ESTIMATED WHEAT AREA.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 19467, 14 November 1928, Page 13

ESTIMATED WHEAT AREA.

The Government Statistician's estimate of the 1928-29 wheat-area, published last week, bears out tho opinion previously expressed—i.e., that there would be a slight reduction in acreage. Tho decline—from 260,987 actual acres las 1 year to 255,000 estimated for 192829 —is certainly very much smaller than was suggested in some quarters, but in view of the excellent Bowing season, tho protection provided by the sliding scale of duties, and the great iucreasp in the amount of mechanical power now usod on the farm, which allowed the good sowing season to be taken the fullest advantage of, it was illogical to look for anything like a pronounced decrease. With an ordinary season the country should have enough wheat for requirements, but not much more. Taking a line through the crops of the last 10 years, the average bushelnge per acre works out at 31.56, as follows: Bushels

Average bushe!ase per acre over poriod of 10 years 31.50 It . should not be overlooked, when estimating the probable supplies for next year, that tho yields these last two , seasons wero remarkably high, whii' may make a calculation on the ten r basis too optimistic. Howcvei. m one of the years (1924), the yield was more than correspondingly lower than the average. Basing the possibilities on 31 bushels (.56 less than the average) the 255,000 acres should produce a crop of 7,905,000 bushels. This quantity would not meet the country's needs by a matter of half a million bushels, but there will be more than the difference represented by :» carry-over from the current year, and probably some of tho abetter classes of flour will come in from abroad. The figures indicato, however, that thero is not going to be any groat glut in wheat—certainly not such an oversupply as this year.

MORE SHOW ROOM.

The thronged condition of Addingt«n Show Grounds on "People's Day" raises a question that will havo to be seriously faced before long by tho Canterbury A. and P. Association —that is, the question of more accommodation for its increasing crowd of patrons. Last year, with tho special attraction of a Royal Show, which brought visitors froir far afield, the attendance was 45,000. Last Friday, without the Royal incentive, it was 47,000. The assumption from this is that the show is increasing in popularity, and it is reasonable to assume, with the prospect of the Royal Show being held here alternately, that. attendances of 60,000 and over are within sight during the next decade. Where is such a crowd to be accommodated? The Trotting Club's adoption of the Friday v.o!iday has been questioned in many quarters, but if there had been no trots last Friday it is a problem what could have been done to provide for the proportion of the twenty or thirty thousand people at the trots who would have attended the show. There is a remote possibility that this holiday will revert to the exclusive use of the A. and P. Association, as there are many prominent racing men who are seriously inclining to the belief that with sovn daj -ontinuout. racing we are just overdoing it. Should any readjustment of racing and trotting dates take place to meet wit' this opinion it probably would bo in the direction of transferring on o of the four spring racing days to the National meeting in August, allowing the Trotting Association to use the vacant date, and devoting the holiday to the body for which it was * granted—the A. and P. Association. Possibly many members of the Trotting Association would object to surrendering a day so profitable from a totalisator point of view, but most of its officials are men whd realise the importance of the primary industry and the wisdom and justice of giving any assistance they can to advance the farmers' interests. ,If such a revision, of trotting dates should come about the difficulty of congestion in the Show Grounds could be overcome by parking the motor-cars on the capacious areas set aside for their accommodation by the Trotting Club. This could be made to pr mde a source of revenuo to the trotting authorities if they so desired. If some such arrangement is not evolved to relieve the position on People's Day tho A. and P. Association had better reconcile itself to tho conclusion that it has about reached its p alt as far as attendance is concerned. Some A. and P. members have actually suggested the cutting down of the permits for side shows. These members apparently fail to Twcognise that it is the side shows that are tho main attraction to the country youngsters, and to the town ones for that matter, and the attraction which brings many parents who pay as against the member and his family who attend on the privileges extended through membership. Friday's show was really as much a fair as a show —the actual stpek show

was on the Thursday— and if the £2500 through the "gates" on Iriday is to be repeated at future gatherings the side show aspect of the gathering hns got to bo retained. In any case the side show men are not an insignificant source of revenue. Their stand rents average somothing over £4OO each year. Under present conditions more room can be provided only by using a portion of the area devoted to the parking of cars, rhe streets on Friday in the vicinity of Aldington were widely utilised for this purpose, but _ there was little system of parking, cars being allowed to pull in with no regard to economy of space. The streets possibly could be made to provide a degree more accommodation, but it would only be a degree, and it would seem that if the- show is to extend as every person of use in the community hopes it will, something on the lines suggested is inevitable.

Acres per acre 1918-19 .. 208,030 31.57 1019-20 .. 139,011 32.66 1920-21 .. 219,985 31.24 1921-22 .. U 5 2,91S 29.94 1022-23 .. 275,775 30.44 1923-24 .. 173,864 24.01 1924-25 .. 166,964 32.02 1925-26 .. 151,673 30.44 192G-27 .. 220,083 36.13 1927-28 .. 260,987 36.56