A Blade-Shearing Family

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29763, 5 March 1962, Page 18

A Blade-Shearing Family

Shearing seems often to run in families. There will be four Karaitiana brothers In the New Zealand blade shearing championships on Wednesday. George, aged 26 years, who lives at North Beach, Christchurch, won the Australasian championship at Masterton in March last year and his brother Paul, who is a little older than George, was placed second in the same competition. The two brothers also tied for first place in the blade shearing at the Royal show in Christchurch two years ago. The other brothers who will also be shearing this week are Bill and Campbell. The Karaitianas are among the fastest men with the blades in the country. This season at Mr Colin Gallagher's shed at Montalto, George Karaitiana shore 242 halfbred ewes with the blades in 7 hoars 55 minutes. A week before in a Waipara shed Paul. shore 238 Corriedales to break the family record of 230 previously held by George. Last Christmas, George and Paul went to Gisborne to take part in ‘a shearing demonstration. With the blades they were able to shear as fast as men with machines—doing individual sheep in about a minute and a half. George said last week that

all shearing members of their family were able to do about the 200 mark or better with the blades. He said that his brother Bill had shorn over 200 in 7 hours 20 minutes in a shed at Waikouaiti. Campbell Karaitiana, who is also shearing this week, is now farming near Portobello in Otago and George . and Paul run about 1000 ewes on country near Campbell’s. Rangi, the other shearing brother and the eldest of the them, now operates small bulldozers for shifting phosphate at Port Chalmers and Bluff. Only one brother does not shear. He is the youngest. Kuku, who is now in his fourth year of law studies at Otago University. Father of a family of six boys and eight girls, Mr Robert L. Karaitiana has been using the blades for 40 to 45 years and is still capable of working alongside his sons- He has taught all of his shearing sons and many other good blade men as well. "The neatest shearer I have ever seen.” is George’s description of him. The Karaitianas begin shearing in July in the Motunau district and from then onwards until about the middle of February they range from North Canterbury to the Rakaia Gorge, Oamaru and the Mackenzie

Country over a run built up by their father. George, Paul and Bill have each shorn about 20.000 sheep in the season just over, and operating with another five shearers in sometimes two groups of four and sometimes altogether and sometimes on their own they have probably accounted for about 120.000 sheep all told this season. George says that the blade shearer settles into the work after about a fortnight at the beginning of the season once the skin on the inside of the fingers becomes calloused and the wrists loosen up. Another family combination will be taking part in the open shearing and woolhandling contest. They are the Scott brothers from South Canterbury. M. Scott, a junior All Black and captain of the South Canterbury team that defeated France at Rugby, is an agricultural contractor. He can shear up to 250 a day with the machines and Eddie, who will be doing the shearing with him. also an agricultural contractor, can also reach up to this tally. Danny Scott, an electrician, and Andy Scott, a former shearer now farming, will be doing the wool handling for their brothers.