. Australia's greatest need : with an introductory note by the Archbishop of Brisbane. rom these rivers flow through a dry countryand the waters were wasted until irrigationbegan to produce magical results. Allthose states have entered upon irrigationschemes with considerable energy. In New South Wales the damming ofthe Murrumbidgee stands first. The fullscheme is not yet in operation, but 14,000acres were already available for settlementin 1912. When complete it will com-mand an area of about 357,000 acres ofhigh-class irrigable land suitable forintense cultivation, and, in addit
. Australia's greatest need : with an introductory note by the Archbishop of Brisbane. rom these rivers flow through a dry countryand the waters were wasted until irrigationbegan to produce magical results. Allthose states have entered upon irrigationschemes with considerable energy. In New South Wales the damming ofthe Murrumbidgee stands first. The fullscheme is not yet in operation, but 14,000acres were already available for settlementin 1912. When complete it will com-mand an area of about 357,000 acres ofhigh-class irrigable land suitable forintense cultivation, and, in addition, anarea of about 1,000,000 acres of pastorallands which will be supplied with waterfor stock purposes, and for the irrigationof one acre in every thirty for foddercrops . The irrigation areas of Victoria arechiefly in the Goulburn Valley, which isfed from the Australian Alps. The oldfarmers who formerly occupied the landsand who were unaccustomed to irrigationfarming, are readily selling their farms ofabout 400 acres to the Government atgood prices, in order to make way for new. The unfolding of the Land 45 men who will be able to make an equallygood living on 50 acres of irrigated land.^ South Australia led the way by com-mencing operations at Renmark in 1887on the banks of the River Murray. Thewater here, as elsewhere, is under thecontrol of an Irrigation Trust, and theannual water rate for the settlers is acre. There are over 5,500 acres under cul-tivation : and the results achieved duringseveral years past have been remarkable :the total value of the produce being notless than £100,000 annually. Raisin andcurrant vines occupy a large area : andapricots, peaches, pears, nectarines,oranges, lemons, and other trees give goodreturns. This is only the first of manysimilar settlements along the banks ofAustralias greatest river. ^ A 40-acre holding in the Cohuma district, withan imperfect water supply, has yielded an averagereturn from fruit, for the past 7 years, of
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