5s., t'l UK, 
and £2. The minimum price for tubiirban lands > j 
£4 LUs. per aero. The principal conditions tor pur. 
chase under this system are these : The applicant 
nil deposit 00 application for the land, ouo-leiith 
171 
I the valuo of suburban laud, or one-twentieth for rural 
lands ; for the former his licence is for five years, 
for the latter it extends over ten years; and be must 
reside on tho land within six months of the issue of 
his licence, and has to pay in five yearly instal- 
ments for suburban land, or ten for rural lands. 
There aro certain very easy terms as to cultivation 
and improvements to be made; but a selector who 
has complied with the conditions is entitled to a 
Crown grant at the end of three years on paying 
up in full, and may, of course, assign his rights and 
interest to whom he, pleases. 
There is- yet one more system now in force, very 
suitable for people of the humbler classes, culled the 
"village settlement." Blocks of land are set apart 
with village allotments of one acre each, and small 
farm lots of 50 acres each, the cash price for the for- 
mer being £5, and for the latter not less than £50. 
These may also be taken up under the deferred pay. 
pent plan, or on lease, with a purchasing clause, 
which will enable the lessee, at any time during tho 
continuance of his lease, to take up the land at a 
price agreed upon at first. 
The Crown lands in the provincial district of Auck- 
land open for selection, at various prices, according 
to quality of soil, &c, are over 2h millions of acres. 
Arrangements have just been concluded by which 
over two millions of acres of land, now in the hands 
of natives, will be available for settlement, and this 
! block is of the very best quality. The cultivation 
j of tha grape is extending up this way, a party of 
J French wine growers having been settled on the 
I Wairoa river. I am now drinking a really good 
Burgundy, made on the same river, which costs from 
j 5s. to 0s. per gallon only. 
Several experiments in growing beetroot in the 
1 Waikato district shows clearly that the sugar industry 
i will ere loug be opened up, as 14 per cent of sugar 
is obtainable, and the plant grows well with very 
) little trouble and without manure. The two natural 
I enemies to the grape — viz., the pheasant and the 
I cricket — are likely soon to be reduced in number, 
if they do not imitate the example of the Kilkenny 
cats. All the pheasants I killed in the early part 
of the season had their crops full of crickets ; and 
in several places in the district tho pheasants, having 
cleared the land of the crickets, have taken their 
) departure to now fields. Spoit up this way is very 
fair; ducks and teal in abundance, quail ditto, anH a 
good sprinkling of pheasants : it is not easy to make 
a bag of the latter. Your battue sportsman would 
be out of his element hero ; but the mau who is 
1 prepared to do his ten to fifteen milts a day may 
rely on his three to fivebr^ace of birds almost anywhere. 
! Trout are doing well in somo of our rivers ; but 
I am afraid that neither they nor salmi n will 
ever .succeed well up this way, unless something can 
be done to lessen the number of eels, which literally 
1 swarm in every stream, and grow to an inimeii j e size. 
I have no hesitation in saying they might b I ikon 
OUt of the Wairoi river in tons with tho greatc t ease 
One other matter which Mr. Hay has omitted to 
j mention, with reference to the settlement in N irthern 
New Zealand, and I have done — that is, the " K uiri 
gum" fields. Tho settlers of limited meaus, and to 
many of thoto who fall into the very conim 11 mis- 
take of taking up or purchasing more laud tbau they 
have capital to work, the gum fields afford a capital 
stand by. A crowd of "giim-diggors is usnalh 1 vol") 
motley crowd ; yet many a now well-to-do settlor his 
been indebted t<> the gum Held for helping ovei many 
a difficulty. Any mau who 0QOOS I to wo k can 
earn his 7«. to III., per day ; and £1 per day in 
' lUmmer time 1.1 not nt all an unusual thing. All 
the cipi'al required is S spade and an iron IpMr j 
an old Enticld ramrod makes a aplcudid ouc. With 
