The State of the Crops
“Mr. H. Baker of Kangaroo Flat, who about three weeks ago was travelling in the Hundreds of Lindley, Schomburg, Eba, and Bundey, gives us a deplorable account of the state of the crops in those hundreds. In Lindley, he put up at a hut, to get some dinner, and intended paying for it, but he found no one at home but a little girl, who stated that they had nothing to eat, not even a piece of mutton. The family had been living on potatoes for the previous three days, and the mother had gone out to try and get some food. Their crop had entirely failed, and there was not a single sign to show that one had been reaped. In these districts the land is nearly bare of any kind of vegetation by which animals could graze. Eudunda was almost as bad, scarcely a crop being reaped in the district. Surely some alteration ought to be made in our Land laws, and these, poor farmers are entitled to same great concession at the hands of the Government. If for no other reason than keeping them in the Colony, they ought not to be compelled to pay either rent or interest, when their crops are an utter failure, such as these, and seeing if there is not some good in the land or whether it must be all thrown open for vast sheep runs. Better this than have so many farmers going inssolvent year after year.”
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