|
|
|
|
The purpose of this site is to try and get the world to start dealing with the interaction between culture and success in a mature and intelligent manner. Poll: Do you believe culture influences success? Yes 67.03% No 17.5% Uncertain 15.3% - Newest Articles - Per capita income figures for the countries and regions of the world. While rarely read this is Gandhi's most important written work. The traditional explanation for the noticeable differences in income across cultures was to say that they differed in their level of civilization. - Categories - - All Articles - Per capita income figures for the countries and regions of the world. While rarely read this is Gandhi's most important written work. The traditional explanation for the noticeable differences in income across cultures was to say that they differed in their level of civilization. This 1920 work by Roger Babson is a classic with in its genre. It promotes the traditional, pre-1960s explanation for the connection between success and culture. Current events in Zimbabwe are giving us an unprecedented opportunity to measure and judge the effect of white settlement and colonization in Africa. Average US Incomes by Race, Ethnicity and Religion. Max Weber's claim that Protestantism is more conducive to success than Catholicism and that Calvinism is in particular more successful is widely repeated and rarely examined. We need to recognize that culture is the personality of a group or race and we must see culture and having seen it, make it a work of art. The moral justification for welfare is supposed to be that we are temporarily helping out our fellow man through a rough stretch of road or helping the disabled permanently. If it is to become a system for continually transferring wealth from one group to another the people behind this change owe us an explanation. The great taboo of our age is not speaking about race, but speaking about culture. Bourgeoisie is more than just a term of abuse used by the Left, it refers to a real people who led real lives. Selections from the Federal Outlook Selections from a 1960's Rhodesian newspaper. How Africa Underdeveloped Africa Africa is the poorest place in the world. Why? Will Famine Come to Zimbabwe? The end of commercial farming in Zimbabwe could plunge the country into famine. The Tragedy of the Zimbabwe Commons Communally owned property always has and always will suffer from the 'tragedy of the commons' problem. Band Aid Africa recieves $15 billion a year in aid. Is it helping? |
Sourthern Rhodesia
Report of Commision
to enquire into the Preservation, etc., of the Natural Resources of the Colony.
April, 1939
INDEX
I. Introduction page 2
II. Natural Resources and their Importance page 3
III. Geographical. Physical and Geological Features page 5
IV. Allocation of Land to Natives and Europeans page 7
V. The Soil. General Observations on Soil Erosion page 10
VI. Soil Erosion on Land under Native Use page 11
VII. Measures already taken to combat Soil Erosion on Land under Native Use page 14
VIII. Soil Erosion on Land under European Use page 15
IX. Measures already taken to combat Soil Erosion on Land under European Use page 17
X. General Recommendations as to the Prevention and Control of Soil Erosion page 19
XI. Water Resources page 25
XII. Forests page 31
XIII. Afforestation page 39
XIV. Overstocking page 41
XV. Veld Management page 44
XVI. Breeds of Cattle page 49
XVII. Minerals page 51
XVIII. National Parks, Game Reserves and Open Spaces page 54
XIX. Miscellaneous page 57
XX. National Resources Board page 63
ILLUSTRATIONS
Plate No. 1. Erosion and Denudation caused by Stock.
2. Erosion caused by disused Roads.
3. Sheet Erosion on newly cultivated sandy soil. Erosion on first year Tobacco Land. Erosion on fallowed Tobacco Land.
4. Gully Erosion.
5. Incipient Gully Erosion in Maize Land where the slope does not exceed 1 in 30.
6. Discharge from a Contour Ridge causing damage to a Farm Road. Erosion arising from Road Drains. Erosion as seen in the Inyanga District (origin uncertain).
7. Land recovering from Erosion through Contour Ridging. A Crop reaped from Protected Land.
8. Wooded and denuded Hillsides at Hunyani Poort.
APPENDICES
I. Rural Development work for Natives. Early History and Growth. (By the Agriculturist, Native Affairs Department) page 65
II. Means of Improving Soil and Water Conservation. (By the Division of Irrigation) page 66
III. Expenditure on Soil Conservation for European Areas page 68
IV. Memorandum on Conservation of Natural Resources. (By the Director of Irrigation) page 69
V A Conservation Policy for Matabeleland. (By the Irrigation Engineer for Matabeland) page 71
VI. Memorandum describing Methods for Securing Best Grazing Use of a Typical Granite Farm. (By the Agriculturist, the Chief Animal Husbandry Officer and the Chief Chemist, Department of Agriculture, Salisbury) page 73
COMMISSION
BY His Excellency Sir Herbert James Stanley, Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George, Governor and Commander in Chief in and over the Colony of Southern Rhodesia.
TO Mr. Justice Mcllwaine, MA., LL.B.. K.C., Samuel Milligan, Esquire, C.B.E., Arthur Cyril Jennings. Esquire, A.M.I.C.E., and George Arthur Davenport, Esquire.
GREETINGS:
Whereas it is deemed expedient to appoint a Commission to enquire into and report upon the extent to which the natural resources of the Colony are deteriorating or being wasted through various causes:
Now know ye that I, the Governor aforesaid, reposing great confidence in your knowledge, discretion and ability, have authorised and appointed, and by these presents authorise and appoint you, the said Mr. Justice Mcllwaine, M.A., LL.B., K.C. (Chairman), Samuel Milligan, Esquire, C.B.E., Arthur Cyril Jennings, Esquire, A.M.I.C.E., and George Arthur Davenport, Esquire, to be Commissioners for the purposes aforesaid; and for the better effecting of the purposes of this my Commission, I do invite all such persons as you or any three of you shall judge necessary, by whom you may he the better informed of the subjects herein submitted for your consideration, and every matter connected therewith, to place before you the fullest information on the subject of the enquiry, to grant you access to all such official books, documents, papers and records as may assist you in the enquiry, and to require of and concerning the premises by all other lawful ways and means whatsoever.
The terms of your reference shall include the following matters:-
To enquire into and report upon the extent to which the natural resources of the Colony are deteriorating or being wasted through -
(a) soil erosion; (b) destruction of trees, grasses and other vegetation, whether taking place in the course of farming and mining operations or otherwise; (c) overstocking and improper or undesirable methods of farming and treatment of the land; (d) interference with the natural courses, catehment areas, swamps or other sources of streams or rivers; (e) any other causes.
(2) To make recommendations regarding the methods deemed most effective and expedient for preventing, controlling and checking such deterioration and waste and restoring, conserving and increasing such natural resources.
(3) Such other matters appertaining to the aforesaid terms of reference as may be considered useful and expedient.
And I further will and direct, and by these presents ordain, that you, or any three of you, do report to me, with all convenient speed, your opinion on the matters herein submitted for your consideration:
And I further will and command, and by these presents ordain, that this my Commission shall continue in full force and virtue until you, or any three of you, shall have finally reported upon the several matters aforesaid, or otherwise until this my Commission shall be by me revoked; and that you, or any three of you, may from time to time proceed in execution thereof, although the same be not continued from time to time by adjournment; and that you, or any three of you, shall have liberty to report to me your several proceedings from time to time as the same or any part thereof may respectively be completed and perfected.
In witness whereof I, the Governor aforesaid, have caused this my Commission to be issued on this twentieth day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and thirty-eight.
H. J. STANLEY, Governor.
Governor's Office, Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia.
To His Excellency Sir Herbert James Stanley, Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George, Governor and CommanderinChief in and over the Colony of Southern Rhodesia.
MAY IT PLEASE YOUR EXCELLENCY:
In terms of Your Excellency's Commission dated the 20th September. 1938, and published in the Government Gazette of the 23rd of that month, we, your Commissioners, were appointed to investigate and report upon the seven! matters set out therein.
Having completed our investigations in accordance with the aforesaid terms of reference, we have the honour respectfully to submit to your Excellency the following report:-
I. INTRODUCTION.
1. In view of the wide range of subjects covered by the terms of reference and seeing that the problems connected therewith are sometimes local in their incidence or liable to vary from place to place, it was realised that it would be necessary to travel widely in order to get a satisfactory grasp of local conditions and to give persons familiar therewith an opportunity of expressing their views thereon, as in many cases their evidence otherwise might not have been forthcoming.
2. The normal time for the commencement of the rainy season being near at the time of the appointment of the Commission, it was decided to visit first the districts where, ordinarily, rains make travelling difficult and thereafter places which are generally accessible in all weathers. Notwithstanding the abnormally wet season, your Commission was able to adhere, in the main, to the itinerary which had been fixed, although prevented from making certain short visits which had been contemplated. In all some 5,300 miles were travelled within the Colony.
3. The Commission was pleased to find great interest taken in the matters referred to it for consideration not only by persons directly affected but also by members of the public, who displayed a gratifying concern for the preservation of the natural resources of the country and their attendant amenities. The total number of witnesses was over 200. Altogether 1,523 foolscap pages of typescript evidence was recorded. In addition, memoranda were submitted by people unable to attend in person and by others at the request of the Commission.
4. Your Commissioners desire to record their appreciation of the help and consideration readily extended to them by the public generally and of the assistance freely given by the officers of the various Government Departments both at headquarters and in the districts. While it would be invidious to single anyone out for special mention, great satisfaction was experienced at the keenness shown by engineers and other technical and general officers chiefly concerned with the questions coining before the Commission.
5. In pursuance of arrangements made by this Government with the Government of the Union of South Africa and the Resident Commissioner of Basutoland, respectively, two of your Commissionersthe Chairman and Mr. S. Milliganvisited the Union and Basutoland. The officials of the various Departments at Pretoria were most helpful in discussing and giving information on problems, common to both countries, being considered by the Commission. Of special interest were inspections near Pretoria and Warmbaths of pasture research stations in company with Dr. Pole Evans, Chief, Division of Plant Industry, and officers of that Division. The visit to Basutoland was most instructive on the subject of soil erosion, which, having reached enormous proportions there, is being successfully combated by heroic measures. His Honour, the Resident Commissioner, the Director of Agriculture, and other officers gave the visiting Commissioners every facility for acquainting themselves with what is being done in antierosion works, pasture improvement and other matters relevant to their enquiries.
6. Your Commissioners consider it desirable, in order to get a clearer comprehension of the matters arising in their report, that they should begin by stating what they understand by "natural resources" and then, in order to secure an understanding of the importance of guarding these resources call attention to the unfortunate results which have ollcwl their neglect elsewhere.
7. Thereafter a condensed description of the general geographical, physical and geological features of the Colony will he given, and, in view of the relationship between the inhabitants of the country and its resources, it will be shown how the land has been allocated for the use of natives and Europeans respectively.
8. Having, as briefly as possible, set out so much as is deemed necessary for an introduction to and a better understanding of the Report, your Commissioners will deal with the specific questions which have been referred to them. In so doing, it may be found necessary to depart to some extent from the precise order and wording of the terms of reference, but it is trusted that there will he no omission to deal with all the matters referred to them.
II. NATURAL RESOURCES AND THEIR IMPORTANCE.
9. The subject of the Commissions investigation being the natural resources of the Colony, it is important to determine in what these actually consist. It appears to be a fairly common view that the term "natural resources" connotes only such things as constitute the material wealth of a country. The Commission is of opinion that the term should, for the purposes of their investigations at least, be used in a wider sense and include not only those things which provide for man's material wants, but also all those gifts of nature which minister to the aesthetic and finer side of his being. For example, it is submitted that the value of a treeclad hillside should, apart from the land, be estimated not merely in terms of the marketable timber or firewood that it contains, or even of the beneficent effect it may have on moisture and temperature conditions; regard must also be had to the pleasure given by such things as the beauty of its varied shades and colour, the company of bird and animal life it harbours and its artistic setting in the landscape.
10. Relatively speaking, this Colony is in the early years of settlement by Europeans. Hitherto, the many wide acres of virgin ground may have led the general public, if they ever gave any thought to the matter at all, to regard the manner in which the user of the soil treated it as a matter of his own concern. In a richly wooded country, there is a tendency to regard trees as of little account and view their widespread destruction with comparative unconcern. This, and an apparently similar indifference as to water, pasturage and other resources of the country, happily, appears to be on the wane.
11. It will be seen from later passages of this report that, although destruction of the natural resources of the Colony has been considerable in some directions, it is not yet too late to take steps to arrest destruction and deterioration and in a certain measure retrieve what has been lost.
12. To assist in the realisation of the gravity of the subject and in the hope it may lead to a determination to safeguard the natural wealth of the country, attention is directed to the dire consequences which have followed in other lands when man's operations were allowed to upset the balance of nature by abusing her resources. History and modern research show that to this cause may be largely traced the decline and fall of mighty empires of the past, such as Persia, Babylon, Assyria and Chaldea. Rich fields and once populous cities lie buried under many feet of sand. The hanging gardens of Babylon only possess an interest for the antiquarian and the ruins of the palace of Darius, the King of Kings, lie in an uninhabitable wilderness.
13. It may be that visions of such decadence possessed the poet when he wrote :
"They say the Lion and the Lizard keep The Courts where Jamshy'd gloried and drank deep."
Buried cities and other architectural remains found in Arabia, Northern Africa, and even in the Sahara desert, bear silent testimony to the results of the upsetting of the balance of nature by man in destroying the forests and vegetation which once covered the land. Ruins of vast irrigation works in Mesopotamia, on a scale which has not been surpassed in modern times, indicate that their disruption was due to failure to control and preserve the watersheds in the upper reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers.
14. The coastal regions of the Mediterranean Sea were once well clothed with trees and other vegetal cover. These have gone and have been followed by the unimpeded wash of much of the fertile soil into the sea.
15. Examples of the deterioration of the land in recent times through the action of man may be found in many parts of the world. It appears from the report of the Drought Investigation Commission in 1923 that, in the Union of South Africa, soil erosion and deterioration or disappearance of the flora is widespread and that through these and other causes large areas of once fertile country are being overtaken by semidesert conditions.
16. In a report recently issued by the Union Department of Agriculture on pasture research, Mr. Rowland, Pasture Research Officer, writes:
We see whole districts which were recently ploughed for grain and which are today lying abandoned and are carrying ruderal and wellnigh useless vegetation. Throughout the Union the carrying capacity of the veld is declining at an everincreasing rate. Countless springs and streams which were perennial are today drying out. The desert is marching eastwards. Karoo bushthe worst of it unhappilyis intruding throughout the short grass country. Lastly, erosion, more spectacular and possibly the more advanced stage of the other processes, is clutching at the rich soils of the merino country .... The veld can no longer be regarded as a stable source of supply. It is moving downhill, trampled and pushed by the hoofs of tens of thousands of starving animals, loosened and carried off by wind and water to the sea."
17. In Basutoland, the mountainous nature of the country and the agricultural and pastoral methods of the people resulted in almost unbelievable destruction of the arable land and deterioration of the pastures. A Commission. generally known as the Pim Commission, was appointed by the Secretary of State to enquire into and report upon the position of the country from the financial and economic point of view. The report, published in 1935, called special attention to the erosion position and recommended the taking of early steps to combat it. As a result, a grant of £160,233 was made from the Colonial Development Fund for antisoil erosion work. This was put in hand at once. Extremely good progress has been made and excellent results are already apparent, but the millions of tons of priceless soil which have been swept to the sea can never be replaced and no amount of money or labour can restore the country to its original state.
18. In no part of the world, either in ancient or modern times, has the destruction of the country's natural resources been so rapid as in the United States of America. In the earlier years of settlement, thousands of immigrants from Europe regarded the resources of the land as inexhaustible and proceeded on their westward march, laying low the forests and ploughing up the virgin Iand.
19. The destruction which took place in the ancient world and among primitive people with simple tools if sure was slow. The advent of the motor tractor and other modern implements increased man's power of destruction a hundredfold.
20. The high prices of agricultural products during the war and postwar period led to the bringing under cultivation of large areas in the Great Plains of the Middle West, where the vegetal cover should never have been broken. Ensuing droughts and wind and rain on the unprotected surface produced desert conditions and pauperised the population. A spectacular dust storm arising in this area in May, 1934, obscured the sun over a wide area of the N.E. States. invaded the Capitol at Washington and travelled beyond the Atlantic seaboard. This, and disastrous floods caused by the unimpeded flow of the rainwater over denuded lands, helped to focus attention on the gravity of the situation. The preservation of the natural resources has now become one of the leading national questions in the country and vast sums of money have been voted and extensive organisations created for coping with the matter, notably, the Soil Conservation Service established under an Act of Congress of 1935.
21. The recent findings of a Committee appointed by the Government of South Australia to report on the question of soil erosion discloses how manmade desert conditions have arisen there.
22. Salus populi est suprema lex. (The welfare of the people is the supreme law.) The conservation of the natural resources of the country is the concern of every member of the community. Those who during their short lifetime are entrusted with the handling of the land or other asset of the country should not be denied the right to use it reasonably. but they should be regarded as trustees neither entitled to mistreat, squander nor destroy it regardless of the consequences to future generations.
III. GEOGRAPHICAL, PHYSICAL AYD GEOLOGICAL FEATURES.
23. The following brief account of the geographical, physical and geological features of the Colony has been taken from a handbook issued by the Government for the use of prospective settlers:
24 Southern Rhodesia forms a plateau drained on the north by the Zambesi River, and on the south by the Limpopo River, and contains approximately 152,000 square miles, an area nearly twice the size of Great Britain. It extends from the Zambesi River in latitude 15° 36' S. to the Limpopo River in latitude 22° 25' S., and from the Beehuanaland Protectorate in longitude 25' 14 E. to Portuguese East Africa in longitude 33° 4' E. Only a narrow strip in the Zambesi Valley and a larger tract in the basin of the Limpopo and Sabi Rivers are under 2,000 feet above sea level, the actual lowest point where the Limpopo River leaves the Colony being 660 feet above the sea. It is thus a highlying country, and it has been estimated that 24 per cent, lies over 4,000 feet above sea level. This high ground is not a mountain range, but a plateau of subdued relief (the " high veld ") which stretches in a belt from westsouthwest to eastnortheast with an important offshoot to the north in Lomagundi and western Mazoe, and again on the eastern border offshoots trend both to the north (Inyanga) and to the south (Melsetter).
25. The main plateau is due to the gentle uplift of a plain, the axis of the uplift forming the watershed from which the rivers flow northwestward to the Zambesi and southeastward to the Limpopo and Sabi Rivers. East of the offshoot of high ground in Lomagundi the rivers flow in a northeasterly direction.
26. All the rivers in their middle courses have eroded deeply into the plateau, and thus carved out ranges of hills and clusters of kopjes, the summits of which may still rise to the height of the warped surface of the uplifted plateau. By the continuance of this process gently shelving plains diversified by steepsided hillranges and isolated kopjes are being formed. The headwaters of the rivers are cutting back towards the axis on the plateau, and in many places have formed a scarp three to five hundred feet in height by which descent is made from the high veld " plateau to the lowerlying country of diversified relief, which may he called the middle veld." The scarp is particularly noticeable around the basin of the Mazoe River, the Shamva railway descending the scarp between Selby Siding (4,700 feet) and Mazoe Siding (4,233 feet). The traveller by the main railway line between Plumtree and Umtali travels along the high veld, and obtains glimpses of the middle veld to the south of the line around Heany Junction, to the north of the line beyond Ruwa, and finally descends into it beyond Headlands, where the change in the type of scenery is well recognised, though there is no change in the geological formation. In the narrow belt of high ground along the eastern border the greater rainfall combined with the steeper gradients has enabled the rivers to erode deeply and produce a mountain chain with many summits. Inyangeni Mountain (8,250 feet), situated 48 miles north of Umtali, is the highest point in Southern Rhodesia.
27. It thus happens that except along the eastern border the highest hills, measured from their base on the plains to summit, are found at some distance away from the elevated tract which forms the high veld.
28. The "low veld" in the basins of the Zambesi, Limpopo and Sabi Rivers is distinguishable from the middle veld mainly by a change in the geological formation from the granite and metamorphic rocks with their characteristic ranges and isolated kopjes to the sedimentary or volcanic formations with their low tabular hills. In the Zambesi basin, and particularly in the Darwin and Lomagundi districts, the change is marked by a precipitous scarp, known as "The Escarpment," which may reach a height of 1,500 or 2,000 feet. It is probable that faulting has had some share in the formation of the scarp.
29. The approximate areas occupied by the different rock formations occuring in Southern Rhodesia are as follows :
(Percentage proportion of total area approximately 152,000 square miles).
Granite 49.5
Karroo sedimentary rocks 15.3
Kalahari formation 11.2
Basement schists 8.5
Lomagundi formation 5.7
Basalt and dolerite 5.1
Umkondo formation 2.7
The Great Dyke 0.8
Area not determined 1.2
30. As the soils of the country are derived for the most part from the underlying rock formations, the type of soil which predominates in any particular area is very largely governed by the local geological features. Overlying granite and the Kalahari formation, the latter of which is made up of sand, ironstone and chalcedony, the soils are chiefly of sandy character; although on the granite, loams and still heavier soils are often met with. The Kalahari sands are of very poor character, as a rule, and it is upon the granitic soils that the bulk of the bright Virginia tobacco is grown in Rhodesia.
31. The Karroo formation is subdivided into two series: (a) basaltic lavas, which are included with dolerite in the above table in regard to the area over which they occur, and (b) the sedimentary rocks, comprising grits, sandstones and shales, etc., which yield soils varying in character from light sands, through loams to heavy clays depending upon whether sandstones or shales predominate.
32. Overlying the basement schists, which are frequently grouped by farmers simply as " formation," and which include greenstone and undifferenciated schists, we find red and chocolate loamy soils, which are included among those soils most suitable for the production of maize. The Lomagundi and Umkondo formations are made up largely of quarzites, shales and slates, the firstmentioned rock, as a rule, weathering into a light sandy loam, whilst the shales and slates yield clays: soils of all physical types are therefore found on this formation, some of which are highly fertile.
33. Intrusions of dolerite (" whinstone "), which give rise to a red loamy soil, are met with more particularly in the granite areas, and on "sand veld" farms; where they occur the value of the holding for agriculture or mixed farming is greatly enhanced. The Great Dyke, which is a belt of country about four miles wide, extending from the Umvukwe Hills on the LomagundiMazoe border to the Doro Hills in Belingwe, is made up of norite, serpentine and enstatite rocks which yield red loamy soils characteristically rich in magnesia. These soils afford excellent grazing for cattle, and are suited more particularly for dairy farming and beef production.
34. On every geological formation black vlei soils are to be found which generally possess a greater reserve of fertility than the more normal soil of the • formation. With reference to these black soils, the Director of Geological Survey remarks as follows: " Whilst in many instances a black soil is a residual soil, in others there is considerable admixture of rainwash, and it almost seems possible for it to grade into an alluvium. However that may be, it is not possible to give any figures for the total area of black vlei soil in the country or even to indicate the relative percentages on different formations. It is probable that the largest areas of black vlei (or black plateau) soil occur on the Karroo formation."
35. The character of these vlei soils is dependent upon the formation on which they occur. Those occurring on the granite, which are naturally of lighter type than those found on the basement schists, dolerite and basalt, are too wet in many instances for summer cultivation, but hold sufficient moisture to carry a crop of wheat in the dry season, for which purpose they are largely used in some districts. Where the natural drainage is satisfactory and the rainfall is adequate, the heavier types of vlei soil on the basement schists, etc., are capable of giving large yields of maize, and it is upon this class of soil, especially that overlying the basement schists, that a considerable part of the maize crop is grown in Southern Rhodesia.
IV. ALLOCATION OF LAND TO NATIVES AND EUROPEANS.
36. Prior to European settlement in the country, the land was occupied by Natives according to their tribal customs. The land was vested in the Chief and allotments were made by him or on his behalf. Each member of a family was entitled to garden land and had certain rights to fallow land. Grazing was on a communal basis.
37. Article 14 of the Royal Charter granted to the British South Africa Company in 1889 made suitable provision for the safeguarding of the natives' 'and rights.
38. The first definite action to set aside Native areas was taken in 1894, when a Land Commission was appointed, and the Shangani and Gwaai Reserves were constituted.
39. Article 81 of the OrderinCouncil 1898 imposed on the Company the obligation of setting aside sufficient land for the occupation of natives and article 83 provided that a native "may acquire, hold, encumber and dispose of land on the same conditions as a person who is not a native."
40. In 1902, there was a general setting aside of land as Native Reserves. Alterations and amendments of these areas took place from time to time. In 1914, the High Commissioner appointed the Southern Rhodesia Native Reserves Commission to enquire into the whole question of Native Reserves and to make recommendations thereon.
41. The outcome of the report of this Commission was an OrderinCouncil of 1920 by which certain defined lands " known as Native Reserves, were vested in the High Commissioner and set apart for the sole and exclusive use and occupation of the Native inhabitants of Southern Rhodesia." This OrderinCouncil did not, however, in any way affect the Natives' right to land elsewhere, as given by the OrderinCouncil 1898; a right which had been exercised in a few cases.
42. It may be stated here, without tracing the history of the Native Reserves subsequent to 1920, that these Reserves are now vested in a Board of Trustees constituted in terms of " The Southern Rhodesia Constitution (Amendment) Letters Patent of 1937."
43. The question of the expediency of allowing Natives to acquire land indiscriminately and of the friction which might arise with European neighbours was discussed in the Legislative Council and elsewhere, and in 1925 a Commission known as the Land Commission was appointed by the Governor to enquire into and report upon the question.
44. Following the report and recommendations of the Land Commission, the "Land Apportionment Act, 1930," was enacted. This Act provided for the classification of all land in the Colony (other than that then comprised in the Reserves or set aside for the sole and exclusive use and occupation of Natives) as the European Area, the Native Area, the Undetermined Area, the Forest Area and the Unassigned Area.
45. For the purposes of this Report, the last three areas are of minor interest. The chief result of the Act has been the constitution of the European Area, which consists of all land not included in the Native Reserves, as then constituted, and not situated in the other four areas, and the Native Area, being the land described in the first schedule to the Act, estimated to contain approximately seven and one half million acres.
46. The underlying principle of the Act is that, subject to certain minor temporary exceptions, land in the Native Area, commonly referred to as the Native Purchase Area, may be granted to or used by Natives only, on such conditions as may be prescribed, and that Natives should not hold or occupy land in the European Area.
47. Section 24 of the Act provided, with certain exceptions, that no agreements should be made permitting of the occupation by Natives of land in the European Area on payment of rent and that existing agreements should not endure beyond a period of six years after the date of the Act coming into operation. By an amending Act-31 of l936 this period was extended until the 31st July, 1941. It will be seen later in this Report that considerable importance is attached to the situation already created by Natives occupying European owned land and the question of future policy in regard thereto.
48. It appears from a survey of Native Reserves that, having regard to the present limited water supplies, the methods of farming adopted by Natives, the number of their stock and the contemplated removal of those located in the European Area in terms of section 24 of the "Land Apportionment Act," as amended, sufficient accommodation may not be available for them in the Reserves and the Native Purchase Area.
49. In order to provide further land for the requirements of Natives, the Government has, in the past few years, acquired a considerable area of privately owned land in various parts of the country. Land thus acquired is referred to as the New Native Area or Native Occupation Areas.
50. It should be noted that whereas the Native Reserves and the Native Purchase Area have been constituted by and are governed under specific statutory authority, no such position obtains in the case of the New Native Areas or Native Occupation Areas, which, in. terms of the Land Apportionment Act, are still part of the European Area.
51. The total indigenous population of the Colony at the end of 1937 and 1938 was estimated at 1,144,909 and 1.185,002 respectively, distributed as follows:
52. It is interesting to note that there is no indication of the contemplated movement from the European owned land. On the contrary, the number there has increased by some nine thousand during the year.
53. It is thought that the following comparative statement of statistics, as furnished by the Department of Native Affairs, will be of assistance in considering your Commission's Report.
54. The conditions on which titles to land have been ganted to Europeans have varied from time to time. It is unnecessary to discuss them here, but reference may be made to some of them later when they have a direct bearing on the subject under consideration. For example, the position arising through a farmer being required by his title to allow the taking of wood from his farm by a miner.
V. THE SOIL.
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON SOIL EROSION.
55. However valuable the minerals or other resources of this country may he, its fundamental wealth resides in the soil which furnishes man's material requirements and sustains animal and vegetable life, provided there is a sufficiency of lifegiving water.
56. The most important portion of the soil is the surface layer, often only a few inches in depth. It is estimated that, except perhaps in the humid depths of tropical jungles, where growth and regeneration are rapid, it has taken many thousands of years to build up this topsoil. Unfortunately this precious product, which takes so long to build up, can be speedily broken down and dissipated by erosion.
57. Erosion may be regarded as of two kinds. The first is that slow and almost unobserved process which is weathering, wearing down and shaping the earth's surface by the mechanical and chemical agencies of nature. It is generally beyond the control of man, but the wastage of the soil under its action is being continually restored by decomposition and the covering of vegetation. and thus, if left undisturbed, the balance of nature is on the whole maintained. This may be called natural or geologic erosion.
58. The second kind of erosion arises when the intervention of human agencies, or factors controlled by man, combined with the forces of nature, such as wind and water, lead to a destruction and dissipation of the soila process which may be disastrously rapid. This might he called accelerated or induced erosion, but, as it is the only type of erosion being dealt with in this Report, it may conveniently be referred to simply as soil erosion or erosion.
59. Erosion is caused when soil is broken up, denuded or otherwise interfered with and left exposed, without protection, to the action of wind or water. Wind erosion, which has had disastrous results in parts of America, Australia and South Africa, has not yet become a serious problem in this Colony, but may arise if precautions are not taken to guard against conditions such as are developing in certain overgrazed and deforested areas.
60. Erosion caused by water is an insidious disease of the soil. Reference to the attached contour map will show the elevated areas where the principal
rivers have their source. The majority of the population reside in these areas and the chief agricultural and pastoral pursuits are confined to them. From this, and the rainfall map, it will be understood that the considerable volume rain which falls on these elevated parts must in the course of its run off to the rivers, often down steep inclines, have an erosive effect. As long as nature's covering of various growths is allowed to remain undisturbed, the balance of nature is maintained. Where the surface is denuded of its vegetal cover, the effects are serious; where it has been broken up for cultivation and left unprotected they become disastrous.
61. The principal cause of the impairment of the soil is sheet erosion, which consists in the gradual removal of thin surface layers by the runoff from rainfall. This is a process which takes place so slowly that often the farmer's attention may not be drawn to it until the subsoil or rocks make their appearance. Elsewhere Natives are reported to have graphically described this process by saying that the rocks in the land were growing.
62. Once the surface soil has been removed, the erosive action generally advances at an everincreasing rate and the next stage is a form of gully erosion.. (ilullying, being more spectacular, its evil results are clearly evident and create a greater impression on the mind than the insidious sheet erosion, which is more widespread in its incidence and more disastrous in its effects.
63. Notwithstanding minor local variations, the causes and effects am practically uniform in all countries where soil erosion occurs. Nowhere else have these questions received consideration on such an extensive scale as in the United States of America. It is therefore thought that the following statement by Mr. Bennett, Chief of the Soil Conservation Service there, is deserving of reproduction:-
"The products of erosion are filling stream channels, irrigation ditches, farm ponds and costly reservoirs; accelerated run off from soilstripped, gullyriddled slopes is increasing the hazard of floods, and streams muddied with silt and colloidal clay are being deserted by valueable species of fish. Streams and springs are drying up as the water table sinks to progressively lower levels within watersheds deprived of their capacity to absorb adequate supplies of the rains that fall upon them. Centuries would be required to build back the soil swept from fields and overgrazed pastures of the nation by this process that continues with every rain heavy enough to cause water to run downhill, and with every gust of wind impinging against bare, sun-scorched fields.
More than 75 per cent. of the country consists of sloping land, all of which is potentially subject to erosion wherever used for cleantilled crops or grazed. The average depth of the more productive topsoil on this sloping land is only about 7 or 8 inches. This shallow layer of indispensable natural resource, representing the farmer's principal capital, is being removed bodily at rates ranging generally from about 3 to 20, 60 or 75 years, depending on kind of soil, declivity of the land, rainfall and type of agriculture.
A thriving agriculture is essential to national prosperity. When the rich humuscharged surface layer of soil is stripped from the land, it cannot be restored, even that which has been moved no farther than from the upper to the lower side of the field. Without this productive covering agriculture generally cannot be prosperous, whether prices are up or down. No greater problem than the control of this process and the conservation of the water that causes it confronts the nation today. The problem is national in character and scope. Its injurious effects touch directly or indirectly the interest of every citizen."
64. Many farmers, unaware of the necessity of following as far as possible, nature's ways in preserving nature's balance in building up the essential ingredients of the soil have a pathetic faith in the power of artificial fertilisers to restore crop production in soildenuded land. A Commission appointed hv President Roosevelt to enquire into economic conditions in the Southern States recently reported that sixtyone per cent, of the nation's land badly damaged by erosion is in these States; 22,000,000 acres of once fertile soil being ruined beyond repair. The Commissioners attribute this to profligate methods of farming, which, they estimate, results in the annual loss of £75,000,000 worth of topsoil through erosion. They comment on the vain efforts that are being made to restore the land by the application of artificial fertilisers and point to the significant fact that the South, with only onefifth of the nation's income, pays pays threefifths of its fertiliser bill.
65. Having indicated in a general way the nature and evil effects of soil erosion, your Commissioners will now deal with the position in this Colony. First, in the case of land used by Natives and then of that used by Europeans.
VI. SOIL EROSION ON LAND UNDER NATIVE USE.
66. Prior to the advent of the European settler, the Native was largely a hunter and pastoralist. The insecurity caused by intertribal warfare, raids and disputes not only retarded the increase of population but also created conditions unfavourable to the accumulation of great flocks and herds and to the settled conditions necessary to anything but the most rudimentary type of agriculture. There was no inducement to produce crops for disposal to others, and the limited needs of the people were met by the cultivation, with primitive implements, of a few acres of ground, generally consisting of isolated patches carved out of the surrounding bush. The tree stumps were left in the cultivated land. Under these conditions, there was little or no erosion. Since the European occupation a profound change has taken place. From the estimates available it would appear that the indigenous population has trebled between 1902 and 1938, but what is more significant, as will be seen from the statistical figures given in this Report, the number of ploughs has increased from 3,402 in 1902 (no earlier figures are available) to 93,938 in 1938.
67. The Native, especially in places near markets, grows crops for sale. It has been represented that where the distance is not too great to prevent easy delivery the provisions of the maize control legislation, whereunder an attractive cash price is obtainable for maize, have led to greatly increased maize production. Traditional methods of cultivation have largely been abandoned. Extensive areas are broken up by the plough; the general practice being to plough up and down the slope, thus increasing the runoff from rainfall and the consequent erosion of the soil. Formerly, Native crops consisted largely of mullets, ground nuts, sweet potatoes, etc., which, especially in the case of crops planted in mounds, did not conduce to so great a runoff and so much erosion as takes place in maize lands.
68. As is to be expected, the Native is rarely alive to the importance of conserving the soil; his concern is to get crops, with the consequence that the disease of erosion is spreading at an alarming rate where the primitive methods of agriculture have given place to the plough. The accelerated erosion brought about by the plough and the failure to apply any animal manure or other humusforming ingredients to the soil soon renders cultivation difficult and unprofitable. A fresh piece of land is then sought, follows the same course and is in turn abandoned. In proportion as the yield diminishes with the exhaustion of the soil, there is a tendency to maintain the total output by ploughing up an everincreasing area. Reasonably suitable virgin land often becomes difficult to find and recourse is had to the clearing end ploughing of steep hillsides where, owing to the greatly increased runoff. erosion becomes rapid and disastrous.
69. The quest for cultivable land and the desire to get crops on moist land before the coming of the rains have led, in many parts of the country. to the clearing and planting of river banks and the breaking up of swamps, commonly called vleis. Apart from the question, discussed elsewhere, as to the desirability of protecting these places for other reasons, there is no doubt but their cultivation often leads to serious erosion.
70. So long as the protective growth of trees and other vegetation on the land bordering watercourses is left undisturbed, the highest floods pass over it with impunity, but once these are removed the rich soil, the accumulation of ages, which formerly produced good early pasturage, is readily carried away.
71. In the same way, the breaking up of the natural covering of the vlies leaves them exposed to the destructive forces of the elements. In many cases, little apparent harm is done for many years, but almost inevitably a torrential local downpour sooner or later sweeps over the loosened surface and carries away the rich topsoil. To anyone interested in the country's welfare, there can be nothing sadder than to see once pleasant valleys transformed by this means to barren stretches of gaping dongas. Further remarks on this subject will he found in connection with vleis on land occupied by Europeans.
72. Overgrazing and grass burning will receive separate consideration, but it may be mentioned here that the reduction or removal of the plant covering, however caused, the trampling of the soil by animals and the destruction of its absorptive qualities by clay carried over it in solution and sealing its pores contribute enormously to the increase of runoff. These agencies are at work in many places occupied by Natives, leading to sheet erosion, which, if left unchecked, is followed by gullying and eventually leads to great deterioration, if not actual destruction, of the land.
73. Another fertile source of erosion lies in the numerous tracks caused by cattle travelling, often over great distances, to water supplies and to dipping tanks, as also by the many tracks caused by Native sleighs.
74. It is impossible to state with any degree of certainty the precise extent of the damage caused by erosion in all land occupied by Natives, but this may be, in a measure, estimated from observations made and by a comparison with the conditions in the Native Reserves, in regard to which the following information is available.
75. The evidence before your Commissioners shows that up to 1937 over one and a half million acres of land in the Reserves were badly erodedthat is, by sheet and gully erosionthat in thirteen Reserves 25 per cent. to 50 per cent., and in five 50 per cent, to 75 per cent, of the area is badly eroded. It was further estimated that 16 per cent, of the total arable land in the Reserves had been destroyed by erosion. and that in the eight years prior to 1937 erosion damage, in terms of area, had increased by 60 per cent.
76. Alarming as the extent and rate of progress of soil destruction in the reans but occupied by Natives, under a system popularly termed " Kaffir farming. ' In the Reserves, there is at least some control through the headmen, chiefs and Native Commissioners, but where "Kaffir farming" prevails there is little or no restraint. The payment by the Native of the stipulated rent or other consideration appears to be a licence to lay waste the land with impunity.
77. The greater part of the land on which "Kaffir farming" is taking place belongs to companies who permit Natives to settle thereon under the provisions of the "Private Locations Ordinance, 1908," in consideration of payment of rent. These companies are usually represented by local agents whose chief concern is the collection of rent.
78. As already indicated, it is contemplated by the "Land Apportionment Act, 1930." as amended in 1936, that settlement under these rentpaying agreements should not continue beyond the end of July, 1941. These settlements no doubt serve a useful purpose in so far as they provide accommodation which could not be found elsewhere, but they have led to wholesale destruction of land and trees. The settlers have no security of tenure and, in the absence of any incentive from within or compulsion from without to protect or improve the land, but with the inducement to take as much as they can out of it, destruction proceeds apace.
79. As previously mentioned, the estimated Native population on alienated land increased from 184,999 in 1937 to 194,503 in 1938. It is not possible to ascertain with accuracy the number actually settled under the conditions stated in the immediately preceding paragraphs, but from returns furnished to the Commission it appears that at the first of October, 1938, agreements were in existence for the settlement, in terms of the Native Locations Ordinance of 1908, of 23,427 tenants on alienated land. It is estimated that these tenants with their families and followers number about 164,000. In addition to these, there must be a large number of residents living under a variety of arrangements or simply as squatters.
80. Whatever the population in these areas, the amount of destruction taking place in them has only to be seen to he realised. A traveller need not be told when he reaches land that is being "Kaffir farmed." The denuded and dongascarred ground is silent witness to the destruction which has taken place and often forms a striking contrast to land just across the boundary where Nature has been left undisturbed or received considerate treatment. In these areas, there is no effective control of stock. Dipping facilities not being always adequate lead to the driving of cattle to distant dipping tanks, with the attendant trampling out of the soil and vegetation and consequent erosion. It is also stated that the scarcity of trees and grass on these denuded holdings is a fruitful cause of trespass and theft on adjoining land.
81. On many farms owned and occupied by Europeans, farming is also carried on by Natives under a variety of conditions. It may be an agreement to pay rent, supply labour or other arrangement. The general methods of cultivation and consequent erosion do not, as a rule, differ from what is common elsewhere, but in many instances are limited and, in some eases, effective control is exercised by the European occupier.
82. Large areas of land assigned for the purpose of religious missions are occupied by Natives. The Commission had an opportunity of visiting some of these missions and observing the condition of the land. On a few of them, trained agriculturists were employed and excellent work was being done in teaching the Natives sound methods of husbandry and in demonstrating and insisting upon antierosion methods on the land. In contrast to this, there were instances where the missioners seemed to take little interest in and no steps to arrest the all too obvious destruction arising from the agricultural and pastoral methods practised by the Natives.
83. It may be that the missionary training and outlook does not always take sufficient account of the problems attaching to the handling of the large areas of land set aside for the use of Natives connected with missions. Your Commissioners are of opinion that a great responsibility rests on the mission authorities to see that this land is not misused. Without interfering with their primary objects, these stations mightas some of them now arebecome useful centres for teaching improved methods of agriculture and the necessity of taking care of the soil.
84. The "Land Apportionment Act, 1930," provides for the prescribing of conditions on which land alienated to individuals in the Native Area shall be held and it is the policy of the Government in making grants to make provision for methods of farming which will protect the land. By virtue of the Government's ownership of the land in the New Native or Occupation Areas. it has power to provide and does make similar conditions when granting rights to occupy land in these areas; but it is feared that, however excellent these conditions, difficulty and failure to exercise adequate supervision under existing circumstances have made them of little avail.
85. Section 27 of the lastmentioned Act permits of Natives occupying Crown land in the European Area on such terms and conditions as the GovernorinCouncil may prescribe. It is estimated that there are some 132,000 Natives living on this land, but it would appear that so far no conditions governing their occupancy have been prescribed. In the absence of any control, it is not surprising that the national assets in their surroundings are fast being ruined.
86. In addition to the Natives who hold land on individual tenure in the Native Area, subject to the restrictions contained in their titles, there is a considerable number who live on this area. There is no special authority for imposing any sort of control on their operations, which are of a generally destructive nature.
87. A considerable number of Natives live in the Forest Area. Their presence is not a serious cause of erosion, but reference will he made to them later as a potential danger to the forests.
S8. The Natives in the Undetermined Area, which is of limited extension and in the Unassigned Area, which is sparsely populated and is likely to remain so, do not give rise to any special problem.
89. The result of the laying waste of large areas of land by wasteful methods of cultivation and the increasing number of livestock has been a cry by the Natives for more and more land. More land would at best be but a temporary palliative as present practices, if allowed to continue, would soon render the whole country wellnigh uninhabitable.
90. In certain cases, large areas of land granted for mission purposes are let in Natives on a rentpaying basis, and, in some instances, conditions not unlike those obtaining under "Kaffir farming" prevail. It may he worth considering whether or not the purposes of the grants are being observed and, if not observed, whether the question of dealing with the land in terms of section 23 of the "Land Apportionment Act, 1930" arises.
VII. MEASURES ALREADY TAKEN TO COMBAT SOIL EROSION ON LAND UNDER NATIVE USE.
91. It may be that with the present rate of increase of the Native population difficulty will be experienced in finding enough suitable land for their requirements, but as it would not only be futile but also highly undesirable to attempt to meet these needs by allocating further areas for uncontrolled exploitation, the obvious course is to adopt measures designed for making the best use of land already assigned to them.
92. The Government has recognised the necessity of getting the Natives to adopt improved agricultural and pastoral methods, and as there will be occasion to refer to what is already being done, not only in connection with soil erosion but also with other matters coming within the Commission's purview, a memorandum prepared by the Agriculturist, Native Affairs Department, on rural development work among Natives is annexed. (Appendix I.)
93. Your Commissioners have had opportunities of meeting the officers concerned with rural development, and were most favourably impressed with their keenness and the amount of work done in a comparatively short time. The task confronting them is formidable and, so far, their activities have, except for minor and advisory work in the Native and New Areas, been confined to the Native Reserves.
94. Erosion and other questions under consideration by your Commissioners being closely associated in the Reserves with what is referred to in Appendix I. as "centralisation," a brief reference to its main features may assist in a better comprehension of these questions.
95. Prior to European occupation, the necessity of selfprotection led to the concentration of the natives in comparatively few kraals, often selected for strategic purposes. The security afforded under present conditions permits of their spreading at will and making their dwellings and selecting land for cultivation with little restraint. This has not conduced to making the best use of the land and, among other results, has been the interference with free grazing range during the growing season owing to the liability of trespass on the numerous widely scattered cultivated plots.
96. The object of centralisation is to bring the Native dwellings together in systematically arranged kraals or villages, having clue regard to health and sanitary conditions, proximity to water and the situation of land suitable for arable and grazing purposes. The arable land, as far as possible, forms a compact unit suitably demarcated for individual use. Where conditions permit, the buildings in the villages are in one or two rows which serve to divide the arable from the pastoral land. According to the Agriculturist for Natives, centralisation surveys had been carried out in respect of 2,407,500 acres up to the end of 1938. Resettlement on about 2,000,000 acres of that area had been completed at that date and it is anticipated that the whole area will have been resettled before the end of the current year. With the present staff about 1,000,000 acres a year can be dealt with. An increase of staff is contemplated which will materially accelerate the work. There are 6,000,000 acres where centralisation is urgent, leaving a balance of 12,592,500 acres where the matter is not so pressing. Among the objects of centralisation are the abolition of the wasteful system of shifting cultivation and encouragement to cultivate smaller areas and increase the crop yields by maintaining soil fertility. Better methods of tillage, approved systems of rotation and protecting the soil against erosion are taught. The question of erosion will be dealt with now; references to other matters relative to centralisation will come in their appropriate places.
97. In 1936, a scheme for soil conservation was adopted for Native Reserves and a Conservation Officer was appointed, together with a number of Native Erosion Control Demonstrators. Antierosion work is proceeding under the Soil Conservation Officer in 10 different Reserves. Up to the end of 1938, a total of 1,141,729 yards of contour ridges had been constructed, 34,004 yards of storm drains dug and 16,087 acres of arable land protected, at an average cost of 3s. 7d. per acre, or £2 13s. 4d. per thousand yards of contour ridges. In addition to the above concerted action, agricultural demonstrators have done a large amount of anti-erosion work throughout the Reserves. According to the estimates of the Agriculturist for Natives, there are about 4,000,000 acres in the Reserves where erosion control work in the form of contour ridging is urgent. Sixteen thousand acres were protected during 1938. At this rate, it would take some 250, years to cope with the situation, but it is hoped that under arrangements now in hand it will soon he possible to deal with 80,000 a year. These figures are based on the assumption that the position remains static, whereas erosion once having gained a hold normally proceeds with an ever-increasing rapidity. From this it will be realised that, even with the proposed increased efforts, there will be great difficulty in guarding against any extension of existing erosion, it will take unremitting efforts to overtake and effectually curl) the scourge where it has already got a start. Belated efforts are not only much more difficult and expensive; they are often comparatively ineffective and never can restore the valuable soil that has been carried away.
98. The foregoing figures refer to the Reserves only, where the Natives live under conditions which permit of active measures, of the nature indicated, being taken in their own interests, and where, even in the absence of such measures, the Native Commissioner, chiefs and headmen may, and sometimes do take steps to prevent destruction; but only some two-thirds of the Natives live in the Reserves. A considerable number of the remainder live on land where the Government has no power to exercise control, and, as already indicated, many land-owners, who might do so, appear to he only concerned with receiving rent and look on the destruction of the land with comparative indifference.
VIII. SOIL EROSION ON LAND UNDER EUROPEAN USE.
99. For a considerable time after the occupation of the country by Europeans their numbers were comparatively small and, owing to unsettled conditions, cattle disease and other causes, few of them settled on the land, and the extent of arable and pastoral farming was insignificant.
100. The gradual extension of the mining industry, the opening of export markets, especially for maize, tobacco and cattle, led to a gradual increase of general farming, but for considerable time questions of erosion and other Wine of the land do not seem to have received much attention.
101. The Honourable Lionel Cripps, who in so doing may be regarded pioneer in more senses than one, wrote an article, published in the Agricultural Journal of August, 1909, on the subject of The Erosion of Soil. The views expressed therein are no less sound now than then. In the opening lines it is stated: "Let us first consider the factors, which, given time and opportunity. are capable of robbing us of the chief asset which we, as farmers and landowners, possess. The asset I refer to is the top twelve inches, more or less, of soil, which furnishes food for the native plants and the crops upon which we are dependent for our living." Certain protective measures are suggested and the article concludes with an appeal to farmers ' . . . to conserve our resources and so order their farming methods that they, while getting good value out of the land, shall leave it to posterity richer and better worth living on than they found it."
102. An early, if not the first, official publication on the subject of soil erosion was the Department of Agriculture's Bulletin No. 400 in October, 1921, entitled Soil Washing. The writer, Mr. A. C. Jennings, Government Irrigation Engineer, dealt with the evils of erosion. Protective measures were recommended, including what, in this Colony, have come to be referred to as "contour ridges." Subsequently, the late Mr. G. H. Rattray and other farmers in the Mazoe district constructed these ridges on their maize land under Mr. Jennings direction. Mr. A. S. Laurie, Somerset Farm, Concession, at once realised on his first visit to the Colony in 1921 the necessity of soil conservation measures, and since then he has done much by precept and example to secure their adoptionalthough at times he felt he was a voice crying in the wilderness.
103. The expansion of the general activities of the country and a profitable market for maize had led to ever increasing areas of rich, virgin land being brought under the plough. Gradually the yields began to decline and, as this was attributed to the diminution of the natural fertility of the soil, recourse was had to the use of artificial fertilisers. Little account was taken of the loss of organic matter and the breaking down of the soil structure, which led to the dissipation of the essential elements by the ever present, although in many cases almost imperceptible, action of sheet erosion. In an effort to maintain or increase their output, some farmers ploughed up natural hollows, hillsides and narrow valleys between hills and, in a very short time, many acres of valuab!e pasture and woodland were converted into a dongascarred waste. The best of the Colony's land is in the maize belt. A large area of it had been impoverished by soil erosion, and some of it ruined beyond repair, before remedial measures in the form of green manuring and antierosion works were adopted.
104. Speaking generally, antierosion measures have made slow progress amongst tobacco growers. This want of progress has been attributed by some witnesses to the fact that after two successive crops the land is not used for some years for tobacco growing. A certain amount of indifference as to what happens in the meantime might result in the case of a careless farmer or in one attempting to plant an excessive area, but a doubt as to the effects of contour ridging on the eelworm menace possibly accounts for a hesitation on the part of many to spend money on a project which might, after all, be found to be disadvantageous in another direction. The question will doubtless be settled at the Tobacco Research Station; it is hoped that a decision will not be too long delayed, as some modification of the layout of contour ridges in the case of tobacco areas in the direction of providing a more rapid drainage might, conceivably, result. The question of the relation of contour ridges to the general layout of the tobacco field also requires some consideration.
105. In tobacco growing, the ridge and furrow system is the one in most general use and, as it tends to accentuate the collection of water in depressions, a downhill slope has to he given to promote drainage. Prima facie this would increase the rate of runoff of water. If this is so, what modification of the height and slope of the contour ridge would be necessary? Again it is stated that crossploughing is imperative in tobacco farming. Obstacles such as contour ridges must prove a distinct handicap to such operations. Would it be necessary in the circumstances to adopt strip cropping as a supplement to the contour ridge? These are questions which the Research Station will be able to decide. They are mentioned here in order to emphasize lie danger of immediately applying the successful results obtained on the maize farms with contour ridging to somewhat different conditions. Attention to the question should not be delayed, for here too, much, although sometimes almost imperceptible, sheet erosion is in progress (often ending in serious gullying).
106. In the more humid parts of the country there are many swamps, commonly known as vleis. Reference will be made to them later in connection with water conservation and other problems. Regarded in connection with erosion, little harm can be done when isolated patches are broken up for gardens or like purposes, but a grave danger arises either when artificial drainage takes place or where the whole or a large part of their area is divested of the vegetal covering, as happens when they are broken up for wheat or other crops. Many years may pass without anything untoward happening but, sooner or later, there is bound to come that cloudburst or exceptional torrential downpour which sweeps away the soilthe accumulated treasure of many centurieswhich, if left undisturbed or protected and used judiciously, might have been a permanent asset.
107. Erosion due to overstocking and overgrazing has not assumed serious proportions on land occupied by Europeans. Some damage is, however, being done by the driving of cattle to and concentrating them at watering places and dipping tanks.
IX. MEASURES ALREADY TAKEN TO COMBAT SOIL EROSION ON LAND UNDER EUROPEAN USE.
108. Notwithstanding the lessons of other countries and warnings such as that of Mr. Cripps in 1909 and the propaganda initiated against erosion in 1921, little organised effort was made until 1929 when, under the aegis of the Department of Agriculture, 76 miles of contour ridging were constructed, estimated to protect 2,280 acres of land.
109. The growing recognition among farmers themselves of soil erosion as a serious menace is evidenced by a resolution placed on the agenda of the 1931 Congress of the Rhodesia Agricultural Union, a body representative of the farmers of Mashonaland and the Eastern Districts, the chief agricultural areas of the Colony. The resolution was:-
"That this Congress urges on the Government the importance to the country generally of the adoption of a national policy as regards soil wastage from whatever cause, and requests that, at the earliest possible opportunity, steps be taken to enunciate such a policy."
The outcome of this resolution was the appointment of a special committee- "To enquire into the factors causing soil erosion and to formulate suggestions for the prevention thereof."
110. It is interesting to note that there was nothing of a sectional nature in the composition of this Committee, which included not only farmers but also the Chief Irrigation Engineer, the Assistant Chief Native Commissioner, the Chief Road Engineer and the District Railway Engineer. On that account their recommendations, as endorsed by the Union, carry additional weight; that in connection with soil erosion was the appointment of District Soil Conservation Boards, which, in the light of local conditions, would inter alia consider soil conservation matters and report thereon to a Central Soil Conservation Advisory Council, whose functions would be to collate the recommendations of the District Boards and advise the Government on questions of general policy.
111. The movement initiated by the Rhodesia Agricultural Union bore fruit when, in October, 1934, the Minister of Agriculture approved of the appointment of two Soil Conservation Advisory Councils, one for Mashonaland and one for Matabeleland, with the following functions:-
1. To recommend to the Honourable the Minister means whereby the objects of the Rhodesia Agricultural Union's Soil Conservation Committee's report can be achieved as opportunity offers from time to time and to prepare draft legislation for consideration. 2. To carry out propaganda work for the advancement of a national policy of soil conservation.
These Councils have been active bodies. The interest created and propaganda carried out by them in conjunction with the officers of the Government, especially of the Division of Irrigation, have resulted in convincing the majority of farmers in agricultural areas of the urgent necessity of protecting the soil. That Division, with the staff at its disposal, now finds it difficult to keep abreast of the demand for advice and assistance by farmers wishing to carry out protective measures.
112. The following table shows what has been done since 1929 in constructing contour ridgesthe form of protection most commonly adoptedend indicates the increasing interest in the subject:
Year Miles of Ridge Acreage of Land Terracing Protected 1929 76 2,280 1930 103 3,090 1931 150 4,500 1932 108 3,240 1923 132 3,960 1934 126 3,780 1935 368 11,040 1936 535 13,375 1937 1,015 25,375 1938 1,742 43,550 4,355 114,190
Tie present position is set out in the following excerpt from the Report Director of Irrigation for the year 1938:-
"From records supplied by the Government Statistician it appears that the area of land declared as protected in European areas up to the end of 1937 is 125,010 acres, which is considerably in excess of our official figure given above, as this also includes a certain acreage protected in Native areas.
This would appear to indicate that quite a large proportion of these works are now being set out by the farmer himself.
The figure of 125,010 acres protected, however, only represents 27.2 per cent. of the total area of land under cultivation by Europeans in the Colony, so there is still much leeway to make up before a full measure of protection is assured.
The position is least favourable in Matabeleland, where only 11.4 per cent, of the arable area is protected, whereas in Mashonaland 30 per cent, of the arable area has been protected.
The following schedule showing the relative distribution by districts of cultivated land protected by contour ridges is of interest:-
"The two districts with over 40 per cent, protection are those of Gwanda and Mazoein the Gwanda district it is claimed that there is 100 per cent. protection on the 570 acres of land under cultivation. and in the Mazoe district 48.5 per cent, of the arable area of 118,84. acres is protected."
The division of Irrigation called the Commission's attention to the interesting position that it was only in the districts of Mazoe, Salisbury and Lomagundi that any considerable amount of protective work had been effected that 97,560 acres of land in these districts is protected, i.e., 78 per cent. of the total area of land protected in the whole Colony is situated in the three districts, and that nevertheless this only represents 37 per cent, of the total area of land under cultivation in these districts.
113. Your Commissioners feel that even a partial realization of the benefits of contouring cultivated land would at once lead to its general adoption. A
*** SKIPPED LINE HERE ***
veld, grew heavy crops of maize. In the absence of protection, the topsoil commenced to wash away and proceeded at an everincreasing rate from year to year, with a corresponding decrease in the yield of maize, until in the end it reached some 500 bags for the season, forcing the impoverished family to dispose of the farm and seek pastures new. The farm was acquired by a progressive man who, by extensive protection works and good husbandry has effected a wonderful improvement and brought up the maize yield to round about 10,000 bags for the season.
114. During the past abnormally wet season there were complaints of waterlogging on contoured land, but such an occasional happening is as nothing compared with the evils of erosion where no soil is left on which waterlogging could take place.
X. GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS AS TO THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF SOIL EROSION.
115. It will be gathered from the foregoing survey that, in the comparatively short period of European occupation and owing to the conditions created thereby, much destruction and dissipation of the Colony's most important assetthe soilhas taken place and that, although what has already been done to arrest it shows an awakening to the gravity of the position, much greater effort is needed if the situation is to be saved. This section will set out the antierosion measures deemed necessary in cultivated land other than land under irrigation and make recommendations as to how they should be carried out. A memorandum prepared by the Division of Irrigation, setting out methods of conserving the soil and water, is attached. (Appendix ll.)
116. Nature affords almost a complete protection of the soil under a covering of vegetation. The soil losses are maintained by the normal processes of soil building. When man interferes with this cover, as he must in order to provide himself with the necessities of existence, the balance of nature is at once upset. This may not have serious consequences in the colder humid climates where the crops, mostly cereal, cover the ground thickly and where devastating rains are rare. The position is far otherwise in a country like Rhodesia where crops, such as maize and tobacco, are widely spaced and the intervening soil, generally kept free of vegetation, is exposed to torrential rains.
117. As already stated, wind erosion is not prevalent and may remain of negligible importance in the Colony if care is taken to avoid conditions favourable to its inception, such as are making their appearance in the Fingo Location and certain Native Reserves where, on bare patches denuded of vegetation by overgrazing and the trampling of stock, the loose earth is caught up and carried away by the wind. The position is often aggravated by the trees, which would have afforded some shelter, having been cut down and subsequently kept down by goats, donkeys and other causes. The soil losses caused by water, where nature's balance has been disturbed, can be best minimized by methods directed to controlling the runoff and maintaining the soil in a state as close as possible to natural conditions.
118. The runoff on virgin land is retarded not only by the natural vegetation but also by the highly absorptive nature of the soil resulting from its large humus and organic content. It is therefore important, not only from the point of view of crop yields but also from that of erosion control, to see that any protective measures are accompanied by the maintenance of an absorptive condition of the soil, or, what is almost the equivalent, soil fertility.
119. The conditions under which soil may be broken up and cultivated with least loss largely depend on its nature and situation. In some places it should never be broken up at all and it may even be necessary to preserve its vegetal covering; in others the extent to which cultivation may take place depends on the degree of care the cultivator is prepared to take.
120. In some districts, the Natives' quest for more and more land has transformed once beautifully clad hills into gaunt spectres of ruin. One trustworthy witness instanced a hill, formerly covered with grass and trees, losing every atom of soil and becoming a bare, rocky mass within three years after having been attacked by Native cultivation. Another witnessan Assistant Native Commissionerstated that the tillage on mountainous country was leading to the washing away of all the soil and complaints by the Natives that they had no land. Localities such as these should be absolutely withdrawn from cultivation.
121. On the lower lvel, the destruction if less rapid is no less sure. Natives, owing to the scarcity or exhaustion of the lower land, are breaking up the hillsides. In a short time, there is little or no soil left. What remains has lost its fertility. The cultivation of such areas should be prohibited unless suitably terraced. In other countries, such as Japan, under similar conditions. where there is no opportunity of moving to another area, the farmer knows that if he loses his soil his livelihood is gone; hence he clings to each handful of it, generally by complete terracing of all his land.
122. Coming lower down still, we reach the areas where erosion, although less spectacular and at first scarcely visible, is causing the most extensive damage. This is on the fiat or moderately sloping land normally used for cultivation both by Natives and Europeans.
123. So long as the Natives using this type of land broke up only small. often isolated, patches with the hoe and left them for another patch when no longer sufficiently productive, they soon became covered with natural vegetation. The soil was not lost and in course of time its virtue would return. With the coming of the plough, the situation changed entirely and headlong destruction set in. The ploughing almost invariably follows the slope of the ground, giving rise to erosion and fast impoverishment or disappearance of all the valuable surface soil. This leads to the ploughing up of another piece of ground, probably even more susceptible to erosion. The comparative statement of statistics given under paragraph 53 shows that the number of ploughs in use by Natives rose from 3,402 in 1902 to nearly 100,000 in 1938. the increase for the last year alone being 8,803.
124. However gentle may be the slope of land being broken up, whether by European or Native, if the plough is used the ploughing should be done on the contour, and it is desirable that planting and cultivation should follow in the same way, as the smallest rut running up and downhill is often the starting point of erosion. There is very little land in this Colony which, in view of the sparsely placed, clean cultivated crops generally grown, does not require some special protection against the torrential rains which are liable to come at any time.
125. Where the slope of the land is moderate, the flow of water may not lead to appreciable erosion, but there is a great danger, unless adequate protection is afforded, when large areas or narrow downhill strips are cultivated on slopes even so slight as to appear to the eye to be level. A method known as strip cropping is recommended in such places, at least as a temporary cheek on erosion.
126. Strip cropping consists, where conditions permit, in breaking up the extent of the cultivated area of land with a main crop liable to erosion, such as maize, with contour strips of a good hay grass or other close growing crops. The greater the slope the closer these strips should he. They afford a very effective protection, as was shown on an experimental plot in America, where it was found that on land alternately stripped with maize and alfalfa (lucerne) only 1 lb. of soil per acre was lost in 18 months, whereas land, similar in other respects, with maize alone lost 9 tons of soil per acre. Contour strips of virgin veld with its covering of natural vegetation would have the same effect if left in cultivated land.
127. It has been found in the United States of America that rotating erosion inducing crops like maize and cotton with peas, beans, barley, oats or clover, is helpful in protecting the soil. In the absence of such rotations, the system of ploughing in cover crops, such as sunn hemp, is to be commended.
128. The construction of contour ridges is the chief antierosion measure adopted in the Colony. They are most effective in checking sheet erosion. especially on large, cultivated fields. If undertaken and carried out with that object, complete terracing of the land may result.
129. In the absence of any protective measures, the accumulation of water over broad fields, especially after heavy rains, flows down with an erosive effect increasing as to the square of its velocity, resulting in minute gullies. probably only a fraction of an inch in depth to commence with, but growing at everincreasing speed as the rich topsoil is carried away and, if left unchecked, culminating in dongas and ruined land.
130. The design and construction of contour ridges do not require any detailed mention by this Commission. Comprehensive articles dealing with these subjects prepared by officers of the Irrigation Division have been published. Questions bearing thereon are the subject of constant attention by these officers whose advice and assistance are available to all enquirers. The general principle of contour ridging consists in building up banks of soil along the contour of the hillside. These banks are given a very slight slope towards one or both ends of the field, so that surplus water intercepted by them may be carried off laterally at a slow velocity. The distance between the ridges will depend on the slope of the ground, character of soil, etc. It may not be out of place to mention here the necessity of contour ridges being laid out in a proper manner to avoid the great damage which faulty design and construction may entail.
131. The runoff from any higher ground on to the cultivated land should be caught up and carried away by a storm drain. The disposal of the water so collected and that accumulated by the contour ridges, especially if the field is large, often constitutes a serious problema problem which should be solved before any contouring is undertaken. It sometimes happens that the concentrated runoff may be turned into a natural watercourse, or a depression with an erosive proof covering of vegetation may be available; failing these, it may be diverted and dispersed over grass lands suitable for receiving it without harmful effect. In some cases, it may be stored in darns and from them spread on to the land or put to other uses. Under no circumstances should the runoff simply be diverted from the cultivated land without regard to what becomes of it. If this is done, dongas may be caused and damage far in excess of any benefit that may have been gained. The Commission's attention was directed to an instance where the discharge of the water from the contoured land was diverted into a vlei, which evidently had not a sufficiently protective covering, and the result was a tremendous donga and irreparable loss. Where an artificial channel is required to receive the runoff, it should be constructed well ahead of the contour work and made erosive resisting by a vegetal covering, stone pitching or other means.
132. The erosion problem is undoubtedly more serious under Native conditions of cultivation that under European. The Commission's recommendations will deal with the former first.
133. It will be realised from the figures which have been quoted that, in the areas occupied by Natives, the destruction being caused to the cultivated land is assuming such alarming proportions that unless effective measures are at once taken to protect it, there may be little left to protect and great difficulty will be found in getting any land on which the Native population can subsist. The application of conservation measures in areas where the Native practice of shifting cultivation is followed would be difficult; it is therefore recommended that, in Native Reserves and other areas where the Government has the necessary powers of control, the first step should be centralisation, and the next the protection of the land from erosion. It is thought that this offers the greatest hope for the preservation of the land and the support of a large population. The following testimony of an experienced missioner as to what has been accomplished in the Selukwe Reserve is worth quoting:
"I believe that the centralisation of lands in Native Reserves is of the greatest importance. I knew the Selukwe Reserve before centralisation was attempted. I knew the state of the Reserve in those days. I had charge of our work in the Selukwe Reserve when centralisation was started and I watched this experiment, and I want to say that T have never in my life seen a finer demonstration of what can be done. It is not sufficient to say that it has revolutionised the lives of these people: it has virtually saved the Reserve and overcome many of the problems which confronted us."
134. It was in the Selukwe Reserve that the first centralisation was undertaken. This was in 1929, when its appalling condition had rendered it. scarcely fit for man or beast. When it is remembered that the transformation, to which witness is borne, has taken place without antierosion works, the beneficial effect of centralisation in itself will be realised.
135. The Chief Native Commissioner in his report for 1937 refers to the progress that has been made in centralisation and says, "but we are not getting on with it quickly enough." He then quotes the Agriculturist on the same subject and adds:"In one way or another we shall have to increase this rate." In his evidence before your Commissioners he emphasised the desirability of pushing on with this work, but says that. finance and other questions have to be taken into consideration.
136. Your Commissioners recommend that no time be lost in the. early institution of an expanded and intensive centralisation and antierosion campaign in all Native Reserves and in any other land set apart for the occupation of Natives on communal tenure. The existing machinery under the Native Affairs Department is a very sound nucleus on which it should he possible to build up an efficient organisation. The experience already gained would be of great assistance in securing rapid expansion without the mistakes and waste often attendant on hasty improvisations. The question of coordinating the suggested organisation with a central authority is considered later.
137. In order to accelerate the protection of the land by contour ridges, the employment of a sufficient number of mechanical units is recommended. In Basutoland, where the work is carried out under conditions much more unfavourable to these units than in this Colony, it has been found that they are more economic than animal traction and the rate at which the work can be performed is very much greater. Working under relatively easy soil conditions in Basutoland, a certain type of caterpillar tractor and grader completed 80,000 yards or 451, miles in a month.
138. It is understood that when the Government grants land to Natives on individual tenure or gives them the right to occupy land under leases or other agreements, conditions are imposed providing for proper methods of husbandry, including the protection of the soil against erosion but, as already pointed out, these will be ineffective unless adequate supervision is exercised.
139. Probably nowhere else is there greater destruction going on than that caused by Native squatters on Crown land and, as previously indicated. where absent European owners let their land to Natives, with an apparent disregard of what becomes of the land and all that is on it. If the removal of the latter class of Natives, as is contemplated in section 24 of the Land Apportionment Act, 1930, had been carried out, or if removal takes place by the end of July, 1941, in terms of the amending Act 31 of 1936, then the end of the bulk of "Kaffir farming" might be said to be in sight. Even assuming that these Natives are removed, the same undesirable conditions may, in a measure, continue not only during the term of existing agreements in respect of a large portion of Matabeleland, which are protected under section 25 of the principal Act, but also he perpetuated where Natives are settled in terms of section 28 of that Act.
140. The position of Natives living on alienated land in the European area, in the circumstances described in preceding paragraphs, constitutes a serious problem. It has been pointed out that a great many of them could not be accommodated in the Reserves or other land set apart for Native use and that any restrictions that would make the letting of land to these Natives less profitable would result in their wholesale ejection. Your Commissioners are of opinion that, if the efforts already initiated to improve the conditions of the Reserves are carried out in the manner and on the scale recommended, this objection will largely disappear. If the result shows that notwithstanding improved methods more land is required for Native use, it is thought that it .should be procured.
141. Your Commissioners recommend that the necessary steps be taken to enact legislation clarifying the whole relationship between landowners and Native tenants or occupiers and, among other things, prescribing that the permitting of Natives to live on or use alienated land in the European area must be accompanied by an obligation to conserve the land and other natural resources and a provision making the landowner responsible for the observance of such obligation. As great misuse of land is prevalent on properties where the absentee owners have only a rent collector in the Colony, these owners should be required to appoint a responsible representative in the Colony.
142. Your Commissioners have assumed that in the ease of Natives it is the primary responsibility of the Government to take the initiative in providing protective works and carrying out systematic propaganda and training in conservation methods. At the same time, the Natives benefiting from the Government's efforts must be taught their duty to give willing cooperation and assistance. It was very distressing to hear from a senior Native Commissioner that he was obliged to employ alien labour to build dams for the use and benefit of the local Natives. Ordinary maintenance should be an obligation on those directly benefiting from the works. When land is sold to in tim iVtixp Area. it is recommended that the necessary protective works be carried out by the Government and the cost thereof added to that of the land. Where Natives occupy Government land under a lease or other temporary conditions, it would not be unreasonable to stipulate that they should take such simple precautions as ploughing and cultivating along the contour; but major protective works should he provided by the Government. Their cost could be taken into consideration in fixing the rent payable.
143. From what has been already stated, it will be seen that there is a growing interest among Europeans in the question of conserving the arable land and that although a good beginning has been made much remains to be done. There is no doubt as to the urgency of the matter not only from the point of view of the farmer but also in the national interest. The difficulty is to decide upon the best means to adopt without imposing undue burdens on the farmer or the State, and to fix a just apportionment of the cost if it is be regarded as a joint responsibility.
144. In the opinion of some witnesses, reliance should he put on propaganda alone to bring about protection of the land. The desirability of propaganda is generally admitted, but some favour a degree of compulsion where an owner or occupier neglects to protect his land, especially if it results in damage to others. The general view is that. farmers, as a rule, are not in a position to shoulder any further burdens unaided and that the Government should give substantial assistance in the constructing of soil conservation works.
145. The following provisions of the Water Amendment Act, 1938, are of interest, especially in that they provide for compulsory protection against erosion in certain cases and enable the Government to construct soil conservation and antierosion works and charge persons profiting thereby a proportion of the cost. So far no action has been taken under any of the provisions of the Act, but they indicate the length to which the Legislature was prepared to go in the matter.
"29. (1) The Minister may appoint soil conservation boards for the prevention of soil erosion arising from the uncontrolled flow, diversion of or other interference with storm water.
(2) Every soil conservation board shall he for a specified area and shall be constituted from persons interested in the prevention of soil erosion. Whenever any such area embraces land of a native reserve or land extensively occupied by natives, a native commissioner or other official of the Native Department shall he appointed to the board constituted for such area.
"30. (1) Soil conservation boards shall, by such means as may appear expedient, demonstrate the evils of soil erosion and encourage owners and occupiers of land and others to prevent the same.
(2) A soil conservation hoard may recommend the measures to be taken by any person as to the disposal or control of storm water on land or other property in his occupation or under his control which is within the area of such board. If any such person neglects or refuses to carry out any such measures, the hoard shall report the circumstances to the Minister, who may refer the same to a water court which, after enquiry, shall make such order as may seem fit.
(3) If any person is in default in carrying out any work which the water court has under this section ordered him to execute, the Minister may cause such work to he executed and recover the cost thereof from the person so in default.
31. (1) The Minister may, on or without the recommendation of a soil conservation board, construct soil conservation works, or take such other steps as may appear expedient for the prevention of soil erosion, the cost of which shall be charged to funds provided by Parliament.
(2) Owners or occupiers of land or others persons benefiting by any works or other measures taken in terms of this section may be required to contribute to the cost of the same either by the payment of a capital sum or of an annual rate. Any dispute as to the amount of such sum or rate or any matter connected therewith shall be referred to a water court for consideration and decision.
32. The Governor may make regulations prescribing the duties and functions of soil conservation boards."
146. Your Coinn]issiol1(rs are of opinion that the protection of the soil is of such vital interest to the whole community that the principles embodied in the aforesaid Act are sound, but that power to take action to prevent destruction of the soil should be through a different channel and, in certain cases, taken more directly than provided for in the Act. Recommendations on this head are contained in a later section of this Report dealing with a general scheme of conservation.
147. Your Commissioners recommend that the present propaganda as to the importance of protecting the soil and other national assets not only be continued but intensified, and that the Government accept the liability of subsidizing approved soil conservation works. It is recommended that free grant of 25 per cent, of the cost of such works be made, not in excess of £62 lOs., in respect of any unit of land of 3,000 acres or less. It is thought that, in the majority of eases, £250 would more than suffice for the adequate protection of such an area, but considerable expense is sometimes necessary to provide for the harmless disposal of the water accumulated by the protective works. In the Union of South Africa, the Government subsidized antierosion works, in which term farm dams are included, to the extent of 33 per cent. of the cost limited to a maximum payment of £250 per dam and £500 per farm. It is not recommended that dams be regarded as antierosion works except necessarily incidental thereto.
148. Appended to this Report (Appendix III) is a schedule showing the expenditure from votes already incurred in connection with soil conservation on European owned land and the total amount of the loans made for soil conservation works on such land. This schedule also shows the voted expenditure for similar works in the Native Reserves in the year 1938/39 and the estimated expenditure for 1939/40. In addition to this, there has been a total amount of £1,530 from the Native Reserves Trust Funds spent on these works from 1933 to date.
149. As in the case of land under Native use, it is recommended that power units be provided for the speeding up of contour ridging on the land of Europeans. It may be objected that this work is ordinarily confined to a few months of the year and that the plant would be idle for long periods. It is thought, however, that there would be considerable scope for these units throughout the year in such work as contouring pasture land and constructing dams. Many farmers anxious to construct protective works are short of the necessary labour and would he glad to employ and pay for work done by such a unit. In districts where power plants could not conveniently be provided and the procuring of labour is difficult, there would be a demand for trained gangs whose experience has made them proficient in this type of work. In the Gutu district, for instance, witnesses stated that while they would like to protect their land they had difficulty in getting labour for their ordinary requirements.
150. As already indicated, serious soil erosion may take place where vleis denuded of their natural vegetal covering and otherwise unprotected are subjected to heavy floods or downpours. Other aspects of vleis will be dealt with elsewhere, but, as the subject of erosion on cultivated land is now being considered, it seems appropriate to refer here to the breaking up of vleis, especially for wheat growing.
151. A Committee appointed by the Minister of Agriculture and Lands to enquire into the economic position of the agricultural industry, commonly referred to as the Danziger Committee, in its report, presented to Parliament in 1934, quoted a concrete case of 50 acres of wheat on vlei land giving an average yield of three bags per acre; the cost of production was 16s. 3d. and the profit 6s. 3d. per bag. They found, however, that the average yield was 2 bags per acre. For the reasons set out in the report it was recommended (in respect of all wheat growing) that every endeavour should be made to maintain the price of wheat at 22s. 6d. per bag to the producer and that producers should be encouraged to extend their operations with a view to their being able to provide twice the quantity they were then supplying.
152. No doubt as an outcome of the Committee's recommendations, the Government in exercise of the powers given under the "Customs and Excise Tariff Act, 1926," provided (vide Government Notice No. 709 of 1928) for assistance to wheat growers in the form of a rebate of Customs duty on imported wheat manufactured into flour, provided that the finished product contained not less than 20 per cent. of flour manufactured from Rhodesian wheat. Under this scheme the total cost to the country in respect of the rebate of Customs duties over the eight years19281936in which it was in operation was £52,287 11s. 4d., an average of £6.535 18s. 11d. a year. From the 1st of October. 1936, onwards the system was changed. The Government, in terms of agreements with the milling companies, buys Rhodesian wheat from the growers at 22s. 6d. on sender's rails and resells it to the millers at a price equal to the ascertained cost of imported soft wheat of a similar quality landed at the milling store concerned, provided that the price payable by the millers shall not exceed 22s. 6d. on sender's rails. These agreements are made from year to year. Under this scheme, the subsidy is the difference in price, if any, and has et the Government £6,465 8s. for the two full years it has been in operation, and is estimated to cost £15,500 for the year ending 31st March, 1939, an average of £7,321 16s. a year. The total cost to the country for the eleven years has been £74,252 19s. 4d., an average of £6,750 5s. 5d. per annum. The number of growers of wheat on both vlei and irrigated land in 1937 was 523.
153. It is interesting to note that the Wheat Growers' Association represented to the Danziger Committee the cost of production as being as high as 19s. 11d. per bag on vlei land. According to the figures of the Government Statistician, the average production of wheat per acre for the eight years 1930 to 1937, inclusive, is 2.2875 bags per acre. As this includes wheat produced on irrigated land where, according to the aforesaid Committee's findings, the average yield may be 5 bags per acre, it may he that, as stated in evidence to this Commission, the average yield is about i bags per acre on vlei land.
154. Your Commissioners are of opinion that, taking the most favourable view of the situation, apart from any other considerations, the growing of wheat on vlei land is, on the whole, economically unsound, and that when it is accompanied, as it often is, by the destruction of valuable vleis, it becomes a tragedya tragedy which may be said to he encouraged or even made possible by Government subsidies. These vleis are quite different in character from the swamps found on the red or chocolate soils. They are composed of a mixture of sand and dark undercomposed organic matter, only comparatively rich in humus and plant food. The dark component is not an integral part of the soil complex and can be easily separated from the other constituents leaving a poor, sandy remnant. This is often seen where, on the breaking up of the ground, the dark soil is carried on to the lower portions of the vlei and when floods come is washed down the rivers. In this way, much valuable land is converted into eroded sandy wastes.
155. The subsidizing of wheat growers may have been the means of keeping a number of farmers on the land and inducing further settlement. One result, however, has been widespread deterioration of much land without a corresponding improvement in the status of the occupiers, whose circumstances induce them to take the last ounce out of the soil but preclude them from taking adequate steps to protect it and maintain its fertility. It should not be inferred from the foregoing remarks that your Commissioners see any objection on principle to the subsidizing of wheat growing where the land is suitable and maintained in a condition which will give a good average yield.
156. Much of the land on which wheat is now uneconomically grown is capable of being converted into good pastures. It is recommended that the production of wheat on such land should be discountenanced and that the owners be encouraged to convert their vleis into improved pastures and turn to the keeping of stock. Assistance in lieu of the present wheat subsidy could be given, it being remembered that it would not, as in the case of that subsidy, be recurrent annually.
XI. WATER RESOURCES.
157. In the preceding sections, your Commissioners have dealt with the necessity of the protection of the soil and shown how it is liable to suffer from the uncontrolled flow of water. Without water, however, the richest soil is quite unproductive and, therefore, the questions of soil and water conservation are almost inseparable. Water is an essential to all kinds of animal and vegetable life: the drier the region, the greater the esteem in which it is held. In the religious literature of people living in arid countries, there are frequent references to water as a blessing and to paradise as a place where it is found in abundance.
158. The mean annual rainfall of Southern Rhodesia is in the neighbourhood of 28 inches. The accompanying rainfall map shows that its incidence extreme south of the Colony to over 40 inches in the eastern highlands and in two other elevated areas, one around Selukwe and the other extending from near Zimbabwe to beyond the Native Commissioner's office at Bikita.
159. Southern Rhodesia has a. definite rainy season normally extending lie months of October to April. The precipitation during the rest of the year is of little importance. Memoranda by the Director of Irrigation and the Irrigation Engineer for Matabeleland on the subject of soil and water conservation are annexed. (Appendices IV. and V.) From the former it is seen that practically twothirds of the total precipitation occurs during the three months December to February, mostly in the form of showers of heavy intensity. The rainfall is erratic in its annual distribution and there are successions of below, followed by successions of above normal rainfall.
160. Mr. J. S. Peake, B.Sc., in an article published in the South African Journal of Science in November, 1931, in dealing with the 34 years of rainfall then available for Salisbury and Bulawayo, had some interesting remarks on drought periods. Taking a "drought period" to be a period of 10 days or more between 1st November and 25th March without rain, he found there were 43 in all at Salisbury, 16 of which occurred before the 27th November; only 3 exceeded 20 days. Over the same time, there were 70 drought periods at Bulawayo. One of these lasted 38 days from the 10th December, 1898. There were 7 others lasting over 20 days. These drought periods may be taken as typical of considerable areas in Mashonaland and Matabeleland respectively. The evaporation which takes place during these periods of drought and the runoff from rains have an important relationship to the quantity of water actually available where it falls. The Irrigation Engineer for Matabeleland has calculated that, under conditions in Mataheleland, it is possible to lose more than 10 inches of the rainfall by evaporation from the soil between November and March if a 16day drought occurs once a month.
161. The chief factors influencing the runoff are the general slope of the country, the intensity of precipitation and the degree of absorption by the soil, which is governed not only by the absorptive character of the soil itself but also by the presence or absence of a vegetal covering and by the density of such covering. A study and comparison of the rainfall and altitude maps will show that the chief precipitation and the sources of the principal streams are in the elevated parts of the Colony. It is obvious, therefore, that the general relief of the country and the intensity of the rains provide conditions favourable to rapid runoff.
162. Having regard to the high average rainfall and with a lively recollection of the deluges of the last wet season, there may be some disposition to regard the conservation of water of less importance than it really is. The great variation in the volume of the annual rains, the short period over which they are spread, their intensity and uncertainty of incidence, combined with a high rate of evaporation and rapidity of runoff are all factors which greatly detract from their effectiveness and make their conservation a question of first importance.
163. Owing to climatic and health conditions, presence of water and other causes, the great majority of the population live in the more elevated parts of the Colony where, as has been mentioned, the chief rains fall and the principal streams have their source. Whether or not the runoff of these rains is to he accelerated with a consequent loss of soil and water or is to he retarded with a corresponding profit, largely lies with these people, inasmuch as the chief determining factors in the quantity and rate of runoff and the consequent loss of soil are the management and treatment of the land.
164. President Roosevelt, in a letter to the Secretary of Agriculture on the occasion of a conference on upstream engineering in June, 1936, said the object was "through forestry and land management, to keep water out of our streams, to control its action once in the streams, and generally to retard the journey of the raindrop to the sea." If each occupier of land, whether it be a town stand, suburban lot, farm or ranch, were to set about retarding the journey of the raindrop, he would be promoting not only his own but also the country's interests.
165. Whenever rain of any appreciable volume falls on a bare space it runs off quickly carrying soil with it, thus loss of water and soil go hand in hand. Under natural conditions the soil is covered with plant or other growth which retards the flow of the water and conduces to its absorption by the soil. Minor experiments carried out in this Colony, more extensive investigations in the Union and most exhaustive researches in the United States of America all point to the important relation the vegetal covering has to water and soil losses. An experiment in the Union showed that the loss of water and soil respectively was 80 to 683 times greater from an uncultivated bare plot as compared with that from a piece of veld left intact. In the United States of America, among many experiments, all pointing the same way, mention might be made of those conducted to determine the losses under varying conditions from thirteen widely separated agricultural soils representative of the principal types of farm land within a predominantly agricultural area of approximately 250 million acres. The measurements were taken over a two to sixyear period, in accordance with the most exact methods known to science, and showed that the loss of water from fields devoted to cleantilled crops was approximately seven times greater than from fields protected with closegrowing crops such as grass, legumes and trees, and further, that the loss of soil from the former was 174 times as much as from the latter.
166. The results in both the foregoing eases were obtained on land such as would ordinarily be used for farming operations. Granted favourable conditions, the runoff and erosion will be greatly increased on the much steeper slopes which largely constitute the catchment areas of our streams. It is, therefore, important that every care should be taken not to promote these conditions and to maintain these areas in a state calculated to induce and retain rainfall. The disappearance of vegetation, whether caused by the destruction of indigenous trees and shrubs, or through the burning or overgrazing of the veld or otherwise, is the most fruitful source of water and soil loss.
167. It is very generally held that widespread destruction of the natural vegetation may even decrease the total precipitation, yet increase its intensity, with a consequent drop in its efficacy. Whatever the truth of this view may be, it has been clearly established by experiences elsewhere that the spread of tillage and stock farming over the catchment areas of streams and the consequent denudation of cover has led to the drying up of springs, the cessation of the permanent flow of the streams and the advent of devastating siltladen floods. While it is imperative to guard against these conditions being allowed to arise, it is encouraging to know that much can be done to combat them when they have arisen. An instance mentioned to the Commision was that of a spring whose good flow decided the authorities to build a dipping tank near it in order that there might be a ready supply of water both for the dip and for the cattle. The congregation of numerous cattle soon destroyed the surrounding vegetation; their trampling consolidated the soil and accelerated the runoff with the consequence that the spring ceased to flow. Someone, inspired by the thought that the position might be retrieved if the original conditions were restored, had a considerable area round the spring enclosed. The vegetation returned and the spring commenced to flow.
168. Great damage is being done by Natives carrying their cultivation into the hills and denuding them of trees and other vegetation. Evidence was given that streams rising in these hillsonce clearrunning and perennialnow come down as siltladen torrents when it rains and cease flowing soon after the rains are over.
169. The breaking up of vleis and of patches of moist ground on river banks has already been mentioned as a source of erosion. In their natural state, these places act as useful reservoirs which stabilize and prolong the stream flow; merely broken up, their humus content and water holding capacity tends to disappear; eroded, they not only cease to be reservoirs but provide channels which drain away the surrounding underground moisture and lower the watertable.
170. The catchment areas, the vleis and swamps which stabilize and feed the streams, are of such vital importance to the country that powers should be taken not only to preserve and increase their usefulness, but also, where necessary, to restore it.
171. One of the general powers and duties of the Water Court contained in section 42 of the Water Act, 1927, as amended in 1938, is:
"(e) if required to do so by the Minister, to report for his information as to the measures deemed necessary for the protection of the sources of public streams, whether by the carrying out of works, the preservation of natural vegetation, the method of cultivation of land, the cessation of cultivation of land, or such other means as may appear desirable ;"
The following provisions are also contained in the amended section 108 of the same Act:-
" 108. (1) The Minister shall exercise general supervision over all public streams in the Colony. On a report from a water court he may construct and maintain such works as the court may have recommended and the Minister may deem desirable for the protection of the soure. of any public stream.
(2) If so requested by the Governor, a water court may enquire into and determine the proportion of the cost of any such protection works which should be borne by persons benefiting therefrom and the proportion which should be defrayed from public funds, and may order any person to carry out the whole or a part of any such protection works which may be for his benefit. If any person fails to comply with such order within such reasonable time as may be fixed by the water court, the Minister may cause the works to be executed and recover the cost thereof from the person in default.
(3) On a report from a water court, the Minister may give such order to any owner or occupier of land as to the preservation of natural vegetation, the method of cultivation of land, the cessation of cultivation of land or such other measures as may have been recommended by the court for the protection of the source of any public stream. Any person who fails to carry out any order of the Minister given in terms of this subsection within such reasonable time as may be fixed by the Minister shall be guilty of an offence."
172. The foregoing provisions of the Water Act, although so far never acted uponindeed they were only promulgated in their amended form in July, 1938have, in the opinion of your Commissioners, much to commend them and are especially interesting as indicating how far the Legislature, as representative of the people, is prepared to go in providing machinery for the protection of the country's water. As in the case of the soil conservation provisions in the same Act, it is thought that there should be a more direct method of bringing them into operation. Your Commissioners will, in the appropriate place, make recommendations on this head.
173. In addition to protecting catchment areas and other sources of water supply, much can be done in other directions to retain the rainfall on the land and "retard the journey of the raindrop to the sea." When the rains are over and the runoff has ceased, all water, other than that which has been stored, must he sought for in the supply which is found in the ground or issues from it in the form of an ooze or springs. This supply must originally have found its way into the soil; it therefore follows that the more the soil absorbs the better the supply will be he, and that the first concern should be to get the rainfall into the ground. To promote absorption, attention need not be directed solely to the surface conditions. The contour ridges and storm drains so useful in preventing soil erosion on cultivated land can, when designed to retain rather than lead water away, be most effective in holding up the rainfall on the land until it finds its way into the ground to augment the subterranean supply. The Commission visited a farm near Inyati where the owner had constructed works to divert floods from the ordinarily dry watercourses and spread them over the veld. With apparent good cause, he was well satisfied with the results.
174. Your Commissioners are of opinion that the ideal conditions for getting the best results in water conservation would he found in a system designed to secure a wise use of both land and water from the headwaters of each rivulet and stream downwards. A wise use of the land implies antier