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DISTRICT NEWS.
NORTHAM JOTTINGS.
AGRICULTURAL AND GENEBAL.
Tho weather has settled down to normal
summer heat, and is most suitable for har-
vest operations. Wheat reaping is in fall
swing, and while doubtless soma will come
short of their expectations, from most farms
good yields will be gathered in. The quality
of wheat coming under my notice so far is
excellent, the grain being well filled.
Growers are, however, complaining that the
filled bags weigh light, but I have noticed in
former years that the small nipped wheat
give the heaviest bags.
Barley on most farms has turned out
uncommonly well. Mr Yates cleaned up 40
bushels to the acre, Messrs French,
J K Morrell, and W Merry and others
abont 30, whilst as regards wheat, Messrs
Morgan, W S Dempster, J R Morrell,
W Merry, C Matthews, T Wilding, James
Hancock, F Morrell, E Dempster, Lawler
Brothers, and other farmers have the promise
of such crops as wonld make the heart of a
South Australian farmer leap for joy. It is
pleasing to know that fair prices for produae
will this year be coupled with fair yields, and
that the grower and not the speculator will
reap the advantage of themarket at the outset.
I would strongly impress upon our farmers
the advisability of properly garnering their
straw and chaff this year. This is the more
necessary, now that nearly every man keeps
small lots of sheep within his paddock. Some
small experiment» in Indian corn, rye, man-
gold wurzel, and beet root have been made
this year, the results of which have been
sufficiently encouraging to justify greater
attention to these profitable aids to farming.
We are gradually waking np to the fact that
if our land will not biing forth fruits spon.
taneously, it at any rate will amply repay
high class cultivation, and that its capa
bilitias are greater than has been ever sus-
pected by the owners.
It is pleasing to find that all West Aus-
tralians who have visited the- other colonies
usually come back with a higher opinion of
the land of their birth than they possessed
when they left. This is a valuable lesson for
onr youth to learn, seeing that it is almost
proverbial that if one wants a bad account
of W.A. and its capabilities, a West Aus-
tralian is the one to supply it. I am inclined
to believe this sort of thing is passing away,
and we are all awaking to the fact that our
colony only requires the capital and labour
the other colonies have long possessed to
prove the capabilities of our soil as superior
instead of inferior to any other of the con-
tinent.
It is somewhat disappointing to notice
year after year onr M.L.Ca. vaunting the
capabilities of our land, asserting that the sac
cess of our futnre depends upon the develop-
ment of agriculture, and yet doing absolutely
nothing to prove to old residents and new
comers whit onr land is oapable of under
»fettled, not to say scientific treatment.
Until we recognise by our deeds that
in our vast areas of untouched publio and
private lands, we possess a heritage worth
many Yilgarns, we can make bnt slow pro
gres«. Agricultural development acknow-
ledged the most important of all industries,
seems to be left to struggle on as it best may.
Our legislators give it little or no aid from
publio sources. Ii it were not so we should
long ago have had an experimental farm,
water conservation, forest conservation and
free destruction of forest trees to our settlers.
Planting of sandalwoqd, wattle and other
trees on our waste lands, all these t°°
are subjects that might well engage the
minds of onr best and wisest men.
Let us hope that under Responsible
Government we shall have a Minister of
Agriculture, who will possess more than the
title to recommend him for the office, that
Ibis long-neglected, all-important industry
will receive the attention it merits.
THE ECCLESIASTICAL GRANT.
The debate npon the ecclesiastical grant
was read with much interest here, and I think
Mr Shenton'8 mqtion that no pqrtion of it
should be spent in Berth or Fremantle met
with general approval. Wwle sympathising
with the voluntary principle, and approving
it in theory, I fear tb,at it would be
difficult to work it in this oolony outside
the two towns named. After aU it should
be said, that the success qr failure of the
voluntary principle depends a.3 much, upon
the clergy as, the people,. In these days
people want vajue for their money, hut sur«
I am that the earnest, soalous, whole,
hearted clergyman, plaaed in a parish capa-
ble of supporting bim, will never go short of
snoh support as should be aooorded him. If
religion be of the vital impórtanos to man-
kind that it is represented to be (and whioh
I am willing to confess I so regard it) it will
well repay the State to continue the grant.
It by its expenditure we could bnt secure the
universal practice of the " golden rule "
among men, it would be well worth the an-
nual expenditure of many suoh granta.
One thing I think might and ought to be
insisted npon in the expenditure of this
grant. A certain sum should be named and
set aside to pay the salaries of say two or
three itinerating clergyman. Some¿£600 oat
of the ¿¡3,700 is not a great sum, and this
might provide for at least two suitable mon.
We havu a large bush population ojf eajWjfew,
farmers,!} shepherds, an^ ' cullers, who (a,ve¿
even a greater claim] upon, th]e Qoùntçy %Um
those settled]^ towns] a^ä. who, I fear, are
not so tnuel) sought after or oared for as the
now celebrated Giaaoyne " nigger."
In making expensive efforts to Christianise
tne black heathen a thousand miles from
horne, it may be well to remember that there
are many growing up around the old settle-
ments of our own .color, who have a, hlffher
claim upon ns, but who, a.r.e almost entirely
nncared, far by the Churches. The last may
be a'lanientable faot but it is a faot neverthe-
less.
Northam, December 12th.
CARNARVON.
I regret to record the death of Mr Charles
Crowther one of the pioneers of the Carnar-
von District. The deceased gentleman was
well known here, und was deeply respected.
Some time ago he was one of the leaders, if
not the leader, in all the musical entertain-
ments of the Gascoyne, and as a singer he
had few equals in Western Australia. He
was also a prominent member of the order
of Freemasons. He died on December
5th, and was buried on the 6th. The
funeral was as imposing as it was possi-
ble to make it, over forty persons following
the coffin which was carried from the house,
of the deceased to the grave. The pall
bearers were four, Masons', the chief mourner
being Mr. Foss, the Resident Magistrate.
The burial service was conducted by the
Rev. Mr Thorburn. Great sympathy is felt
for Mrs Crowther, who is generally respected
throughout the district. The deceased leaves
one daughter to mourn, his loss. On the
same day was buried an infant child, this
being the only time when two funerals have
taken place, on one day. Sickness is very
prevalent here, especially among the child-
ren, and the medical officer who is untiring
in his attendance, is having a very busy time
of it.
The Axsi^vm arrived here the other day,
and will immediately commence loading her
wool. It is expected she can carry sixteen
hundred bales. Greit dissatisfaction has
been expressed here at the latí arrival cf
the wool ship, which cannot *ÄW ge,t away
from here before the, end. of JCannlry ;'and
efforts'will b4 made to secure a ship earlier
next year, without depending on the present
ship-owners'. *'
1 notice] the refuel çj[ t'^a ^onucil to grant
a Queen's,' Bh\to to. t^e G^scovne. district, and
aJ^q tbflt the inotion, wa.s somewhat ridiculed
\jy % cacts^n, member-. Tbere ean be little
d.Qn.b« bat that we nave as much right and are
equally entitled to a Queen's Plate as either
Perth or Roebourne, and doubtless other
country meetings could chum the same right.
Yet seeing that the Gascoyne was {¡h,e first \o.
ask for it-and, if required,, we, cpft]lóy'sb]ow
good reasons for tsUng.-it'seems a pity that
the effort^ to obtain, a Queen's Plate shonld
h.8 'futile, The Gascoyne could be a good
horse-broodlng district ; and nothing encour-
ages horse-breeding, and the breeding of.
good horses, better than racing. The district;,
knows and feels this, and thev ¡*o out o|tueir
way to collect ¿&M& 'or- primos ip bo raoed
fof, A iittde fiejp, from the Government
i would nave been very acceptable. If they I
cannot see their way clear to give so* many
Queen's Plates, let tbem, (¡ive] a, travelling
Qjueen's Plate, to be mu, for qt the meetings
^S their turn. ''|hus one a,nd a^l would; pa.rtict- '
p.a> in the begegts.
The voting of £700 for a water supply for
Carnarvon is looked upon as a great boon. It
is to be hoped that it will not be long before
the bar at Tag's Channel will be dredged, so
that visitors may not be able to point to the
jetty as the white elephant. In its present state
a white elephant it assuredly is, but I trust
that the time is not far distant when we shall
see all the steamers go to the jetty. This
will mean much to the town.
Carnarvon, December 5.
CAMBBIDGE GULF.
Perhaps a few lines from here may be
welcomed by you as recounting how things
are dons here, and how we survive our trials.
I need not go baek over two years, and write
up how things have progressed here. I would
say rather that retrogression is 'more marked
than advancement. The mining interest is
all that Kimberley can boast of. It is the
only productive interest, and that interest
has been very materially interfered with by
speculators (or rather false adventurers)
arriving on the field under pretence of being
authorised to purchase mining properties,
issuing cheques, and taking a few tons of
stone South for trial crushing. In due time,
in most cases, these cheqoes would be re-
turned to where they were issued, as worth-
less. Mining properties would, after many
months of lost time, revert to the original
owners, and would be taken in band for sale
again by some other fictitious capitalist,
through the so-called expert in mining. They
have been experts in falsifying themselves,
and misleading the confiding, honeBt miner.
It is some relief now to see snch men as
Mr H S Keys, Lamont & Co, with other
gentlemen making their presence felt amongst
us. It is with much regret that I have to
inform you that through a buggy accident
Mr H S Keys has had to return to Wyndham
for medical assistance without going to the
Kimberley goldfields to personally inspect
mining property tbore, and to report on the
same. Mr H S Keys' representative has, I
understand, gone on under instructions from
Mr Keys, and his return here and his report
ia looked forward towitb considerable interest,
as his statement will be substantially true.
Mr Lamont has loaded tbe last portion of his
machinery landed here, and destined for the
'.Ruby Queen" Prospecting claim. Mr
Lamont appears to bo fully np to his oharge
"assisted by his engineer," as everything
nnder his direction, with his man's assistance,
is going on quietly, and not a mistake or
mishap has ocenrred in the loading and
despatch of the teams engaged by him to
convey the machinery from Wyndham to the
field. Mr Durack landed quarts crushing
machinery here some time ago, destined
for the field, but by some misunder-
standing between that gentleman and
the carriers, he has not succeeded ' in
getting carriors to engage to 'carry
his machinery forward. So now, as this is
the advent of the rainy season, it may be
many months ere Mr Durack will see his
machinery landed on the Kimberley gold
field.
Mr Wright evidently is the right man
to have the contract to erect a telegraph line,
as the progress he is making is very marked
nnder the many diffionlties that surround him.
But when this is finished it will be a great be-
nefit to all. We have no mail between here and
the gold field. The Government- do not con-
sider that our position warrants this privi.
lege. Weare living a. life of aemi-oivilita.
tiaq. Same times we do nat have news from
outside parts far some weeks, and during this
time, amongst ourselves, wa are wondering
what) ¡is going on in the other parts of the
world. The road between hete and the dig-
gings is now a hundred per cent, better than
it was two years and a half ago, bnt the
improvement is the result of individual
enterprise. Teamsters and packers 'have
opened new tracks at different times, and
now the first one hundred miles ia fairly
good, and with a small outlay of money,
nnder good oyerg.eepsb.ip, very little com-
plaint conld be made.
I wonder at the Wyndham, merchants
being satisfied with the Brest, nt wharf accom-
modation. 4 good whajif with a good ap-
proach conld be ma.de here at a very reason-
able coat. This work was conmunoed some
time aso, aqd the slovenly manner the work
is in at present will speak its own Story,
Wyndham, Nov. 2$.
$