286 Acres was the correct acreage we finished up with. Once the good times come, and prices come good, it seemed to be big enough to make pretty good money. I had the opportunity to buy Brant’s property, but Jack was against it for some unknown reason. I was tempted to buy it myself, but thought it may create a bit of friction. So, I thought I would go along with his reasoning. We could have bought for 50 pound and acre. There was 120 acres in it. But I think it will come up again.
With our limited acreage now, and the way we’ve improved it, and we have a few bob together, with a lot of improvements in the past few years with our good sheds, fences and waterways, we have bought it up to date in the last few years.
 | Ballie could see the money was to made in sheep so he started on fat lambs in 1949 |
| He had the Dorset wool in the 50-51 boom - |
| 1950 wool sold for 120 pence per pound - the wool boom was 1949 - 52 - you can just imagine what price they got for fine merino wool - the fine micron. |
| Money was everywhere. Many rich farmers built workmen's cottages for employees modelled on the British gentry system and they thought they were going to make their fortunes. Taxation was their biggest problem. They had to use up this quick money. When the bust came they were left high and dry. |
| Business people took advantage of this and raised their prices. |
| After the War the soldier settlement land was opened up. The big stations were cut up and the soldiers were given good land - not like after the First World War when they were given marginal land. In Coleraine Brung Brungle - 15 settlements, out along the Casterton Road - Nicholas estate went into dairying with 30 settlements. Most were given between 700 and 900 acres. The interest was 4 or 5% over 40 years. It didn't pay them to pay their place off. Many celebrated or drown their sorrows too much with alcohol and lost their farms. There's very few of these left around now - they are back in the big holdings. |
| The building industry took off. Coleraine had 7 or 8 carpenters. |
| At one stage Ballie used to have 1200 to 1500 sheep and would have to take them to Mt. Koroit to have them sheared. It was awful when you drove them and it rained. You had to leave them up there for a week. When they were shown they got the cramps. |
| He got jack of that so, even though he hadn't built a thing in his life he designed a built the wool shed. Built in 1954. I was five years old at the time. Jack sent over two cases of oranges from Waikerie and I had orange peels from the house to the woolshed. I was building my own woolshed with off cuts. Jimmy Millard was a top builder in those days. He said you might go alright until you put the iron on which will be a problem if you haven't got it square. Ballie drew up plans on graph paper to scale, worked out his timber lists. Lockie McClean cut the red gum blocks. Sid Bloomfield carted the timber up. Ballie built the whole thing himself. |
| The best year was 42 heavy bales of wool. 6 to 8 of these were lambs wool. For 300 acres this was a great effort - a record. The 60's early 70's. |
| Ballie started off with the Dorsets. Then he bought 2 or 3 Merino rams from the sheep show in Hamilton. A long process to breed out the Dorsets. Eventually went into finer ones. Then he bought 'Poleworth' which was soft and gave good length and this produced that extra bulk of wool. |
| The sheep needed to be 'drenched' to keep the worms down and 'dagged' so they wouldn't be flyblown. 'Crutched' and shorn. Enormous maintenance needed for good lambs and wool. Ballie always aimed for 95% lambing. |
| Sheep were fazed out and then Ballie switched to cattle - vealers. This lessened the burden immensely. |
| Ballie could usually carry 64 cows and 140 sheep - 80 ewes and lambs. Kill off the weather lambs. |
| With cattle a big saving not have to employ shearers. |
| Sheep yards built 69-70. |
| Donald Mc Nickel was the best producer of big bullocks - 8 to a railway truck. He topped Newmarket at 5 or 6 pound |
