SKENE'S LABOUR EXCHANGE.

1 w '' Z ' July 18th, 1577. ■ We cannot report business in the labour market and it is not to be expected in July. The building , trade is at a standstill, causing- many men to go idle; but' men with forethought are more or less prepared for the winter slackness. Many, again, expect sunshme and full work all the year round, and when they find it ia not so, at once blame the country. Trained farm men are always naeded and welcome. Shepherds an>l station people will soon be in demand. Fetriale servants for general work m private houses, and dairy are much needed, but hotel females are in less demand do also are men. The iron urade is still very dull and has good cause of comp aint. It js very difficult at present to place town-bred men, such as clerks and Shopmen. Wages :— Couple?, £60, £65. and up to £80 ■• shepherds, £00 ; dairyhands, 15s to 20s'; ploughmen'£s2 to £55; supeuor do, £60 to £66 ; day labour 7s' 8?, da, and 10s ; sardeners, quarrymen, miners etc '• 9i and XOs;. cooks, waiters, • barmen, 20s 25s and 30s ; female servants, 10s, 12s, and 15s ; hotel do 123 15s, aud 203 ; upper do, 255, to 303 ; boys and Wls' (is, Bs. aud 10^ ; station ainittis, 40s and found : country storemen, 30s to 40s. . COMMERCIAL TELEGRAMS. Ciiristchurcu, July 13th. Gram and produce quotations : — Best millm-* wheit, 7s to 7s 3d ; seconil quality, 5s to 5» 6d • flour* £17 to £18 ; bran, £4 103 ; sharps, £5 10-. • potito-s' £3 ; cheese, 7d ; oats, 3i 9d. ilil'ers have advanced oatmeal £2 ; 251b bags now quoted at £20. At auction cats realibed 43 to 4s 3d at country i-tatioa. Stocks low." i Sydney, July 13th. Case brandy, 31s 3d; quarter.-., 8s 9J. Karosene. 2s 2d to 2s 3d, dull, ftice, unchanged. Adelaide flour, £18 10s to £19 lOi. Adelaide wheat, 8r to 8s 3d. New Zealand wueat and oats, nominal. Tobicco and susrir, unchanged. Sperm candles lOd to lfrld. Auckland. July 13th. Mr Buckland reports :— Fat cattle, 27s to 30s per lOOlbs; fat sheep, 3d per lb ; store merino wethera 4s to 7s 9J each. ' Share Market. -Buyers : Bink of New Zealand, £22 5? ; National Insurance, 291 6d. Sellers : South Britnh, 90s; National Bank, 7a. Sales (mmm? stock): MoMiataiari, £7 Is to £7 16a ; Wiutari, los 6d ; Alburnia, 50s ; Cure, Bs. "Wellington. July 13th, Flour (Vdelaide), £2i; Culoaiai, £18 103 to £20; oat", 33 9d.; bran, Is Id ; chick wheat, 4s 3d ; h uns' 10£ d; baon, Sid; cheese, Is Id; maize, 4s 3d;' pollard 7s dd ; potatoes, £3 10s. * C-AHABir, Ju}y 13th. In wheat there is little change, samples readily finding purchasers at 7s to 7s 3d, and in some instances'

the extreme rate of 75.6 d. , Oats are quotedat, from 3s 3d to 3s 6d. There is .little or no. business , doing in barley ;' "feed, up'to 3s 3d ; malting prime "q'ual'ty, none in the market. F.o.b. prices for breadstuffs: Flour, £19 to £20; oatmeal, £20 ; pearl barley, £20 ; pollard, £6 ; bran, 4s ; potatoes, worth £3. Messrs Whitblaw and Co. report • sales of shares during the past week as follows : — Insurance. — National, 32s ; New Zealand,- 101s ; South British, 87s 6d; Standard, 17s 6d. Banks.— Colonial, 45s 6d; New .Zealand, £22 5s ; National, 71s. Other Companies.— Hopeful Gold Mining; Reefton, 120s ; Mo*giel Woollen Factory, 655 ; New Zedand Shipping, 72s 6d ; Walton JPark Coal, 12s Gd ; Keep it Dark Gold Mining, 9a. , Buyers. —lnsurances: National, 30s; "New Zealand, 95s ; Standard, 17s ; South British, 85s. Banks : Colonial, 45s 3d ; New Zealand, £21 ; National, 70s. Other Companies: Albion Brewing, 4s 6d^ Hopeful Gold Mining, Reefton, West Coast 110s; Keep it Dark Gold Mining, Reefton,- West Coast, 83 ; Kaitangata Railway, £7 ; Mosgiel Woollen -Factory, 65s ; Mount Ida Pastoral Association, £8 10s ; .New Zealand Shipping, 723 6d ; Otago and -Southland Investment, 253 ; Walton Park Coal, V2s " Welcome Gold Mining. Reeft-»n; West Coast, 30s; New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency, 95s old 60s new issue. Sellers : Greymouth Coal, 459. Mr Henry Driver (on behalf of the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Co.) reports for the week .ending July 18th :— Fat Cattle.- -A moderate supply of 178 were yarded principally of good to prime quality, and found buyers at about last week's -.rates. Best pens of bullocks brought from £10 10s to £16 10s ; do cows, £7 10a to £10 10<s— or equal te 30s per lOOlbs. Fat Sheep.— l2B9 only came forward. This number being considerably short of the requirements of tlie trade, there was a slight advance on our late quotations. Best pens of cross-breds brought Us to 14s 6d • merinos, of which only a few were penned, 10s— or equal to fully 2jd per lb for prime quilitv. We sold 600, on account of James Logan,' Ksq', at 13< each. Store Stock.— Nothing of importance has been transacted in this description of stcck, •' - Wool.— Per cable : "London, llth July.— Wool unchanged ; next sales commence 14ih Augusf when 360,000 ba!e3 are expected to be offered." In thi3 market, a few bale* scoured .are selling privately at' a slight advance, good sorts bringing 17d. Sheepskins. — At our usual weekly auction last Monday, we catalogued 1400, which sold briskly at very extreme rates. They consisted chiefly of green slaughters, several large lo's bringing- 4s 9i down to 4s 5d each ; merinos, 2a 2d to 3s sd: Hides.— We had only a smalt supply, which were well competed for. Heavies in good condition, 23s to 28s each, or equal to 4Jd to 5d per lb; medium weights, 17s to 20s : light and inferior, 12j 6d to 13s or 4d to 4Ad per lb ; gteen h dcs, 20 1 to 22s 6d. Tallow.— A small supply of inferior to medium quahty, which s^'d at 26s 6d to 28s 6d, inferior ; medium 31s. Rough fat, 21s to 2Js per cwt. Grain.— Wheat, for prime milling, ol which there is scarce any offering, there ib good demand at 73 6J to 7s 9d ; secondary qualities are neglected and lower— affected, no doubt, by the price of flour being reduced at the mills from £20 to £18 per ton. Oats ara, in the absence of shipping orders, -slow of sale, but as it appears from reports of country auction sales in the Oamara district at 4s 6d on the ground, at Ashburton 4s andinChristchurch3s 9 J, quotations are lower here thaa any shipping port in New Zealand. Melbourne market is rising; old stocks being cleared out. Wa have sold feed at 3s 4d, and quote milling at 3s 6d. Biriey : No enquiry, except for feed, at 3j to 3a 3d. Messrs Wright, Siephessojt, and Co., report 1 for the week ending 18th July, 1877, as follows :— ' Fat Cattle. —A full supply of "200 -head was yarded for to-day's market, chiefly good quality. Prices suffered a decline to "the extent of fully 2s ,6d per lOOlbs. _We sold, on account of the N,Z and A Land Co., Henley Estate, Mrs C Qow, Messrs Little Bros Wni. Sawers, George Wallace, and John Mackley^UO head. Bullocks brought from £10 to £14 ; cows £6 10s to £9— prices equal, to 27s 6d per lOOlbs for pnme quality, and 24s for medium do; ;-* , : Fat Sheep.— The moderate mimbot of -1900-was penned, mostly fair to good quality, but notwithstanding the smallness of 'the supply, we cannot report any change in values. We sold, on account of Jaiftes Smith, Esq., Greenfield, 514 oross-bred ewes,' at from 12s to 12s 6d; on account of Mr John Andrew 600 cross-breds, at from 13s 9d to 14?; on account, of Mr George Wilson, 70 do, at 14s We quote prime quality mutton 2td to 2Jd per lb. - H ■ . * Store Cattln.— During the week we have placed 100 head young stock, chiefly 2-year-olds, at from £3 to £4 108. ' -' Store Sheep.— We have enquiries for half-bre'ds and young merino wethers. Our sales consist 'of 2500 cross-breds, mixed sexes, at 8s each. < Horses.— Heavy draughts and good strong coach horses are enquired for. At our yards on Saturday a considerable number came forward, consisting' for- the most part of light and weedy sorts, a fair proportion of them changing hand*. On Saturday, 21st inst.' we shall offer, at our yardi, on account of Mr William Ayles, a fiist-class team of eight horses, waggon; and harness, for which we anticipate good competition We quote first-class draughts at from £45 to £56 • medium, £35 to £40 ; lighi, £25 to £30 ; good saddle and light harness horses, £23 to £30 ; medium, £12 to £20 ; light and inferior, £3 to £10. Sheepskins.— Our weekly sale was well attended by the trade. We catalogued and sold 2010, for which there- was competition, and prices obJained_were rather Jrigher than those of last ' we<-k. Butchprs'greenskiris.half-breds,' brought from 3s 6d to 4s 7d each ; meriaoes, 3s Id to 3s 7d ; station akins upto4slod.~ . v - " Hides.— There is an improved demand, At our sale on Mondajrwe sold 106, as folbws :— Hewy weights in good condition, 23s to 25s cash ; medium, lSa to 225 ; light, 13s to 17s 61 ; heifer skins, 7s ; calfskins, -2s. We quote well-conditioned hides at from "4d to >Jdperlb. , " - Tallow.— Lots suitable for shipment continue in good request. We did not offer any this week. Quotations remain unchanged. - Grain.— Wheat : Very little offering ; quotations unaltered. Prime samples' "would m°et ready sale at from 7s 6d to 7s 9d per bushel ; medium, Ci to 7s • inferior, 4s 9d to 5s 6d;- fowls' feed, 3* 9d to 4s' 6d Oats: Business in this: cereal is very limited at present, there heingr no demand for shipmeat. We quote. good feed at 3s 2d~ to 3s 3d per bushel; prime milling, 3s 4d to 3s 6d. Barley continues neglected. Prime milt ng may be quoted at from 44 to 4s 6d • medium, 3s 4;? to 3s 9d ; feed, 2s Od'to 3s 3d. Messrs Maclean Brothers report for the week ending 18th July, as follows :—: — Fat Cattle.— A full supply of 178 head camt forward for to-day's market, the quality b^ing good to really prime,- nexrly ali were sold at about equal to last week d qu itations ; but a fewpens were turned out for next week's market. At the yards we sold 40 head on acoount of Messrs Alex. Ironside, VV. Patrick- and R Miller, at from £7 15s to £13 2s OdJor bullocks, and £7 12s Cd to £9 15a for cows Privately, we have sold 50 head cattle for forward delivery. Fat Sheep.— A moderate supply of 1850 were penned to-day, all of [fair quality, prices beinir a shade sttffer than those of last week. About 1400 were. sold at pricei ranging from 10s to 14s, or equal to 2Vd per lb We have sold privately this week 500 at quotations. Store Cattle and Sheep.— We have no transactions to report, but there is still a demand for young- crossbreds and merinos. There are, however, few or none offering. Country Sales.— We would direct attention to our sale at Mosgiel on Saturday first, 21st current, when we shall offer the Temperance Hotel ctnd Store, le^se of quarter acre section ; (ilso, groceries, furniture, *c, on of Mr Hanna ; aud on account of Mr Jas. Sme-xton. four allotment? in the township of Mos<'iel, 5-roomed cottage. &c., &c. Wool. — We have nothing further to report since our notice of last week. Sheepskins.— Our sale on Monday last was largely attended, competition was animated, and good prices were obtained. Oidinary green cross-breds fetched from 3s Sd to 4s 3d ; superior, uo to 4s 7d We had on'y a few nisrino skins forward, and these were of iafrtrior quality. Hides continue in fair demand. At oar sale this week we catalogued and sold over 100 at prices from 19s Od up to 29i 6d ; light weights, I4=s to 18-t ; he.fer bkius, 5s to 5s 9d ; ca'f skins, 2s Od to 2s 9d. Tallow is in good request, and this week we have planed several lots— say, for piime mutton taUoW£?4 per ton ; medium, £30 ; inferior, 255 ; rough fat 21st 6d per cwt. ° ' Grain.— Prime wheit is still scarce, and this week wo have been selling "" at 7s 9d J but' there is no enquiries fo- shipment, and we see no probability of any further advance iv price. Oato we quote at Rame priob as last week -viz.. 33 3d to 3s 5d for (rood feed ; inferior. 8s ; prime milling, up to 8s 7d. Bwley