GRAIN STATISTICS.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13744, 27 May 1910, Page 8

GRAIN STATISTICS.

PROPOSALS BY FARMERS' UNIOS. -j

The method of collecting grain sta- ' 1 tistics Was discussed at tho Provincial** Conference of -the Farmers' Union last '-_", evening. -Tie, : following remit was ie- .-. ceived from the Dunsandel branch:—*,-*, j "That tlie Government be asked to lect grain statistics, by each farmer I*" ing supplied with a lonn on which ie ' "J shall return:—(l) The acreage in grant, crops on his holdings; (2) his estimate . of the probable yield per acre; (3) WIO" ■'quantity of grain on hand from pi-- , viotis year. Such return to he mado tiP J r in the third week in December, and returned to the officer appointed; farmers to bo liable to a penalty for non- - compliance." Mr G. $heat moved tho adoption of . the remit. He said that tho grain sta- , • tistics in the past season had not been, collected in tho orthodox way. - The Stock Department had been instructed to collect the. informationaaboutt t tho , crops, and the officers had done it -as - - well as they could, in view of tho other , | work which occupied thoir time. Soim" • estimates were issued by the Department, after the officers had ' gor.o throilgh the districts and interviewed a - fe?w farmers. Ho (Mr Sheat) had -pre- - viottslv criticised the estimates, and put forward the estimate that 21) bushels would he near tbo mark. "this had been criticised by the Hqn: TMackenzie, Minister for Agriculture, but subsequently the Department bad . como down in its estimate from 3j>*bushels, of wheat per aero to 33, am after that to 28. It- would eventually come down to 26. Mr Sheat contended-, that if the return was to be of ail.*', value to statisticians it should be com-., piled accurately, and not. in a i slipshod,f,. way. The Government might have had , financial reasons for not doing tho work 'properly in the past year. AnJ estimate made, even, in December,;. 1 would be purely tentative. ; i Mr Lill seconded tbe motion, thou*.lr he did not blame the Government .lot dropping the old system. ■Sir 0. F. Clothier said thai- the proposed system would be more, economical than tlie old method, and it would also ; give mur-h more accnr.-.to results'. . Mr Lill .said that the form should include all a-ccricultural produce, aud'this was agreed to. , Mr Horrell said that Mr Mickenaes first estimate of 35 bushels was »<»rrcei ono, according to the anticipation* of farmers at the time the estimate wa* mode. Everyone admitted tliat tlie estimr.tes h?d to be reduced. It was explained that- the objection to the estimate was the (slipshod A*.'-"/" iv which it was arrived at. The remit, as amended, was agreed to.