The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-02-05

Special Correspondence Of The TntdiigeHtc. 8,
ADELAIDE, Souri, AUSTRALIA, Dec. %.
i have kept no notes OF my former
letters from tho colonies and should l
repeat observations ! trust your readers
will pardon mo.
In my last letter l promised to give
you Il report Of the greatest irrigation
scheme in this Southern Hemisphere.
On tho 9th OF November, in company OF
some friends, We loft Adelaide BY rail
for Morgan, q point on tho Murray
river los miles distant. There We found
the steamboat Pearl on which We took
passage for Mildura, come four hundred
or more miles up the river. Tho Chat;
fey Brothers are Canadians by birth,
but for some years they have worked
irrigation schemes in Southern Cali
fornia. Some five or six years ago they
came to Australia and bought and in
part got a grant Of $50, 900 acres OF land
from South Australia and n like amount
IRON the government OF Victoria. The
body OF land in South Australia is To-
Gated at Remark and that in Victoria
ut MildurN--both tracts fronting on tho
Murray river. They arc Il little over
two hundred miles apart.
Machinery OF the latest improved
kind and very large has been placed in
position for pumping. All the ma
chincry was imported from England.
Water for use in the low water season
is pumped into reservoirs called "Bill-
abongs" in this country. They are,
however, nothing more thar bayous, or
lagoons near the river, such as We have
in the states. The land devoted to this
grand irrigation scheme is comparative
~ level, and Il large section has been
cleared at considerable expense. The
land is fertile when you get water on it,
and all kinds OF fruits and vegetables
grow to perfection. 1t is a pleasant
sight TO see on this apparently arid sur
face, long row OF orange, lemon, april
cot, cherry, peach and ounce trees, and
currant and gooscbcrry bushes and
vegetables OF all kinds growing luxur-
iantly. 1t is the intention OF the Chatioy
Brothers to- erect large canning estab-
lishmcnts at Remark and Mildura. a
good market can be found in the col
lonics for all the fruit they can produce
for a few years to come, and any sur
plus will find q ready market in Eng
land, where it can be transported at a
small cost.
RAPID GROWTH.
Although these irrigation colonies
were only commenced some four years
ago, there is now ut HenmaEk some six
hundred inhabitants and at Mildura
something over four thousand. Both
towns are well-built and evidences OF
refinement and luxury are TO be seen.
A very large hotel, or 4 coffee palace,
has been erected at Mildura and is filled
to its utmost capacity with visitors
from England and elsewhere. Carriages
and coachmen ere kept by the company
to convey visitors Tree all over the
grounds who wish to sec ior themselves
: the improvements and working Of this
large tract OF country. The two tracts
embrace about forty miles square. The
settlers at Remark and Mildura are OF
the best type-many families coming
out from England to engage in this fruit
growing business. When tho water is
laid on the land, the company sell it for
ego per acre, say one hundred dollars in
u money. The production OF fruit is
fabulous and sometimes one crop will
pay the whole cost OF the land. Now
that such 4 tide OF emigration has setin
from Great Britain it will be but q few
years till both tracts OF country are
fully occupied and Il vast amount OF
splendid fruit produced.
Remark, in my opinion, is the best
situated, although Mildura has vastly
exceeded it in population. The Darl-
ing river pours into the Murray some
twenty miles above Remark, and as
the river is muddy. the silt or mud de-
posted on the land will be 4 constant
fertilizer, and the lands will not ex-
haust rs they will at Mildura where the
river water is comparatively clear.
Then Remark is nearer tho market
and. the >centers OF population. The
Murray, tho only river OF any magni-
tudc in Australia, is navigable about
$500 miles from the sen. Tho river is
about the size and width OF Red river
and its banks very much the same,
though they do not cave. The river was
overlooking its banks at many points
during our trip, and the water running
among the timber, reminded me very
much OF Red river. The country is
very lonely, and the river crooked as a
rams horn; a fow residences on The
banks and some very large sheep sta
tions. On several OF these stations
100000 to 10000 sheep are shorn
annually. Some forty thousand bales
OF wool, averaging between three an d
four hundred pounds comes down tho
Murray annually.
~ AQuEER STEAMBOAT.
Tho steamboat Pearl in which We
made the trip, is undoubtedly, the only
steamboat in the world at this lnte;; CON
structed as she is. Fulton in his first
attempt i'll the application OF steam Ger
tainly did not build such a nondescript
vessel. The fare was good enough and
the state rooms comfortable, but such Il
miserably constructed steamboat l ney-
er saw. The machinery and boilers
were up in front and every thing was
so hot you could not, find Il place where
you could remain long with comfort.
AS l was q guest OF the steamer I could
not fully express my opinion, although
the captain, or Skipper" MS they call
captains here, asked me when | went
on deck what l thought OF lis yankee
steamer" l remarked that l had never
seen one like her and would be better
able to Judge after l saw her move up
the river. | most heartily wished my
old friends, Captain feathers and
Campbell, OF the Natchez and Lee, were
I mn, mo L. ran IL:a "a rf,llu anl