After a lifetime of collecting, former scientist Ken Plomley has reluctantly decided to part with his treasures. Among them are some of the rarest and valuable books on early Australian agriculture. The jewel of his library is an 1826 book on agriculture and grazing in New South Wales, by James Atkinson. It cost Ken 50 pounds back in the early 1960s. The winning bidder in Melbourne on April 16, will likely pay more than $30,000. They may be antiquarian, but Ken's agricultural books make some surprisingly sharp observations about farming in the fledgling colony.