TE KUITI RAM FAIR

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXXI, Issue 4953, 9 February 1937, Page 4

TE KUITI RAM FAIR

Messrs. Abraham and Williams, Ltd., Te Kuiit, report having held their usual Ram Fair at Te Kuiti yesterday, when we penned our advertised entry of Romneys and Southdowns. The Romneys were drawn from Rangitikei and Manawatu districts, and included lines of good quality sheep, while the Southdowns were all locally bred, the class being the best so far produced locally and included first-class sheep. There was . a large attendance of buyers from all over the district, the great majority being interested in the Romney section of the yarding. For these the market opened and continued throughout the sale on a very strong note> the range of values being the highest yet known on this market. The top price of the day was secured by Mr. N. W. Pearce, whose consignment made up to 18a guineas. Good prices realised on account ox other vendors of Romneys were 16 to 172 guineas, on account of Mr. A. Brown; 16 gns. on account of Mr. C. T. Keeble, while Mr. A. R. Buchanan and Mr. E. Openshaw reached 14 gns with their consignments.

In the Southdown section a consignment from Mr. H. Rothery, of Hangatiki, topped the market, making up to 83 gns, while a good quality line produced in excellent order by Mr. F. Hunt sold for 73 to 8 gns. The range of price was: Top quality Romney flock rams, 14 to 183 gns; medium to good rams ranged from 9 gns to 14 gns; plain and small sorts, 6 to 8 gns; while rough and inferior class ranged from 21 to 5 gns. The buyers showed a very marked preference for good quality sheep, for which as indicated above high prices were available, but for the inferior sorts the demand was, as might be expected, not keen.

Southdowns sold rather better than expected, but here .again the preference for best quality sheep was very marked, and the breeders who had brought out their sheep in first-class order were well repaid. The range of prices for best sheep was 63, 7, 73, 8 to 83 gns., for medium sorts 5, 53, 53, to 6 gns, while small sorts ranged from 3 to 43 gns. The sale was a most successful one and we effected a total clearance of our entry with the exception of one ram.