Gympie and District Farming and Grazing – 1905 – Kilkivan Station

This story features a newspaper article which was published in The Gympie Times and Mary River Mining Gazette in 1905 and covers Kilkivan Station.   At the time, the Station was owned by the estate of Mr G H Jones and managed by his son, Mr Norman Jones.  Due to the age and condition of the newspaper there are some parts of the article which we were unable to decipher. 

“GYMPIE AND DISTRICT FARMING AND GRAZING.
No. XXV. — (By Our Special Reporter).
Kilkivan District (continued).

Kilkivan Station, belonging to the estate of the late Mr. G. H. Jones, and managed by his son. Mr. Norman Jones, comprises some 20,000 acres of freehold land, the greater part being of first class quality, en-closed in paddocks extending to the range dividing the Wide Bay and Burnett water and 10 square miles of country held under occupation license. In the early days before galvan-ised iron tanks were so common, and car-riage of 400 gallon ship tanks was a very expensive matter by drays, the site for a head station had to be selected where there was a permanent supply of water for house-hold use. This meant on the bank of a creek or near a good water-hole, from which the water was generally brought in a cask mounted on a slide, formed from a suitable forked branch of a tree.

The site of the Kilkivan head station is on a high ridge close to the bank of the Wide Bay creek, about one and a-half miles from the township which has grown up since gold was discovered, and is much younger than the original station buildings. From the house there is a very pretty view all round across the cleared paddocks to the scrub clothed ranges, at various distances accord-ing to which direction the view is taken. The old woolshed is still standing with its shingle roof telling of the earlier times when this station, as well as most others in the Wide Bay and Burnett districts, was stocked with sheep. Then came the time when sheep proved unprofitable on the coast coun-try if kept in large numbers, when they were replaced on most of the runs by breeding cattle. Ring-barking, clearing, and fencing so improved the country that later again it was proved that bullocks brought from the western lands, would fatten east of the main range, with the additional advantage that when topped up they were near the market.

Breeding and fattening are com-bined on Kilkivan station. Hereford bulls having been used for many years for the former purpose. The stock on the run con-sists at present of 2500 of all ages, and last year over 500 head of prime bullocks were sold to the Gympie butchers, and help-ed to fill some of the hungry mouths on this goldfield. The cattle dip, which is just in view from the house on the edge of the standing timber, is built of wood with clay well puddled under the bottom and at the back of the walls. The sheathing is of hardwood boards with tongues of galvanised iron and the dimensions are 42ft by 2ft 6 inches. The “Royal Dip’ has been found more effective than any other solution tried, —killing the ticks in two days—being easier and less troublesome to prepare than either “Dr. Garde’s” or “Christian’s.” Speaking of the place as a whole, Mr. Jones says there were very few ticks last season, but still the cattle were dipped regu-larly every three weeks. He also remarked that the ticks were more numerous in some paddocks than in others.
As an instance of this, although most of the country was burned clean last year, one of the paddocks was too green for the fire to get a good “run,” which resulted in the greater part of the grass not being even scorched ; yet in this very paddock there are practically no ticks this year. It has also been re-marked that the redwater has always been more virulent in some of the paddocks than in others. The same experience has al-ready been noted on other large holdings, and opens up a wide field for investigation. The questions arise, first, are there any properties in certain classes of soil that are detrimental to tick life or to the fecundity of the cattle tick, or is there certain herb-age that acts through the hides to check the propagation of the cattle tick : for it must be remembered that cattle lick saline rock and earth. And second, are there cer-tain herbs growing in some places where the conditions of soil, and moisture or dryness. are favorable that have a curative agency against the attacks of the disease known as ‘red water” or “Texas fever.”

Very val-uable information could be obtained if those who are constantly among the stock and know of comparatively immune localities, would carefully note any difference in the herbage or soil from those in other parts where the ticks are particularly virulent, or even where they may be said to be bad. The whole herd was Inoculated with “recov-ered blood” as a preventative against Texas fever and the losses from this operation were very small. The disease was brought on to the run by some cattle that had been purchased, and among which it had appeared on the road. Six weeks after their arrival redwater broke out among the station bred cattle and 400 cows, “all heavy in calf,” died, out of 1000 : the losses among the bullocks were compara-tively light, only 50 out of 1200 head. There was also a serious outbreak of pleuro pneumonia last August, when a good many bullocks, but no cows, succumbed. Inocula-tion with virus was commenced on the 1st September, and as the cattle in the differ-ent paddocks were operated on, the sym toms of pleuro absolutely stopped in those paddocks until the whole run was again free of the disease.

The following formula to enable the virus to be kept for a limited Period is used on the station : 4 parts virus and 1 part glycerine is put in a perfectly clean bottle (which should be boiled or rins-ed out with carbolic water or some similar disinfectant) and sealed down. This will keep good – and retain its efficacy for three weeks, and if when the bottle is opened the contents are not in a condition to use the smell will be very offensive. When pleuro broke out last winter another fatal disease appeared, and the Stock Department were consulted as to a remedy. The symptoms were frothing at the mouth and swelling at the throat, no cough, but occasionally causing dropsy of the lungs ; in a beast that was killed and examined, both lungs were found quite dry but clean. The name of the disease is “oedema,” and the remedy is, to make an incision in the swollen parts at the throat. “Black-leg” was very prevalent a good many years back, but since then all calves have had a seton put in the dew-lap, and when the weaners have been dipped they are given a run, as this is thought to open the lungs.

Both draught and saddle horses are bred, and the quality of the stock raised is well and favorably known among buyers. The thorough bred stallion “Fusilade” by “Fusileer” out -of “Ida” presides over about 40 mares, and among his progeny may be mentioned “Primrose,” who proved a winner both on the Maryborough and Gym-pie racecourses, and is now racing in In-dis, and “Grenadier,” bred by the late Mr. l. Sim. The draught stallion is “Law-fence Drew” (imported from New Zealand) by “Herd Laddie” imported ; dam “Lidie” by “Vanquisher” imported. “Lawrence Drew” “””” about twenty station mares ponies were also reared in fair numbers, and the quality of the stock got by the Ex-moor pony stallion “Nonpariel,’ who is now standing near Gympie, is highly spoken of: about 30 ponies are on the place.

During the drought of three years ago the losses amounted to over 7½ per cent among the cattle, and 15 big draught mares heavy in foal also died. There is a small cultiva-tion paddock, and various ?”””” of cotton seed were planted to see how the climate would suit this crop. All the varieties are reported to have done well. Mr Norman Jones gave an instance of the length of time that may elapse between the time pas-palum seed is sown and when it shows above ground. He sowed in September, and did not see the grass shooting above ground until the February twelve months following.”

 This story was compiled by Kathy Punter.

Sources:  Trove; GFHS Record Collection;