The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-06-05
LOOKING US OVER
David nj. Dow of Melbourne,
Australia, Here.
Wants to See How People Farm
in Kansas.
or
NEED OF IRRIGATION.
Much Land in His Country That
Is Now Waste.
Government Owns Railroads,
Telegraphs and Telephones.

| David NJ. Dow, a newspaper man
from Melbourne, Australia, is in To-
peka today to study Kansas agricul-
ture through the eyes of Kansas ex-
perts. lie is writing reports of his in
designations to 1.-The Age" daily and
THE Leader (weekly), both pub
lished by the same firm at Melbourne.
1--WE have new country says Mr..
| Dow, land we look to America for our
lessons. We are especially interested
in irrigation, for we have vast interior
portions of Australia which is lacking
| in moisture. We must irrigate it, and
then it will produce anything"
Mr.. Dow has the peculiar twist of
| tongue characteristic of the English
! man in Australia. He also has various
characteristics not common with
copious notes in a black covered note
book. He carries some sort of a patent
pencil in a silver case. He says Sir
about every other sentence. But he
seems to get what he is after in the
way of information.
81 am a long ways from home,'' said
Mr.. Dow. land 1 am improving the
opportunity to study other things
here besides agriculture. I put in
several days in San Francisco, and the
situation there is certainly appalling.
And in the midst of all the destruc-
ton, the labor unions and capitalists
are tearing at each others threats,
and seem to be in a death struggle in
which one or the other must be hence
forth the under dog. I have seen
nothing like the San Francisco condi-
tions anywhere. Out there in Cali
fornia the whole political situation
seems to be controlled by the Southern
Pacific railway. The railway seems to
he a gigantic political machine, and
the public life of the state is honey
ccmbed with railroad influence.
IF it has got to be a question of
whether the railroads shall control
the government, or the government
control the railroads, I think I would
choose the latter. We have govern
ment ownership in Australia.
However, must say that your rail-
than ours. You have better equipment,
and better service. Between Melbourne
and Sidney, the two principal towns of
Australia, we have very good service, !
but on other lines the service is poor.
The government also owns the tele-
graphs and telephones, and while there
is good deal of kicking about the tel
ephone service, / don't know that there |
is any more than I hear over here in |
this country, even in the towns where |
you have competitive service.
1.-The government recently had a big |
strike on its railroads. The engine |
drivers and firemen went out, and for |
two weeks things were in confusion. |
Few trains were operated, and every |
thing was IN an aWrul muudle. F1nalIy. |
the strikers gave in, and the govern |
,nent won q decisive victory. Personal |
ly. think that if the strikers had held
on while longer. the government !
would have been beaten.
1--WE have had a good deal of ex-
travagant management and costly ex-
periments in our government railroad
system Not long ago. the government
brought over a practical railroad man
from America and told him to take hold
IF the railroads and make them pay. |
In spite of good deal of opposition,
he is doing that thing, and will make
the government railroads succeed if
they leave him alone. But we have
no trouble about discrimination in
freight rates. The government fixed
things so there is no rebating.''
Mr. Dow had a long talk while here
with F. D. Coburn about agriculture,
with ]. w. Robson of Butler county
about the raising of stock, and with
Fred Wellhouse about horticulture.