RURAL TOPICS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXX, Issue 14976, 23 April 1909, Page 9

RURAL TOPICS.

AGRICULTUR AL AND PASTORAL. The following wore the entries at the Addington Yards on Wednesday, those for the previous week being given in parentheses:—Cattle 861 (517), shoep 19,700 (24,349), and pigs 572 (369). The Ashburton County Council purchased no fewer than 21,000 birds’ eggs and heads in one day recently. Compared with former years, there have been comparatively few heads of small birds collected this year. The entries for the Malvern Shoiv, to bo held on Thursday, total 600, being about 100 less than last year’s number. In all the live stock classes tlie entries are more numerous than last year’s, the falling-off being principally in the roots and home industries section. Farmers in the Cheviot district are taking advantage of the fine weather to push on with sowing, and it is expected that more grain will be sown on Cheviot this year than in any previous year. Young grass is making vigorous growth, and winter feed is abundant. Several farmers in the Ashton district, Ashburton, complain that small quantities of threshed grain have been stolen from their paddocks. One farmer on moving a Leap of sacks of grain that liad been threshed tlireo weeks oarlier, found that four sacks had been stolon from the middle of the stack. At the last meeting of the Mandeville and Rangiora Road Board, it was resolved to write to the Minister of Agriculture and tlio local inspector, drawing their attention to the spread of Californian thistle in the Rangiora district, and asking to have more efficient means adopted to eradicate the W’eed. A frozen meat export buyer in Ashburton states that thero is a slight hut perceptiblo advance in the prices for fat lambs. At a clearing sale held at Rangitata on Tuesday 14s was obtained for a lino of lambs that three weeks ago would have realised only 13s to 13s Cd. Export buyers are showing a greater desire to purchase, which is a good augury for the hardening of the fat stock market. Tlie following are results of competitions at the Oxford Show, decided after tlio train loft Oxford on Wednesday : —Eleven stone hunter over hurdles—H. P. Nelson’s Victor 1, F. Jenning’s Rata 2, T. Cooper’s Larry h c. 14st hunter over hurdles—A. Henderson’s Tommy 1, E. Meyer’s Arabian Night 2. Rescue race—E. L. Boattio 1, C. Feary 2. Stockman’s race, for ponies up to 13.2 hands—E. L. Beattie 1, Ashley Cooper 2. Stockman’s raco, for horses over 14 hands—E. L. Beat-

:io 1, E. Meyer 2. Men’s driving competition—A. D. Budge 1, C. Feary 2. 3oy rider under thirteen years—Ronald Thompson 1. Live-weight guessing competition, fat wether and fat lamb, exact weight 305J1b —D. G. Macfarlaue (Glentui), 3121 b, 1; T. Reid and R. H. Gainsford (equal), 2371 b, 2; C. F. Bull, 2961 b, 4.

The Corinthie, which left Wellington for London yesterday, took 6037 boxes of butter and 13,080 crates of cheese from New Zealand, The shipments from ports were as follows:—Auckland, 1135 boxes butter, 659 crates cheese; New Plymouth, 2112 boxes butter, 1610 crates cheese; Patea, 1701 boxes butter, 4296 crates cheese; Wellington, 1089 boxes butter, 2579 crates cheese; Lyttelton, 311 crates cheese; Port Chalmers, 915 crates cheese; Bluff, 2710 crates cheese.