NOTES BY THE WAY

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 21 July 1923, Page 3

NOTES BY THE WAY

A nice point was made at a recent meeting when the question was . asked when, the president and executive of any concern went out of office. The generally accepted rule is that they hold office till the end of the annual meeting, but as a rule the new president takes the chair as soon as the elec.tion is made.

Some very , interesting figures and facts were quoted and opinions given by Mr. J. B. Richards in toasting the dairy industry at the' Jersey breeders' smoko at Stratford. He gave it as his opinion that the average quoted for the dairy cows of the Dominion was given wrongly and should be much higher than generally shown. He quoted from departmental tables showing that in 1920-21 37,557 cows were tested and the average for these was 2291bs of fat. In. 1921-22 the figures were 45,564 cows and 2621b5, and in 1922-23 84,825 cows tested and the average not yet available. The results, he said, showed a considerable increase,'but farmers could not get this increase unless they tested. In Taranaki the average was much better than the Dominion figures. He estimated ; yalues of land on an average of 2401bs of fat, and this gave ground for considerable possibilities in the future.

A speaker at the Stratford Jersey Grub's social evening said that facts §howed' that there were good solid grounds for the otpimism shown by the farming community generally.

When the dairy farmers all realised, as many do, the value of a purebred sire of known ancestry, said Mr. C. Marchant at Stratford on Tuesday, they would all use an animal of thatstamp.

From a land sals advertisement. — "Soil very fertile; best for tobacco, cereals, deciduous and lugubrious crops."—South African paper. [To judge from tiie long faces of our farmers there is no need to em.grate in order to grow the last kind.]

The great number of dairy cattle to be seen in different parts of the North Island in comparison with the number in. Canterbury ■impressed an Ashburton resident who" paid a visit to the north recently (relates the Guardian). It was apparent, too, that the northern dairy farmer paid more attention to breed than the- average . Canterbury man. In the north most of the dairy farmers concentrated on one or two particular breeds, some on one only. On the other hand, the local man had a very mixed herd. Considerably more attention was being paid by "the North Islander to the development of the herd in order to increase the producing capacity than was the case before.

At a recent meeting of the New Zealand Ayrshire Cattle Breeders' Association, Mr. .C. E ; Robertson, of Wellington, was' unanimously elected to the position of an official judge. Mr. Robertson has done a great deal of judging throughout the Dominion, and in addition he has won numerous honours with his own pedigree stock in both islands. Mr. Robertson is probably the only breeder in New Zealand who has been honoured by two breeders' associations in respect to, an appointment as an official judge, so that his work in this connection sneaks for itself.

Writing to the Christchurch Press on the subject of better supervision of the production of cream on the farm, a correspondent pays a tribute to the Farmers' Union when he says: "The appointment of the instructors was brtnight about, by the combined efforts of the Farmers' Union Dairying Committee and the North Canterbury Dairy Association, whose winter programme this year is for better bulls, herd testing, how to treat prevalent diseases of dairying stock, and. how to feed for milk." This is all on good sound lines, and if persevered in must have very beneficial results.

A number of people: in the Nelson district are turning their attention to tobacco growing. In the early days small natches of tobacco were grown at Nelson for home u&e, and in other parts of New Zealand the early settlers grew their own supplies. In. those times the Maoris also grew their own tobacco, and; a story is told how a Yankee captain was paid to bring them a supply of seed on.his next trip. He, however, merely gathered a quantity of dock seed, dried it, and handed1 the .same over to the Maoris, whose cultivations were soon overrun with that pest.

A member of the Masterton County Council stated recently that of 1000 young trees which he had planted fully two-thirds had been nipped, off and destroyed by hares. He mentioned that a good precautionary measure is to have a eucalyptus border round a young plantation. .

When discussing the question of Native rates at the Waimate West County Council on Thursday one of the councillors said that some of the land in the Waimate West County had been reserved years, ago* for-the Natives, but Europeans secured it on short , lease, and by virtue of this acquired the right to the freehold, although this was never intended by the Act.

"It is the traific that tells," said the Waimate West chairman when considering the Highways Board circular on Thursday. "I am convinced that there is more traffic on the Main South Road in Waimate West than on any other road between here and Wellington."

Some of the cheese factories that consigned, their output this season have paid up to Is 7d per lb of butter-fat, with a possible bonus to follow. Tlio.se that sold locally have not paid out more than Is 4d. —Masterton Age.

The cost of keeping a six-horse team was referred to by Mr. Fawcett, a Gorenment expert, in a lecture to> the Farmers' Union at Oamaru. He said that it had been estimated at Ashburton Farm School, held recently, that the cost of keeping a six-horse team was £360 a year, implements cost £70, and a man and his keep £156. At 150 days' work in the year this worked out--{ft £2 6s lOd per day; and this estimate was probably not far wrong. Andrew Carnegie was once asked which he considered to be the most important factor in industry —labour, capital, or brains. The canny Scot replied with a merry twinkle in his eye: "Which is the most important leg of a three-legged stool?"

Mr. McLean, who is purchasing fat cattle for Melbourne, has been operating in the Wairarapa for the last few days. On Friday lie purchased about 180 head in the Lower Valley, and some other drafts are now under consideration. As a matter of fact there are not many fat cattle now left in the district.