1 Jawn., 1898.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 7 
The Queensland Agricultural College. 
Proressor H. M. Suenron, Principal of the Agricultural College at Gatton, gives 
the following résumé of the work done at that institution during the first term:— 
We are just now about to bring to a close the first term in the life of the 
school (remarked the Professor), and it has been a very satisfactory one to all 
concerned. The College has been in existence almost six months. It opened 
its doors on the 1st July, and the examinations and the breaking-up exercises 
are fixed for the 13th and 14th of December. We began work on the 
Ist July, with an enrolment of twenty-four pupils, and the enrolment now 
totals thirty-three. Moreover, the unanimous opinion of the students is that 
they are going on, most of them with the intention of finishing the work they 
have undertaken. After the Christmas holidays, work will begin anew on the 
12th January, with the assurance of a considerable increase in our members. 
In this connection I may state, we have had a number of applications from 
New South Wales for admission to the College. With our students’ help we 
have stumped, grubbed, and burnt an area covering 8 or 10 acres about the 
College grounds; and, besides this rough work, a vast amount has been done.in 
other directions. We have broken up and planted 100 acres of land, and when 
I say broken up, I mean not only has it been turned, but that it has all been cruss- 
ploughed, and much of it planted. We have two crops of 60 acres of maize, and 
40 acres additional are nearly ready for planting. ‘This maize is a magnificent 
sight, much of it being shoulder high, uniformly even, and full of promise. Again, 
we have grown 6 or 7 acres of potatoes, 7 acres of setaria, and a great variety of 
garden products; and I may add that our garden crops have made us famous 
all over the district. We have been sending College-grown cabbages and 
cauliflowers to Brisbane, and as far west as Clifton. To show what these 
vegetables weigh, I may say that we sold them under a guarantee that the © 
cabbages would not run less than 8 lb. per head. Among the smaller under- 
takings may be mentioned the planting of 6 acres of orchard and vineyard. 
Then we have a great yariety of expérimental crops ; among these, 340 
varieties of wheat. We have 4:acres of castor beans—another experimental crop. 
Seeing that we import into this colony annually 56,000 gallons of castor oil, 
and as the castor bean is found to be a profitable crop in the State of Kansas, 
it would seem to be worth while to try whether the manufacture of castor oil 
may not become a Queensland industry. Then we have some 4 or 5 acres of 
cow peas, 2 acres of loja beans, and about 8 acres of haricots. These haricots 
are wholly imported. ‘The growth of these beans has been one of the most 
interesting little undertakings of the year, although the season has been 
wholly bad for this particular crop, being much too wet and hot early, and 
too dry later on. ‘The crop, however, 1s a beautiful one, and gives me every 
encouragement to believe that the growth of this: staple bean will get a 
place among the industries of the colony. I suppose our College crops are a 
fair index to the condition of the general crops of the country. Our wheat was 
a magnificent experiment. Of the 840 varieties grown, about forty showed 
themselves actually rust-proof. These forty wheats, I need not say, are very 
valuable, having passed the ordeal in this way. The maize in the Lockyer 
district—that is, the early crop—is suffering seriously from drought, and much 
of it is now past hope. But herein the Queensland farmer has a great advan- 
tage. He can still plant maize with a reasonable assurance of a crop. Of the 
College crop of maize, I can only say that if the drought proves fatal we shall 
promptly make ensilage of it, and replant the ground for a late crop.* We 
have just begun work upon a College dairy, all of which, by the way, was done 
largely by our students, so that in another term we shall add regular dairy 
instruction to the College work. We shall also be. able to give our students 
regular practice in the chemical laboratory, an advantage not hitherto enjoyed. 
* Splendid rains have since fallen, and crops of maize are everywhere luxuriant.—Ed, Q.4.J, 
