Part 6 Edited by Ineke Kershaw
I then bought the “Admiral Run” for a going concern £10,000, (2014 = $1,841,860) stock and everything included. I was only able to pay about £1,200 down and arranged for the balance to remain for 7 years at 5 % on £5,000 and 4½ % on the rest.
There was about 2,400 acres of native land leased to Tully Bros, which was all bush and scrub and from which they were getting no return because they didn’t have the money to improve it.
Tully Bros Long Bush Run was of the extent of 9,000 acres with about 6,500 acres cleared and they were doing well. However, the 2,400 acres of leased native land was practically a white elephant to them as it was bush and scrub. In chatting to Tully one day I said “ You’ve been paying rent for the last five years and getting no return; if you like I’ll take it off your hands for the remainder of the lease, if you will give it to me 2 years rent free with a right of renewal of your lease.” This offer he subsequently accepted.
I took James Sutherland, a friend from my boyish days, into the partnership for the “Admiral Run” and the Maori ground – i.e. the 2,400 acres.
It was quite common talk in Martinborough that “ George Pain was bankrupt and within a year would be on the road with his swag again.” When I told my banker in Wellington he smiled and said “Never mind Pain, let them think so. As long as I know better and you know better what does it matter?”
I was quite aware that I was doing a risky thing and there were rabbits enough on the place to eat all the grass without any stock at all.
Just about that time I lost my wife and as I had no family, I thought to myself “I’m in good country and my old age is provided for as there is the old men’s home and the old age pension”. I therefore took the risk.
In the first four years we spent £11,000 improving the “Admiral “ and the “Maori” and within the next six years paid the £21,000 back and yielded 6% interest. When I first took up the run, the wool clip brought me £400. My last year’s clip netted me £6,600.
My next venture was 5,000 acres in the Castlepoint district, which I bought for £2-10-0 an acre. My first wool clip was of the value of £600 –700, my last netted just over £5,000. Later on Sutherland and I bought 6,000 acres of Native land called “Waihitituma” which was all bush. We have most of it cleared now but we haven’t had time to make much profit out of it.
Our next venture was 1,300 acres at Kahutara, which we kept for fattening sheep and cattle. I have also built a number of brick shops, which yield £883 a year.
