ON THE LAND.

Clutha Leader, Volume XLVI, Issue 17, 26 August 1919, Page 7

ON THE LAND.

.SOUTHER.\ STOCK SALES. Balclutha.—Alternate Fridays, Burnsidc.—Every Wednesday. Clinton. —Alternate Thursdays. Clydevale.—Last Tuesday in month. Gore. —Alternate Tuesdays. Milton. —A 1 tern ate Tn e sil ay s. Owaka, —'Alternate Thursdays to Clinton. Wallaeetown. —'Alternate Tuesdays.

We propose in Tuesday's issue in future to publish a column-of news relative purely to matters concerning the farm. A careful collation of news fro in the various walks of agricultural ami pastoral life will be the guiding principle in the conduct of this column, and as the Leader enters considerably more farmers' homes in the Clutha district. than any other publication the result should fully warrant the labour ami energy involved. It will not be a "scissors and paste" column. Each issue will contain an article, it irot new in fact, entirely original as far as opinions are cqneerned. Any items appearing- in it will have the hall-mark of authority, and as opportunity offers scientific, articles dealing with the soil, etc., will be reproduced fiom sources not generally within the reach of the average reader. The column will be open for the dissemination and discussion of farmers* views on matters of general interest, and such fire, invited from Our rendeis. The column will be kept up to date, and practical as far as our energies will permit, and we confidently hope that it will be appreciated to an extent that will make it an interesting and informative branch of the Leader.

We saw in- an English paper the other day a bold heading that ''England was changing hands." The first shock was that the wealthy foreigner was ousting the hereditaiv landowner to an extent that justified the comment, but it was not so. England is changing hands m the scn-e that big landed proprietors ire cutting up and disposing of their holding'* to small tenant farmers and demobilised soldiers. It was estimated that. £20,000,000 worth of rural land had so been disposed of during the 12 months. The cause largely is the lesson taught by the war in that land settlelucut itf essential to national progress, and. secondly, to the taxation, which makes the holding of large unproductive areas an unpayable proposition. Truly, out of evil iii! a sense conies good. The Old Land but for the war may have Vappyied casually along whilst many of the best typed of its people, owing to land hunger, looked to other climes for a little bit of earth to call their own, and: the unfortunate part was that a hip proportion- of that emigration did not find its way to British dominions-. The United! States and the Argentine have drawn big supplies of the stoutest Wood, in- Britain, and the result of the fact that " England is changing hands'-' is a happy augury that this filtration to foreign parts- will decrease.

But the point we were going to observe when we set out was that the Clutlia district is to an extent ''changing hands." A perusal ot the Lcadei sales columns during the past tew inoutha illustrates the extent to whi.-h farms are being sold. Jft a sense it is rather a pity to see the old hands move out, but in. another way it is satisfactory to know that fanners elsewhere regard farm land here at the value plated on it as a good proposition. That is the pfctin lesson of the frequent ebng«s. It' has also the satisfactory feature that these sales do not mean aggregation of existing fair-sized holdings. n feature that maiks so much of the land dealings in many parts of the .North Island. The Initio aroa o-f native and bush land being throw* open in the North allows this' to continue. In a sense: there will lie no 'shortage of land there for a number of years to come.

Clearing and dispersal sales announced in our advertising columns are: ■Mr Wm. Grey's at Milbuni. to-day; also Mr D. .Murray 's' purebred Shorthorn herd atl'lvde vale to-day; Messrs Shand Bros.' at Hillend to-morrow; -Mr Bowi-n's at Owaka next Thursday; Mr Eric skinner's at Waitapcka next Tuesday (September 2); Mr K. R. Smith s at Katanui on Wednesday, September 5; and .Mr W. Scott's at Ashley Downs ou Tuesday, September 9.

A movement is ; on foot by tanners in the llillelnd district to buy a threshing nul chaft'eutting plant for their use.

A Musterton sheep breeder and stockdcaler expressed the opinion the other day that the price of fat stock next spring would be higher than ever before recorded in th.o Wairarapa. He gave as his reason, for this statement tic fact that meat works would continue operations well into May or June, sad slaughter as much stock as possible. There would be plenty of shipping in the next month or two to clear away old stock, making available sufficient room for new stock, of which farmers would avail themselves to the full. There Would consequently be very high prices ruling at the beginning of the new seafur fat stock, which would be hard to get, and for which the farmer could demand almost his own price.

Approximately £215,000 has been distributed by the Government from the C( |tiulisation fund established in connection with the 1917-18 butter output. A ®ni of &107.000 foas been received from 'he' Imperial Government, this representing 50 per cent, of the profits on the of butter in England. The distri"tfitnrnow made is atf'the rate of 1 l-8d butter exported and Jd per lb

FACTS AND OPINIONS.

of butter for the local market; and about 90 per cent of the factories concerned have received their dividends. There will be a 'balance remaining when the whole of the interim dividend has been paid, and a further adjustment will require to be made for its distribution. Last year three factories stood* out of tiie equalisation scheme, but it is hoped that this year all will come in.

Western Australia originally built two huge rabbit-proof fences from the Southern to the Indian Oceans to prevent the invasion of the country (says the Pastoral Eeview). Time has passed since then, floods have wrecked the fences in patches from time to time, the usual gates has been left open, and in not a few cases there are suspicions that the rodents were deliberately thrown over both fences. Today the rabbits have definitely penetrated both fences in all directions, and they are now establishing themselves in the best of the farming country. They have become fairly thick in the easterly wheat-growing areas beyond the first fence during the last t'ew years, but fortunately, the very dry summer has been favourable to keeping them down by the aid of poison, a good bit of which has been laid this year. It is anticipated that if they reach the coastal sandhills, which are well watered and covered with green scrub, they will take complete possession of that strip of countrv.

The farmers who lucerno fields arc finding them of exceptional value. With withered pastures all round them, those patches, where they have not been punished too severely, stand out like oases in a desrt —a telling illustration of the merits of this prolific fodder plant. Though up to eight degrees of frost have been experienced, lucerne continues to grow and provido good, nutritious feed. It is really surprising' that the farmers do not raise lucerne more extensively. Perhaps the lessons of the present season will have some effect in this direction.

There is a revival in Clydesdale breeding apparent, and ineieased: activity amongst the breed: is anticipated this season. The sale by Mr 11. 10. B. Watson, of Tai Tapu, Canterbury,'of the two-year-old colt Elegance is. reported. The purchasers are Messrs Mitchell and O'Brien, who have shipped this and a: Bonnie Pun.keld colt, also bought, fronr Mr Watson, to Australia. Elegance is undoubtedly a fine colt, and in getting him the buyers had to pav what, is a New Zealand record for a t wo-year-old. lie- had an unbeaten record as a yearling, winning at Leeston, Christ-church and Dunedin. This season he was champion at'Leeston and at Ashburton, where Mr Watson had the unique distinction of winning both championships with mother and son. Owing to the influenza epidemic lie was not brought out at Chmstchurch in. the spring. Sll-KKI' VERSUS RABBITS. A Clyd'ovalei correspondent supplies the following interesting figures regarding the results of a two-days' poisoning among' Brer Rabbit in that locality:— For two or three nights the rabbits were baited with a uveal of molasses and oats, mixed in the proportion of one pint of molasses to four pints of water, mixed in with the oats' to form a soft meal. On the fourth night- the meal was altered to one' ounce, of strychnine to every pound of oats, and a cupful of white sugar to counteract the bitterness. In blissful ignorance of the outrage perpetrated upon him, bunny succumbed 1 to' the tune of (WO in two nights. Selling at auction the aggregate skins, which weighed JlSlb,

.brought-as follows: Winter 'broken* 37 jd per lb; winter does, IOSd per lb; winters - , 83] d per lb; winter , incomings, 70jd per lb; outgoings, 69 : {«l per l'b; fawn, 62*1 per lb. The average price realis-edi was 83 l-3tl per lb, which worked: out at practically 15 l-.'kl per skin. For the week's work the person was rewarded with a handsome cheque of MO 19s 2d. By selling in the' open market lie estimates that he realised a profit of 3 1-3(1 per lb over what was being offered by the dealers. Notwithstanding: these values and prices, our correspondent, who is a farmer, wan emphatic in his assertion that he would sooner be without the rabbits altogether and be able to stock sheep in their place. As compared 'with sheepfarming, rabbit-faming was not. in it. Hi* estimated that, allowing 10 rabbits (and eight is the accepted equivalent) to cat as' much as one sheep, 640 rabbits would eat as much as 64 sheep, which, taken at 30s per head, would realise £96, a price which wouldi more than compensate for the longer period l required 1 for maturity.

THRESHING PLANTS AND THE ROADS.

A discussion took place at Friday's county council meeting in regard to tlie bond required from owners of threshing plants. The matter was -bronght up by Couiveillor Mclntvre, who moved; a •motion that the bond be removed on traction engines, mills, and, cliaffeut'ters in the Glenkenich Biding. The mover thought that threshing mills were so scarce that, instead of placing a bond on the'in they would have to get a bonus to go round. Councillor ''Christie was in favour of the removal of the bond, which had exactly the opposite effect to what- was expected. Threshing plants were so few now that they were' being pulled all over the country. Councillor Begg did not think the

bond was the causa of the scarcity, which existed all over Otafo. Councillor Cumming thought that most men who had 1 threshing mills were financial enough to pay a £SO 'bond. If not they should not have a plant. 1 Councillor North said that it would be a mistake to take the bond off. Tractions were travelling through their clay roads and did an enormous amount of damage. Tliey should be pi evented from doing so. K 'would have paid better to keep the people' in chaff than allow the tractions to go over their roads- as they had been d'oing. ■Councillor .Morrison said that in the Clydevale district they had one threshing plant, and'in regard to the damage to the roads, tlmt was l tin* farmers' own fault. They all wanted the plant in to cut chaff in the winter.

Councillor aiclirtyre said there were four or five chaft'cutters in his district and two threshing mills. The roads were •l'or the people. However, if they were not to be used, barb wire them up, and let. the traffic go through the paddocks. He considered that the bond did' not help in production. Councillor Begg said that 'Councillor Christie had complained about his bridges coming down owing to traction engines. That was cause and effect. (Laughter.) Councillor Christie thought that a bridige that could not carry a traction engine was not of -much use. The motion was lost by six votes to three.

THK FUTURE OF DAIRYING. Hoard's Dairyman says:—The general feeling of optimism' concerning the dairy industry finds .support in a pamphlet from the United States Department of Agriculture. Not only are its remarks enconraging as to the present situation, but the outlook is suiliciently blight to warrant fanners in " maintaining' or increasing their herds." The department report records a satisfactory increase in the number of dairy cattle during the past voar, estimating the total number on farms on January 21, 191 !>, as 20,407,000. This is an increase of .7 per cent, over the number a. year ago, and even "though it is not a largen percentage it controverts' tlifr voicing.-, of those who have claimed dairy farmers were .slaughtering daily cattle in such numbers' as to markedly le.-s-en- the iron population. The use of dairy products is so necessary in normal healthy; living that increases in, population are closely associated with a larger supply of milk, butter and cheese. Thus, the annual increase in

population since 19J0 of 1.8 per cent, has 'been accompanied by a yearly increase in cows of 1.6 per cent. The department predicts: "As a population continues to grow, the demand for dairy products will increase." Of the industry's iclation to the demand from ■•Europe, the department says: "Moreover, the abnormal demand for d'-airy produets in. Europe, due to the war, is likely to continue for a year or more, and as European peoples have become accustomed to 'American dairy products there appears to be an opportunity and a tendency to expand over pre-war requirements in this direction. A normal increase in dairying, therefore, seems to lie fully justified, providing there is the necessary increase in feed crops and' the prices for dairy products are sufficient. to warrant dairymen in maintaining or increasing their herds."