CARTERTON SHOW

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 102, 27 October 1938, Page 6

CARTERTON SHOW

MEMORABLE EVENT

QUANTITY & QUALITY (From "The Post's" Special Reporter, CARTERTON, This Day. Fine weather, an entry list climbin back towards the record of 1933, ah a showground overflowing with trad exhibits and sideshows have made th sixty-second annual show of the Wa: rarapa and East Coast Pastoral an Agricultural Society a truly memorabl one. The society is now in a ver favourable position financially, and ha recovered completely from the di; appointments occasioned by ba weather at the time of previous show! The matter^of the Royal Show c Hamilton being put forward and clasl ing with the Carterton Show occa sioned much concern in the Wairj rapa. An award of the Royal Societ; is a coveted honour among breeders It is almost surprising, therefore, t note the loyalty with which Wain rapa breeders have stuck by thei show, and this loyalty is greatly apprt ciated by the officers of the society. It was expected that the Royal Sho\ would affect both the quantity and th quality of the entries in certain stoc classes. The effect is not nearly a great, as was thought likely. Entrie are well above last year's figures, an the standard is quite up "to norma There is a falling-off, however, in th cattle entries, which have droppe from last year's level of 440 to 352. x slight decrease is also recorded in th pig classes. The Royal Show has ha a definite effect, however, on the to classes of Ayrshires and Friesians, an has affected beef cattle generally. D« spite that, a fine array of cattle an other stock has helped to make th Carterton Show an unusual success. FINE CONDITION. ! According to general opinion, th grounds are in better condition tha: ever before. The society's building have been added to, and much paini ing and replacement have been carrie out. For the purpose of the show, th weather of the previous week aj proached the ideal. A drizzle o Labour Day was followed by brigh sunshine on Tuesday, and fine weathe yesterday put the turf into perfec condition. The sideshow men arrived in prac tically double their usual number: Three long lines of sideshows an amusement tents occupy key position inside the gates. Their actual number are believed to be a record. The main show buildings house th home industries sections, as "well a trade displays of varied equipmem The motor-car exhibits overrun th covered accommodation provided, an several open-air stands have bee: necessary. Mechanised farm equij ment ranging from small lawn-mower and general utility motor to giant trac tors and power presses occupy a larg area of the show grounds. The flags were flown half-mast yes terday out of respect for the late Mi Quentin Donald, a past president, we! known in the Wairarapa for his kee] interest in the work of the society. Th funeral was held yesterday afternoor and was well enough attended to niak a noticeable difference in the attend ance at the show grounds. -"CATTLE AND SHEEP. Among the cattle breeds, the Jersey predominate, and judging occupied long time. Some splendid stock in niilh ing shorthorns, Friesians, and Ayrshire are being exhibited, though thes classes are not strong in numbers. De spite a general decrease in the pi section, bacoijers and porkers provid keen competition. Judging in th sheep, pig, and some of the cattle sec tions occupied yesterday. Entries in the sheep classes are we] up on those of last year, and coristitut a record for the past five shows. 1 feature is the exhibition of a numbe of Ryelands sheep. This breed i making its first bow at a Carterton sho-v in the history of the society, and i attracting considerable attention. Th natural condition Romney Marsh am Southdown sections are particularl; well patronised. In connection with the" natural con dition sections, some concern is fel that these should prove more popula with the bigger breeders. It is fel that these sections are really for th' smaller farmers, who are apt to b discouraged when, entering the sho\ for the first time, they find they hay to complete with the larger run holders. .- ' The fat lamb classes caused keei competition, and in general conditipi the entries were ahead of those o last year. The judges' reports cor sistently referred to the quality c the exhibits, and many of the places pens were outstanding, with little t choose between them. A member c the Young Farmers' League won th prize for the champion pen. DISAPPOINTING SALE. The fat lamb and sheep sale hel late yesterday afternoon was disap pointing. Last year's sale was an es I ceptiOnal one, with, the top price i: the neighbourhood of £3. Neverth* less better prices were anticipate yesterday than were received. Bid ding was very poor, and very fe\ prize pens topped 255. The top pric of the sale was 30s, paid for a firs prize heavy lamb. A pen of thre prize lambs brought 28s, the secon highest price paid. A rough calcula tion shows that the prices were i: the neighbourhood of 10s per pc: down on last year's figures, or near! 33 1-3 per cent. A strong and keen entry took pat in the dog trials, to many the mos fascinating aspect of a big show. Th Wairarapa has long been noted fo the efficiency of its sheep dogs, an this was adequately proved befoi the trials had proceeded far. , Th uncanny anticipation of the move ments of the sheep by a first-clas dog, and the hypnotic power of ii concentration, will interest even th sheep-farmer who is used to the dog work, JUMPING CONTESTS. Some of the horse classes, includin pony and hunter jumping contest were judged yesterday afternoon. Ei tries are good compared with lai year's figures^ which, however, wer unusually low. The fields in the jumf ing events were evenly matched, an competition was very keen. Quite large crowd lined the rails of th oval yesterday afternoon to see th horse events. An even bigger audi ence was present today, when th rest of the jumping programme wa staged. : . Last night a huge crowd attendee and the many attractions were we] patronised. The national dancin competitions drew competitors fror as far afield as Wellington and Palm erston North, Music was supplied b; pipers of the Wairarapa Scottish Pip Band. A troupe of Maori entertainer also performed, and all the sideshow remained in full swing until a lat hour. Today a varied programme in eludes the judging of the horse an< milking sections, and judging com

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QUANTITY & QUALITY