124 
A COLONY IN THE MAKING 
CHAP. 
been discovered, though bush-harrowing has proved a 
considerable mitigation. It is not unlikely that the 
pests in question are the result of two or three seasons 
of unusual drought and will not recur in years of 
more normal rainfall. 
It need not be thought from these somewhat 
gloomy remarks that for the newcomer to embark in 
wheat-growing would be an act of folly. That is not 
so. Nearly every farmer who has grown wheat in 
suitable localities and on a sufficient scale has done so 
at a profit. Even under present conditions there is 
every probability of two or three good crops when 
new land is broken up. Such crops will pay for all 
the labour involved and give a satisfactory profit in 
addition. After this, should rust occur to such a 
degree as to prohibit another wheat-crop, even with a 
change of seed, the land will be in excellent condition 
for an alternative crop. 
Maize Growing .—During the years 1909-10 the 
idea of growing maize for export was promulgated and 
for a period flourished exceedingly. It is well known 
that the export of maize has done a great deal, in fact 
nearly everything, to increase the prosperity of South 
African farmers, and those who hoped most from the 
effects of organised export from the Protectorate, and 
indeed were responsible for the maize boom, based 
their expectations on their experiences in the south. 
As so often happens, in deducing an analogy from the 
different country certain factors were left out. South 
Africa is a huge, and with certain notable exceptions 
not very fertile, stretch of country none too well 
watered. Instead, therefore, of having to choose, as 
in British East Africa, from a variety of products that 
all grow well, farmers generally speaking are only too 
