MARKET REPORTS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCIX, Issue 11536, 24 March 1898, Page 3

MARKET REPORTS.

1 — : ~ - ADDINGTON. There were very large yardings in all departments at the Addington Live Stock Market yesterday, -d*d the attendance was unusually large and representative. The heavy yarding of store sheep made it very late before the fat classes were reached, and business was not concluded until nearly 7 p.m., after a more or less unsatisfactory sale so far as vendors were concerned. Entries for the day comprised 19,816 sheep and lambs, 381 head of cattle and 514 pigs. The 203 head of fat cattle which formed the week’s supply of beef were, for the most part, light-weight steers, with just a few really prime steers and heifers. The competition throughout was very poor, and the sale was a very dragging one, anything at all inferior being hard to quit, and rates ruling last week were barely maintained. Prime steers brought from £7 to £7 12s 6d, inferior to ordinary do £3 to £6; prime heifers £6 10s to £8 2s 6d, inferior to ordinary do £3 to £6,; cows from £2 to £4 2s 6d. The entry of stores was of a nondescript nature, and practically no business was done. Very few really good dairy cows were on offer, and only one or two brought from £5 to £6, the bulk selling at from £1 10s to £4. The yarding accommodation was taxed to its utmost with fat sheep, the bulk of which were good butchers’ ewes, with a fair sprinkling of wethers. Sheep fit for freezing about held their own, but the market for anything that was unfinished and for ewe mutton was most irregular, anything not of really good quality meeting a dragging sale. An exhibition consignment of Mr Garforth’s sheep met keen competition from the local butchers, and sold very well, a pen of Southdown-cross wethers realising 21s fid, and another 18s fid, the pure-bred Downs; fetching from 14s 6d to 15s. Best cross-bred wethers broughtfrom 12s to, 13s 7d, good do 10s to Us 6d, and backward do down to 9s; wethers and maiden ewes 11s lOd to 12s 9d, maiden ewes 9s to 11s 7d, and a line of Shropshire Down cross from the Achray Estate 11s lid; best cross-bred ewes 7s to 8s 6d, medium do 5s to 6s 6d and aged and inferior from 2s 9d to 4s 6d; late-shorn merino wethers 2s. Pat lambs were more in evidence than they have been of late, but the bulk of the yarding was made up of unfinished sorts, a great many of which should have been in the store pens. The only sorts which met with competition were lines that were quite fit for export, and buyers of this class showed their determination not to bid for anything that was not quite up to requirements. Ail other kinds were neglected, and buyers for topping off were not in evidence owing to the scarcity of feed. Freezing lambs brought from 9s to 10s 9d, and up to 11s 3d for an extra good line; medium sorts for trade purposes ruled at from 6s to 'Bs 6d, and backward sorts from 4s 3d to 5s 6d. The principal feature of the market was the large entry of store sheep, and the dry weather which caused them to come forward in such numbers also militated against the sale, all classes suffering a decline, and in one or two instances where owners could hold they declined to submit to the sacrifice. Amongst the principal sales were: —Two hundred fourtooth wethers from Cashmere at 10s sd; 1000 two-tooth Kinloch wethers at 8s 9d to 8s lid, and 1000 two-tooth ewes from the same estate at 7s; 258 four, six and eight-tooth ewes from Stonyhurst at 7s and 7s 3d ; 516 two and four-tooth wethers from the Amur! at 8s 7d and 257 four-tooth ewes from tho same place at 7s ; 204 Down cross wethers at 7s 2d. Amongst the other prices realised were: —Mixed lines of wethers and ewes at from 7s to 8s 9d, two, four, six and eight-tooth ewes at from 6s 6cl to 7s 3d, four, six and eighttooth ewes at from 3s 5d to ss, six-tooth ewes at os Id, aged ewes from 2s 9d to 3s 6d and boilers from Is 7d to 2s 6d. A few lots of weedy lambs brought from Is 5d to 4s 6d. There was again a heavy yarding of pigs, including some very well-finished lines of fats. Baconers and porkers were exceedingly well competed for, and last week’s rates were fully upheld, and in some instances exceeded, the average price per lb being 41d. Good forward stores were also in demand, but backward sorts and small pigs were not so .much in request. Prices .per head were: , baconers from 35s to. 625, porkers from 255,

to 355, stores 20s to 355, and slips 6s 6d to 20s.