NOTES BY THE WAY

Hawera Star, Volume L, 21 February 1931, Page 11

NOTES BY THE WAY

Farmers agree that the feed at this time of the year is remarkably good, perhaps . ‘better than has been seen for over wtenty years. They look forward with confidence to an excellent autumn for the land should approach the cold period in capital condition, it is affected just as is stock and both require good condition to weather bad and strenuous periods. It behoves, therefore, all farmers to get and to keep their land in the best state possible,. They are bound to reap the benefit in the coming season. The price at which sheep have been sold recently—a line of 4,000 ewes went at three shillings at Palmerston North last week—prompted a farmer to say it recalled the “boiling down” days of years ago. These ewes, he said, averaged 701bs and the price was the lowest he had seen for a very long time. The pay-out this month will he a shock to the farmers generally. Sevenpence takes the mind back a long way and recalls'the days of the small payment per gallon for milk. But it is generally recognised that in the earlier part of the season there was a slight over pay out and this has to he rectified. But some of the companies are paying out up to ninepence, Cardiff and Lowgarth are amongst this favoured few. Ngaeve is to pay out eightpence. “A pelt a year or two ago would fetch as much as four now-a-days,'’ said a farmer at a recent meat company meeting.

A local farmer who went up for a week end at Waiowui recently said he was immensely struck with tlie line crops of oats and of swedes he saw grown on that poor country. He considered that it was probable better returns were being secured there at the present time than on some of the high-priced land in other more favoured districts. Several factories in Southland have sold their cheese to the end of the season at i.o.b. and it is considered in some quarters that the wiser move would have been to consign. There has been a distinct improvement in the tone of the market for cheese, hut representatives of the buying linns state that it is quiet now. There appears to be a tendency to learn how many factories are going to swing over to butter. In this connection it is of interest to learn that one of the largest of the factory companies of New Zealand lias always had the policy of cheese for a certain portion of the season with a swing to butter towards the end and a settled policy of open consignment. This would appear a very wise thing for all companies. No reliiible advice is yet to hand concerning the reaction of the market to the policy of the Southland proI ducers to brand their cheese with a provincial brand, says the “Times.” While recognising that the quality of Southland cheese is unquestioned, many importers are of the opinion that “the tail must wag the dog” and they are accordingly doubtful whether any concerted action on the part of a minor producing district to boost its superior quality will be effective while the larger percentage remains inferior.

| In spite of the low prices offering for all classes of produce, there- is a remarkably keen inquiry at the present time for farm properties, says an Invercargill paper. Buyers are very hard to satisfy as regards value, but one of the chief inducements towards purchasing at- the present time is that buyers are never likely to have a more favourable opportunity for stocking lip. Most mortgagees are recognising the difficulties of the farmers and only in rare instances will landholders be pushed out of their -properties for failure to meet their obligations. “Complete compulsion for agriculture is what the Government are aiming at. Nothing else, but I am sure you will have none of that,” said Capt. E-. T. Morris, president of the National Farmers’ Union, in England at the annual meeting of the* Gloucestershire County branch of the Union last month. Neither in the Land Utilisation Bill nor in the Amending Marketing Bill was there anything which would put one shilling into the farmers’ pockets or would give any agricultural workers one hour’s extra employment. The Government ’proposed to use the taxpayer’s money to set up direct competition with those already on the land, thus creating competition from inside the country as well as from without. This was another way in which they were pushing the farmer further down and giving him still less chance of competing with the foreigner.

The Agricultural "Wages Board in England lias made an Order carrying into e,fleet the Brecon and R-adJnor Committee’s decision varying the minimum and overtime rates of wages as from January 1. The minimum rate in the case of male workers of 21 years of age and over is to ho 31s per week of 54 hours in summer and 50 hours in winter (instead of 48 hours in winter as at present), with overtime at 9d per hour. In the case of female workers of eighteen years of age and over the minimum rate is to be 5d per hour with overtime at 6-Jd per hour on week-days and 7A cl per hour on Sundays.

“How much the pen?” This -.-. as the fairly frequent request of auctioneers when offering some very poorlyconditioned and inferior store sheep at the recent Matawhero stock sale, clinch was, says the “Poverty Bay Herald,” the first occasion in the memory of some of the auctioneers that sheep have been sold in any numbers by the pen instead of by the oldestablished method of per head. Prices for this class' of sheep at under Is a head were fairly common, while in a few cases the price per head for particularly poor cull lambs averaged from 3d to 4d, but buyers desiring a good class of lamb paid up to 5s -Id, and the Lest of the ewes sold up to 5s 7d.

.Information has been ircee-ived to the effect that butter and cheese in store at- Port Ahuriri was intact .four days ago, although the works are out of commission anil the engine-room destroyed. Arrangements have been made to have the produce removed to Wellington by coastal boat. The dairy factories in the affected area appear to have escaped serious damage and so far as can be ascertained are still working.

A suggestion that unemployed exservicemen should be employed in planting marram grass to arrest sand drift at the Waikato Heads was replied to by the Commissioner of State Forests, Mr. E. A. Ransom, in a letter received by the Auckland Returned Soldiers’ Association. The Minister stated that planting was a seasonal operation, and would not taxe place until May, when he would give the matter attention.

It is generally recognised that, even allowing for unfavourable season conditions, the lamb export trade of the state has during late years depreciated to a great extent, comments the Adelaida 'Chronicle. It is admitted that the high values ruling for Merino wool during the war, and the years immediately subsequent thereto, influenced many farmers to esgage in wool instead of fat lamb production, but present conditions suggest the advisability of producers again turning their attention to the lamb export trade. The fact that in years gone by this state was capable of exporting between two and three hundred thousand lambs in a season is sufficient proof that the development of the industry is no matter of experiment. Drought and low prices for produce have taken heavy toll in the West Indies and British Uuiana, according to, a, White Paper issued recently. The Director of Agriculture in the Leeward Islands reports “an extraordinary severe drought lasting eight months which caused much distress.” The Director in Barbados says, “it is safe to say that the agricultural population are on the borderline of starvation.” In Trinidad “in the case of many estates, capital expenditure has i ceased and reduction in the 1931-32 sugar crops may be expected. Dairy farmers at Cambridge report a drop in butter fat test similar to that experienced in this district. They have asked their scientist to investigate the question and liis report will be awaited with interest.