Farm and Station

Gisborne Times, Volume LXXXII, Issue 12528, 13 April 1935, Page 12

Farm and Station

SMITH FIELD

LONDON’S HISTORIC MEAT MART. A HIVE OF ACTIVITY. Smith field is often misunderstood by producers in tlio tnr-away Dominions. Indeed, the London markets generally are misunderstood. Toolcv Street, .for instance, is the centre of dairy produce importers. Here, in their offices ,the merchants buy and sell the produeo which they may not even see. A deal is made over the telephone, a, contract is made out on a form and sent to the buyer, and an entry is made in a hook. In due course a wholesale merchant will send his carriers to Hay's wharf stores and take delivery of the. goods he has ‘bought. Some of the butter and the cheese will actually come to his stores in London and he distributed in small lots to retailers, but other larger lots will be dispatched by train to other towns in England. Now, it happens that tli.c offices op Tooley Street are backed by the great stores of Hay’s whaf, and the greater proportion of the dairy produce which comes to the 'London Docks is brought up the river in barges to the stores. Russian and Dutch steamers come actually to the wharf side. Some of the importing merchants are more scattered. They are to be found in Tooley Street itself,' along a street, running parallel to the river as far as Southwark bridge, and in the square in which is Smithfield market. THE MARKET DESCRIBED The Covent Garden and Spitalfield.s fruit markets are places where the great proportion of the fruit and vegetables is actually on view for sale. So with, the Smithfield Meat Market. It is here in the early hours of the morning, winter and summer, that fresh meat from the country, recently killed meat from the Islington Abattoirs, chilled meat from the docks, and frozen lamb and mutton from the docks and cold stores is brought in quantities for exhibition and sale. It is here that the representatives ot the London retailers foregather in the early houns to purchase from the wholesale stall-holders their day s supply of meat. Around Smithfield Square, however, and the streets adjoining, are the offices of great meat importing firms. In High Holborn, nearby ,are the office? of the New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board, and from the windows may be gained a panoramic view of the vast series of buildings which is Smithfield Market. Excluding the two retail, sections covering about three-quarters of an acre, the market comprises five, distinct and separate buildings. Four of the buildings stand in alignment on a rectangular site, a. quarter of a. mile in length, running east and west, and cover an area of six anid a-half acres. The four main buildings are separatee! by three roads running north and south, and these roads come in under the roofing which covers the whole six and a-half acres. ■ On the fifteen miles of meat-hanging rails it Is "possible to' display 60,000" sides of beef at one time in the market, or about 9,000 tons, ft is possible to pile or stack a like quantity of frozen meat in the same space, and even then leave room lor poultry and other miscellaneous goods. The heaviest one-day load so far, however, has been 4390 tons, so that there is ample room for further development. The Smithfield Meat Market really forms the third long side of what was a garden square. It was in this garden square that Wat Tyler, who rebelled against the capitation tax, was slain by Sir William Walworth, the Lord Mayor of London, in the presence of Richard 11, in 1381. It was hero that many good people were publicly executed because of their religious beliefs.- , . RTSE OF THE WHOLESALERS Originally named Smoothfi’eld, it was tho F'air ground of the city, and, as long as records go, the market place for livestock. Farmers jn all parts of the surrounding country sent bullocks, sheep, lambs, pigs, goats and horses for sale. As the market increased in. size and more stock was offered for sale it became convenient for. farmers to> sell their stock for quick cash to dealers, who, in turn, sold them, to butchers, or killed the animals in the slaughter-houses in Newgate Street, just by the Old Bailey, the prison and seat of justice, where so many public hangings took place. These dealers came to he known as ‘‘Fore,stallers.” Their prosperity must have excited the envy of other people, as repeated attempts were rmMe to stop their , business. The Corporation of the City of- London passed various by-laws making the forestalling of the market, as they called it, an offence punishable by imprisonment and confiscation of property. The dispute culminated in a bill which was presented to Parliament in 1797 to make forestalling an illegal practice by the law -of Hie country. The bill was ‘debated in the House of Commons on July 6, 1797, but was lost by 391 votes to 7. Mr Pitt, who’ did not support the motion, said: “There 1 has been a loud cry against forestallers and regraters. I. recognise the freedom/ of tho trade in its full extent.” ' As the law was not passed, the Smithfield dealer became more firmly established and a necessary link in •

(By “RUSTIOUS”.)

the chain of meat distribution. He came to be known a.s a “jobber,” and is now known as a ‘‘British wholesaler.”

SI, AUG TITER -HOUSES Abolished.

History records the insanitary conditions nuclei - which the, bulk of London's meat was killed. Slaughterhouses and small shops clustered along the line of what is now known ns Farrington Street. Down this depress'on the River Fleet ran. It still runs in a culvert below Farrington Street. The butchers had tho unpleasant habit of throwing the offals into the River Fleet. In 1868 there was an effective protest; the live cattle trade was removed to Islington, whore up-to-dato abattoirs bad been built, and Smithfield Market was opened as a dead meat market to supply the needs of Londoners

Njcw Zealand came, into the picture in 1882, and with tlie development of refrigeration Smithfield has been tho main goal of the millions of lambs which pasture on the hills and plains of the Dominion.

The market provides 364 stalls occupied by 18S different tenants. If is estimated by the superintendent that with a clear delivery older, and with all the 31 gates, 8 lifts, and 350 offloading places occupied by three-ton lorries, and the 11 cold stores in operation, with four market porters to a three-ton lorry, it would he possible to deliver 2000 tons of meat to the market withon one hour, nn<d without undue stress.

THE VALUE OF SURF'CR SOWING.

A trial relative to the improvement of grassland by surface sowing was laid down three years ago on a private .farm of fairly heavy land near Palmerston North. The area was harrowed throe times prior to sowing of the seed. A strip half a chain wide was pegged off as a control, and on this strip no seed "-as thrown. The mixture sown was 201 b certified ryegrass, 101 b cocksfoot, 31b dogstail, 21b white clover, total 351 b an acre. During the first 12 months there was but little evidence to justify the added expense op the surface sowing, but during the last two yeans ■ the contrast, between the control strip and the remainder of the paddock has been very marked, states the “New Zealand Journal of Agriculture.” The surface-sown area has a sward markedly superior to the control, and presents evidence of free establishment of perennial ryegrass, cocksfoot, and dogstail, while the control area, is showing principally white clover growth with a sprinkling of inferior annual plants.

THE VALUABLE. DRENCH. CHECKING DISEASE TN COWS. Remembering that the great majority of the troubles that effect cows are due to indigestion the provision of a drench is probably the most im--portant thing on the farm, says a Northern farming journal. One one farm where trouble was seldom or never experienced the usual procedure was that a.s soon as o. cow was noticed to bo off colour, giving the slightest indication that she was not. quite herself, she was brought into the shed, given a. drench and had a cover put on her unless the weather "/as hot. Disease was checked at the very outset. In another case that came under our notice the keen and intelligent man in charge of herd said he had over a period of years only one case of a really bad quarter, and that was because he had failed to give n drench when he noticed the milk was wrong when, he tried the udder prior to putting on the cups. It was, he said, his invariable custom to try each teat before putting on flic machine and if there was the slightest indication that anything was. wrong he would at once give a drench, and every time a. drench was given no trouble developed. This is where the small herd, where individual attention can be given, scores over the big herd whero individual attention Is out, of tlie question. The drench given by our friend was the usual one. of salts, ginger and molasses. Ho used half a. pound' of molasses, a tablespoon of ginger, and Epsom salts .from twelve packets for heifers and small cows up to sixteen packets for very large cows. It is. generally known that the head of the animal should not he held high when tho drench is being given. The calving of cows in the autumn is increasing. Of course the cows are then in better condition, have no calving troubles and milk well right away. Generally tho advantages of autumn calving are .found to be undoubted. But one trouble experienced is that it iia difficult ot get these cows served in time to calve about the same, time the next year. They are generally a. month or so late. On tho other hand the cows calving in spring come in at the right time. In the wild state ehws calve in the spring, which means service in November and December, and the dairy farmer has to continually fight this natural tendency of the cow. Care in watching for tlie service periods in the autumn and winter is the chief remedy. The commonest can so of cows apparently not coining to service is the occurrence of very short periods of heat. This is sometimes characteristic of -a particular

anima.l, but is considerably affected f by the season of the year. The normal duration of the service period, is about sixteen hours. In the summer it may- be as long as thirty hours, but in the winter it is as short as' six hours. In the lats'ters case it may occur at night and so not he noticed. FEED TAINTS. MANAGING PASTURES TO AVOID MILK FLAVOURS. CHEMICAL CHANGE EFFECTS. Suggestions regarding the management of pastures, to ..void feed flavors have been made by Mr E. Bruce Levy, agristologist, Department of Agriculture, in an article in the current issue of the Journal of Agriculture, outlining the results cf investigations into the matter. He states:— “As part of the policy of endeavouring - always to obtain the highest possible quality in dairy produce the matter of feed-flavour in butters has been the subject of a recent investigation. In this investigation, from the botanical point of view, some 40 farms wore visited and the pastures examined as to their botanical compos! fcion .Dominance of species was noted in respect to grasses, clovers, and weeds, and special attention was paid to stage and rate of growth and manorial practices followed. “Tile botanical investigation commenced early in September, and it soon became ‘.apparent that no specific weed in the pasture was responsible, the morn weedy pastures in tho early part of tho season at least giving little or no feed flavour wflereas the standard first-class pastures, dominantly rye-grass and white clover with little, or no weed, gave the distinct characteristic feed flavour 'n the cream.

NO EXPLANATION “Certain specific weeds such as hog-cress, popularly known as land cress in the Waikato, pennyroyal, water-cress, etc., arc said to impart characteristic feed flavours in the cream, but these can he detected apart altogether from the characteristic food flavour under investigation. “A scheme for the testing and grading oi cream was inaugurated by the manager of the Morrinsville Cooperative Dairy Company, Limited, Mr A. M. Stirling, wherein the cream supplied night and morning from specially selected .farms was subject to critical examination after its receipt at the factory and again the following clay ” In conclusion, the article states:— “Tho suggestions outlined in this report offer no explanation of the actual factor or factors responsible for feediness. The explanation is probably wrapped up in the complexities of chemical changes associated with very rap'd growth—rapid .formations of carbohydrate materials; transformation of these to soluble sugars by ferments ; the rapid absorption of nitrogenous and mineral compounds and the chemical reactions in the formation of proteins in which young growth is rich. There may. he a specific material responsible for feediness and if this is so, and it could be isolated, some direct counter-attack might be possible, but in the meanwhile it. would appear that control or diminution of feediness largely rests in adoption of tlie following practices : PART OF FERTILISERS. “(1) Every endeavour .should he made to make pastures grass-domin-ant rather than clover-dominant. Heavier manuring with quickly-act-ing phosphates such as superphosphate with occasional dressings of ammoniated ‘.super and lime is recommended, and, where pastures are ‘run out,’ ploughing aufl resowing to certified strains of grasses and clovers is advised rather than top-dressing the deteriorated pastures, as the latter practice must inevitably mean up to three years of clover-dominance, whereas ploughing anil resowing gives grass-dominance the first year. “(2) The more elovery feed should be grazed after milking rather than from three to four hours prior to milking, and some consul era ton should he given to the class of feed given during the day as against that at night, tainting at night being less pronounced even when on the same class of feed—sometimes the same paddocks— a,? a. result of the cow grazing mainly prior to midnight. “(3) To permit of the foliage hardening to some extent, pasture-herb-age, during periods of rapid growth, should bo allowed to grow to a. somewhat more mature stage before grazing. The mowing of the cloverv swards and the feeding of these in the wilted stage may also ho effective, if practicable.” CARE OF THE CALF. TREATMENT AFTER WEANING. When ia calf lias been weaned the process of rearing is not at an end. The foundations built up during tho hand-feeding stage must ho consolidated as the young animal grows. The requirements of the calf arc still quality rather than quantity, states tho “Farmers’ Weekly.” Some farmers make the mistake of placing a recently-weaned calf on fibrous pastures, with the result that lit immediately goes back in condition. Top-dressed grass in its nutritious .stage cannot be beaten as a fodder, for it has a food value, if properly managed and grazed, comparable with tho richest of concentrates. When it becomes necessary to resort to supplementary fodder, the •calf should only he fed on the, best quality hay which has been cut well before the flowering stage. Legume hays are most valuable, while silage is useful if it has been made from good quality ; leafy herbage. The calves should bo maintained on dry, sheltered areas, and should be separated from other stock during the winter months.

DURABILITY OF MOLE-DRAINS. FIFTY-YEAR-OLD SYSTEM; STILL WORKING. It is rather remarkable that the Breconshire Agricultural Committee should ask the Ministry to arrange demonstrations in molo-drainage. Some six 'or seven years ago, this committee was favoufed with, a demonstration on the Mid-Wales Mental Hospital Farm at Talgarth. Although it was considered that the soil was not solid clay, the drains .are still working perfectly, states a Home exchange. If the farmers of .Breconshire wilsh to. know more about the durability of the mole drain they should visit Castle Crab in the Parish of Disserth only a few miles outside Buil.th Wells, where several fields were drained fifty years ago. About 1925 I had the privilege of inspecting the Castle Crab mole-drains in company with the late Mr David Thomas,- who was then Agricultural Organiser for Brecon and Radnor, and under whose direction the Talgarth demonstration was carried out. It was proved that, alter nearly fifty years, the mole-drains were still satisfactory. About the same time an extensive scheme of drainage was carried out on several farms in the Hundred House district in Mid-Radnor, with pipes at a-depth of ,3ft in clay soil. The results were disappointing, ais when the clay in the trenches had time to settle, the water could not enter the pipes, which were too deep. We must give credit to, the mole drainers of fifty years ago, -as they did not possess the same facilities as the farmers of to-day. The old moleplough was rather clumsy, and had to he drawn by a team of eight to ten horses; but today motor power is available. The old system of drainage on some " of the farms in Breconshire is quite satisfactory to-day. Some of the stone drains are hundreds of years old, and they were cleverly planned to get all the springs in a field into the central drain if at all possible. In this way the water was often brought to the farmstead. Breconshire farmers are rather disappointed that their request for a demonstration in mole drainage has been turned down till the autumn, but they have an alternative. At little expense they can secure a mole plough of their own. (Many New Zealand farmers are under the impression that the use of the drain plough is unknown in Britain hut here we have evidence of it. being used over half a century ago with excellent effects). CROSSBREEDING WTTn BED POLLS. EXPERIENCE IN ENGLAND. Striking value of the Bed Poll for cross breeding has been substantiated by concrete results obtained in most parts of Great Britain, as well as overseas. One of the biggest bayous and graziers of cattle living in Norfolk, consistently uses Red Poll sires for cross breeding with Friesian and other cattle, statef-i a British farming journal. He says:— “For such a purpose Red Polls are unequalled, as the crass-bred animal grazed for beef produces well-nour-ished beef with a small percentage or hone.” This same breeder won a champion award at the Norfolk Fat Stock Show with a crossbred Red Poll-Friesian steer for the best animal bred and fed by a farmer. Convincing testimony of the excellent value of the Bed Poll cross, which is preferred to any other cross, is the result of years of experience on the Castle Ashby Estate of 2500 acres, of the Marquis of Northamptonshire. whose farm's are utilised for the breeding and rearing of only commercial stock. It was published in the “Northampton Herald - ’ that ou this estate “the crosses which had been tried out of baby beef production have been Hereford cross Shorthorn, Rod Poll cross Runt, and AberdeenAngus cross Shorthorn, and to-day almost entirely they are Red Poll cro-ses. The butchers who have taken the crosses seem to prefer the sterling quaitics of the Bed Poll cross to anv others.”

LOSSES WITH MILK-FED CALVES.

Experiments have heen carried out by University College, Dublin, into serious losses among bucket-reared calves, especially during the month following birth states a Home exchange. The fatalities were found to due to Indigestion caui'ed by abnormal curd formation in the fourth stomach. The calves were, in fact, unable to digest, in the intervals between successive feeds ~the clot produced by the action of rennin' on the milk. A very simple but successful method of either preventing or curing the trouble is suggested. The milk should bo diluted with water, in order to modify the nature of the rennin clot; the extent of dilution depending on the number of feeds given daily. The withholding of all milk, and the feeding of water only for a day, followed by much-diluted milk ,for a few days, will get rid of the accumulated curd from the stomach. In the experiments 12-day-olcT calves, that wore seriously ill and showed persistent diarrhoea were given a milk and water mixture in equal parts, the water being boiled and then reduced to blood heat before being added to the milk. This was fed four times a day one pint at each feed for the first day and two pints thereafter, till in six days the diarrhoea had disappeared and normal conditions returned. Other calves with similar symptoms received water only for a day—three feeds of a .quart each—succeeded by milk and water in equal parts, given at the same rate for the next two days. All symptoms of ill-health butt then disappeared.