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CAMPANIA.
THE STORY OF A GREAT ESTATE.
SOON TO BE A SETTLEMENT.
(By Our Travelling Correspondent )
When the road from Bellerive reaches
Richmond, after journeying 14 miles,
it turns sharp to the left, in the centre
of the old town, and heads due north,
forming, for a distance five miles, a
straight red line as it passes through
the middle of the fertile Richmond val-
ley. To the east and west timbered hills
edge this broad vale, which is second to
none as an agricultural district. Before
one stretches the broad level fields that
turn from dark red to green, and from
green to gold, as the seasons change from
seedtime to harvest, and the reaper and
binder takes the place of the plough
and seed drill.
It is at the northern end of this valley,
where the road turs to the right as it
skirts, the foot of the dark shadowed
Sugarloaf-hill, and winds its way to-
wards Colebrook, that the Campania
estate is situated, and it is just 19 miles
from Bellerive. It has often and truly
been said that, in those first days of the
colony, when the land was given by free
grant to settlers, tho sturdy pioneers
proved themselves good judges and picked
the very "eyes'' out of the country.
When, in the early days of last century,
Francis Smith selected and was granted
Campania, he must have congratulated
himself on his good fortune.
"The estate, however, as originally
granted to him was very much smaller
than the Campania of to-day, for as time
has, gone by adjoining farms have been
purchased, so that the total area now
amounts to no less than 1,712 acres. That
part of the estate which is situated on
the Sugarloaf, and extends down to the
White Kangaroo Rivulet, was originally
granted to William Kearney, whose fam-
ily at one time owned extensive property
in the district. The farm on the Sugar-
loaf is still called Woodreel, and the old
stone homestead near the roadside was
built in the good old times. That part
of the Kearney's grant which is situated
betwixt the road and the river is called
Lyngrove, though it ,was better known
in tho old days as Penrise. On a green
flat, near the rivulet are still to be seen
the remains of the old house, and near
by the ruins of the large racing stable
in which many a famous racer was train-
ed in the days when the Kearneys were
prominent on the turf.
Probably the first buildings erected on
Campania proper were placed on the
eastern side of the Coal River, on a
small rise, now planted out with pine
trees. None of these buildings are now
standing. They were, used as regimental
quarters, when the colony was more or
less, under military control. Here it
was that Mr. Gunning, one of the magis-
trates of those days, and after whom the
famous Sugarloaf is called, held his
court and meted out justice.
The large two-storeyed homestead,
which stands on a commanding rise that
overlooks nearly the whole estate, was
built by the first owner, Francis Smith.
It is a grand old house, built of stone
and painted white amd belongs to those
olden times when labour and time were
both plentiful. The broad flagged hall,
the curving white stone stairway, each
step worn in the centre by the footsteps
of a century; the deep set windows, with
their folded shutters, and the room
themselves, with their broad, open fire
places, all give the impression of com-
fort, and peace, and plenty. From the
broad stone verandah one looks out upon
a garden full of well-trimmed shrubs and
bushes, and tall, shady pine trees, and
at the back of the house is a quaint
old courtyard, walled up high, and pav-
ed with large white flagstones. Here was
born and lived for many years the son
of Francis Smith. He afterwards became
Sir Francis Villeneuve Smith, Chief Jus-
tice, of the colony.
When Campania passed out of the
Smith family it became the property of
the late Mr. Basset Dickson, from whom
it was purchased by the late Mr. James
Brock about 40 years ago, and in whose
family it still remains, the present
owners, Messrs, H. E. and H. J. Brock,
being the third generation.
The estate has recently been subdivided
into about 20 blocks by Messrs, Brock
Bros., who intend offering the wholo pro-
perty for sale by public auction in No-
vember next. Never before in the His-
tory of Tasmania has so fine an
estate thus been placed before the
public, and the subdivision of Cam-
pania for closer settlement purposes is an
epoch-making event in the agricultaral
history of the State. Campania is-unani-
mously considered the very cream itsclf
of a district thal is from end to end
¡deal farming country, and- ot all the
estates thit during leccnt years have
been-cither acquired, by the Crown or
sold privately for closer settlement pur-
poses none has offered such advantages
as does Campania.
The land itself is, for the most part,
undulating country, that rises and falls
like some great sea, and down by the
banks of the streams, that water it are
hundreds of acres of rich river flats,
fringed round by willows and pictur-
esque native trees, and, save where it is
alluvial, the land throughout the estate
is a rich, black volcanic soil.. The whole
estate ¡s watered by the Coal River,
which flows through it from end to end,
and into it empty both the Native Hut
and the White Kangaroo rivulets. Each
of the blocks is permanently watered by
ono or other ot these streams. The past
yields of grain and crops of hay are still
spoken of and quoted, and the fattening
qualities of its rich pasturcs are by-
words of the district. From an agricul-
tural standpoint, Campania saw its best
days when it passed from old Mr. James
Brock to his son, the late Mr. H. J.
Brock, for during his occupation a large
area came each year under the plough.
During his time as much as 14,000 bushels
of wheat were grown in a single season,
and he it was who erected the large stone
mill on the estate, near the railway sta-
tion, with which it was connected. Here
the wheat was ground, and at the Cen-
tennial Exhibition held at Melbourne in
'88 the gold medal was won, against all-
comers, by wheat and flour produced on
Campania.
Whilst mentioning this old mill, that
stands as such a solid monument of thw
days that were, it will interest many to
know that this large two-storeyed build-
ing was designed by Mr. W. Greenlaw,
Mr. Brock's cousin, who then owned Tice-
hurst, and that the foundation-stone was
laid by Mr. Brock's oldest son, James, on
the anniversary of his first birthday, a
miniature silver trowel being presented
to tho baby craftsman by Mr. Thomas
Jarvis for the purpose. The large steam
engine that drove the machinery is now
used to work the irrigation plant at
Lawrenny.
During later years, however, fat stock
have been the principal feature of the
estate, and of recent years Campania has
played the part of a "topping up" pad-
dock to the famous Lawrenny Esstate in
the Ouse district, also owned by Messrs.
Brock Bros. As many as 7,500 fat
sheep alone have been sold at the pro-
perty during a season. The first rape
ever grown in the Richmond district was
sown on Caimpania by Mr. John Hay,
who has managed the property for many
years now, and as many as 30 sheep have
been fattened to the acre. There is no
estate in the South that for its size has
so greal a proportion of rich arable land,
and of its 4,000 odd acres, more than 3,000
acres have at varions times come under
the plough. Practically the whole estate
is completely cleared. The property is
27½ miles by rail from the capital, and
the Campania station is on the property.
The settler here escapes the hardship of a
bush fire, and suffers no social isolation,
for the estate is in the centre of a dis-
trict that has been settled for a hundred
years. The little township of Campania,
referred lo locally as "The Camp," that
has sprung up around the station is
actually upon the properly, and here may
be found a church, State-school, public
hall, and post and telegraph offico; also
saleyards, belonging lo the leading firms
of auctioneers, and regular sales of stock,
etc-., are held.
The lie of the country makes it especi-
ally suitable for small holdings, and the
farmer who purchases a block on Cam-
pañía can plough his land straightaway
and harvest his crop, and so get an im-
mediate return, and, moreover, the "fur-
row" will turn up practically as virgin
soil, so long has it lain under grass, and
much of the land when ¡t was last used
was reaped by hand.
In the sub-division of the estate care
has been paid to surveying each block in
that each holding will get its fair share
of the rich country, with roads and rail-
way facilities, and of the existing boun-
dary fences. Should any intending pur-
chaser care to carry on orchard-
ing, the district is especially suitable
for this purpose. Twenty-eight acres
of orchard are already planted out,
and the trees are making splendid wood
growth, and carrying a good sample of
well-coloured fruit. Mr. John Osborne,
the Government horticultural expert, has
reported most favourably on the estate,
and considers that on every block are
splendid site's and soil for orchaiding pur-
poses. Mr. V.R. Morrisby, who owns
Cranston, an adjoining estate, and who
has had a lifelong experience in orchard-
ing, and has also about 60 acres planted
out in pears and apples, considers the dis-
trict particularly well suited for fruit-
growing purposes. Other large orchard-
ists adjoining are Messrs. Rex Bros., at
Ticehurst, and Mr. Maxwell, at Torry-
burn.
The fact that the railway carries the
fruit direct on to Hobart wharves is a
great benefit to the orchardist, as both
the cost of cartage across Hobart and ad-
ditional handling are dispensed with.
.The mildness of the climate with its
freedom from frost makes the locality
specially suitable for early farm produce,
such as potatoes and peas, which always
find a good market at Hobart. Another
branch of agriculture that could be car-
ried on is hopgrowing, for which the
large areas of alluvial flats are eminently
suited. Hops were successfully grown,
on Stratford, an adjoining farm, over 30
years ago, and at Native Corners, not far
distant, there are several hop gardens.
With the sub-division of Campania will
come great changes.. Of course, the dis-
trict will benefit in many ways, for the
support of 20 families, instead of one,
means a great call upon the resources of
the land, and the employment of much
labour. But for half a century nearly it
has been the home of the Brocks, who in
many ways have done much for the dis-
trict.
With the cutting up of Campania comes
the passing of a great estate, and the old
white house that looks down upon the
surrounding country with an air of staid
propriety and ownership, should soon look-
down upon a thriving and progressive
settlement.
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