CALF REARING.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 14 December 1927, Page 5

CALF REARING.

CHAMPIONSHIPS AWARDED. ■ The keenest interest was taken in the judging for the final act in the calf rearing competitions, the champioiiships, at Eltham yesterday. There was a capital attendance of the public, better even than in the morning, and. they- followed the work very closely. Amongst those present were Mr. H. Hodge, president of the South Taranaki provincial executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union, and Colonel Pow, Dominion secretary for the. organisation. The judges were, as in the morning, Messrs. McL’Dowie, G. Ford, A. T. Wills and H. Jenkins (condition), and 11. Wren and D. F. Malone and F. Hoskin and Johnson for dairy type. It- was an interesting sight to witness the calves arriving from all quarters of the district, in several cases nine and ten in a- lorry, and' it made one realise the difficulty attendant on the work when competitors lived, as did many, up to 20 miles or more away. It is much to the credit of children and parents that out of 54 calves eligible only seven were not present, and the reason was that a lorry failed to call or a pupil knew that a calf had no chance where others hotter came from the same district.

The championship in the Jensey-Ayr-shire section fell to R. Anderson (Toko) 129 points, closely followed by Tumi Toro (Okaiawa), .Norma Walker (Okaiawa). and G. Brown (Douglas), all 126 points. In this class only 10 points separated first and fourteenth.. The result of the ,-judging for the championships gave the honour in the Friesian-Shorthorn section to Cyril Betts, of Okaiawa, 129 points, one point ahead of Rav Shannon, of Cardff. and three ahead of E. Wood, of Huiroa. No less than three tied’ for fourth place, G. Brown (Douglas), PT. Wood (Rawhitiroa), and J. Davison (Auroa), with 125 each. The condition of the calves was so evenly good that there were only 10 points between the first and the twelfth. Medals were presetned to the winners- on type, and in each case competition was keen and close. The winners were: Jenseys —PI. Sohneebelli (Tokaora) 1, Ethel Mander 2, Sydney Parker (Ararata) 3. The competition was exceedingly close, and the judges said that while first and second were practically equal underneath, the- winner had better spring of rib anjl top line. The third was a remarkably fine calf, but bad rather too much condition. They could pick eight nearly as good. The owner of the third, had taken two firsts and gold medal two successive years at the Hawera Show.

In Eriesians, Ray Shannon (Cardiff) took the prize for dairy type. A. Hcskin. of Mnngatoki, being placed a Hose se-ond. WELCOME AND CONGRATULATIONS. Speaking at the conclusion of the ompetitions, Mr. W. McL’Dowie, president, said a signal service was being given by the clubs. Pie had never in his experience seen so good :t lot of calves, and they had had great difficulty in placing them, as much as they would have had at a Royal Show/ He was convinced, he said, that the competitors knew more than he about rearing them. The '■ommittee did not want to lose sight of the animals, and hoped they would be brought forward again, and if they would come to Hawera Show he would •;ee that medals were given as prizes. He remarked on the varying way calves developed, and said that often, us they had seen, the winning calf was not so good when a yearling as one that was only second. He would ••e very pleased to donate the trophies. The cvnnpetitioros had been very interesting, but he still thought there should be more parents present, for without the co-operation of parents

with the teachers the best results could not be achieved. Mr. Ira J. Bridger, the Mayor, cordially welcomed competitors and visitors, and said how pleased he was that Eltham had been chosen as a centre for the championships. If die Borough Council could do anything to assist the clubs it would be very pleased to do so. The ground was not quite ideal for the purpose, and they would gladly try to facilitate the work of judging. It -was good to see children from outlying farms come to town, and he congratulated the winners He was sorry there were not more Eltham people present to see the work which, he felt convinced, was going to help stop the drift to the towns. But, he added, he considered the farmers were often to blame, because they did not try to interest their children in the farm work. They too often sent the children to take up professions, many of which were crowded already. The aims and objects of the- clubs, he said, were to direct the children to set farming on the right lines and to make farm life more attractive. He said also that the children of a former generation had no such chances to find out the points of good cows ajid to get a knowledge of stock. He hoped the clubs would continue to prosper and progress, because they were doing excellent work and were helping to improve the dairy industry. Brains and energy were needed to create stability in tlie industry, for the existence of the country depended largely on it. It would help to continue the prosperity and commercial stability of the country. In the old days children took part in weeding crops and milking cows, but now they got the help of scientific methods. If children could be induced to stay on the farms, by means of the clubs, they would be a national asset in the future. All must try to raise the standard of farming and direct the children in the right direction, where there were .great chances of success for them. In conclusion, he said there was need of more parents taking an interest in the work of the clubs Mr. E. K. Cameron presented two prizes of last year —Ron Taylor (Ngaere) first in carrots for group and third in championship; Gladys Taylor (Ngaere) first in mangolds.