ON THE LAND.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17949, 16 November 1918, Page 4

ON THE LAND.

RURAL TALKS.

(By RUSTICTJS.)

THE WOOL COMMANDEER.

There has been a good deal of discussion lately about the terms upon which wo are to dispose of our wool after the war is ever, a welcome period which at tho timo of writing appears to be close at Hand. There are many who hold that even m war time the Government had no right to interfere With our markets, but it is certain that thov are in a minority. There are others who maintain tnat tne wooigrowers, as well as other primary producers, have fleeced the Home Government to the tunc of millions, taking advantage of its importunities. In regard to the latter point it is not true that such is the ease as a matter of fact the benefit Iron! the commandeering policy has been mutual. The Home Government has got its goods at less than the rent market value, and on tho other hand We have been enabled to get our money for our goods whether they went away or not, m a way that would not have been possible if tho Imperial Government had not financed the position. It is certain, too, that the ships came for our produce in greater numbers than might have been the case had the matte" been left totally to private- enterprise. It might be argued that the Imperial authorities would have to send for tho raw materials and tho foodstuffs no matter who had the control of them, but we could not have macie such satisfactory arrangements as wo did if we were free agents and the British Government had bought tho goods where it could pick them unhandiest It is onlv business on its part to 'come here for as much stuff as it can. seeing that it has bought and paid for much of it. The chief trouble seems not to he tho three months but the twelve months period for the purchase of the wool after the war is over. Mr Douglas Lysnar has gone into the matter very thoroughly indeed, and he is of tho very firm* opinion that wo should terminate tho contract three months after tho war. He argues that the Government has no right to interfere with the business of the country after the war is over by means of commandeer. He further is strongly of opinion that tho world will want wool so badly that the various countries will have to send ships for it, and will, and that prices will rise owing to competition. Hcvsavs that lie is not afraid of the position, and that the Government will bo doing a wrong to the country financially if it allows the commandeer to proceed. Another reason why tho present system has a good many opponents is the fear that many of the manufacturers who deal with the wool_ in some form or other between the time that it leaves the Government's hands to the finished article are making a good thing out of our patriotism. 1 know of nothing'that will rouse farmers more quickly than that. They do not mind so much the Home Government or our own country, or the consumer at Home, getting the benefit of the lower prices, but they do most strenuously object to the manufacturer putting profits into his pocket that should come to the, farmer if anyone is to get them. Mr Lysnar points out that if the profits that have gone into the pockets of he manufacurers and dealers at Homo both in moat and in wool had gone to the producer here, the country would have been much better off than is the case at present to meet its obligations, debts largely incurred in sending our boys away to defend the country.

Mr Lysnar has gone to a great deal of trouble over the matter, and seems to have exposed some irregularities in the method of control just ns he did with the meat. Ho deserves the thanks of the farmers everywhere for bringing this matter so strongly before the publie and tho Government, and it speaks volumes for the case ho had to present when he got tho Dominion Conference of the Farmers' Union to back, him up in the movement to havo the contract terminated three months after the termination of the war. He had powerful opposition to his proposal, but he managed to carry it through. He seemto havo gained strong supporters and equally strong opponents to his proposal." At the sam e time. I for one think that the farmers of this Dominion would not be wise to turn clown the arrangements that are being made to dispose of tho wool to the Imperial authorities for twelve months after war. At the same time, Ido think that the farmers should havo been consuled in the matter. The arrangement seems to havo been entered upon without consulting them or their representatives. That opinion has been voiced by both sides in the controversy, and there are some who think that the farmers should be given the option individually of-selling or retaining their wool. Perhaps that would create trouble, but as one of the speakers put it at a recent meeting of the Farmers' Union, the Government having a list of all the wooigrowers in the Dominion, should gel from them direct whether they are agreeable or not to the contract, and those who ate not, let them keep their "'blooming'' wool. For his own part;, he wanted the Government to get his wool, and would not mind if it kept it for two years.

'j'nc position is so full of uncertainty that it would be wise to take advantage of the twelve months' contract. The Government is taking powers in Parliament to enable it to do that if thought advisable. Tho prices on tho whole are good- Of that there can be no doubt, and the fact that tho sheepowners havo done well during the past three years is evidence of that. The money is s'ure whether the boats come here or not, and that is an important point both to the producer and the Government which has to finance the country through the critical times which are upon its. We must remember that the countries producing wool havo immense numbers of bales in store. In the Commonwealth next door there are over -a million bales, with another clip coming in, and here', with ' crutc-hings and slipe wool, we must have half that quantity, with the shearing in full suing. In South Africa and the Argentine there are vast stores of wool, and they are more easily got at than our own. The Imperial Government owns the wool that is in Australasia, and will also own tho clip that is coming off at the present time. It is fairly certain that when the ships to take awav the wool nre available, they will lift the Imperial stuff first of all. That is only business when von come to think of it. The Home Government has found the cash and is paying interest upon it as well as insurance and storage on the wool here. The costs must bo mountin" un "i-entlv. Tt is not likely that thov will leave that wool and allow the private shippers to get theirs away Tt j, probable, too, that the Ipiijonnl Government will control the sh,pr,in<r for some lime after the war. so that thov will have the matter in their own hands as far as carriage is concerned for some time to" come. Then we must not forget that there are vast stores of meat in the Dominion practically paid for l,v the Tmoerinl people, and that there nre also hnw bUjtbj of _ntW produce such as tallow that « stored up here on private account. The meat Sen are anxious that the should retain control of the Wen meat for at least twelve months after meat tor at le . arguments the war.and uielytsie that lead them tt J measure recommendation appU'. ness Jf at least to the »ow together jt two could be J;f g oo d thing in my would bo a vei.>.fe uu opinion. ON }UMi}h Gupil^^Sriifc is looked

upon as such nn easy.;tnsk that it is generally supposed that anyone can do it. There is another reason, too, why boys are given this work for a commencement, and that is that the averago farm hand hates it and will do ♦anything rather than undertake it. Therefore the boys have to do it when they enter upon farm duties or else stay off the place altogether. When they get on a bit and can do other work they drop the miilking as soon as they can. As a matter of fact milking is. rather a, pleasant-job to my mind, provided that the co\vs are quiet and easily milked, and that the 'surroundings are decent. I hale mud very thoroughly, but "that can be avoided to a very considerable extent with the aid of shingle and concrete. Though .milking is looked upon as the job of the juniors about the place it is a very important branch of farm work all the same.

On of the main requisites in a milker is gentleness of disposition and patience. Cows are only intelligent tip to a certain point, but they" will respond to kindly treatment, while they will get verv "snake-headed" if they are- not well used. A writer on the subject puts the matter verv pithily thus: — Approach the cow, then, as a friend. iSho is not an enemy ; x slie has a share in the concern, and a big share, too. Seo that her udder is clean, massage it a little with your hand, then place the pail under and 'begin to-milk gently, and speed up as much as you can as you go on. After you have finished the full stream from the' four teats, strip tho lob two or three times over, until you have got every drain, even if it takes you another two or three minutefl. This is the test of a. Rood milker, and being the most important part where so many fail, it is time well spent. But don't dawdle. Cows like a quick milker, It each well up to • the udder and get the last drop, then stop. One milker may be able to get a quite considerable amount more milk than another, just by the difference in the treatment of the animals. Loud talking and abuse of any kind is to be deprecated, and strange animals, such as dogs, should not bo allowed around the bail at milking time unless the animals have become thoroughly used to them. And hero I would caution beginners against the practice of bringing in the cows with a dog. The cows must be allowed to take their own time largely, and they must be driven along quietly. It only takes a few minutes longer to give the animals the time they require, and they will repay, by means of a quicker flow of milk and a larger percentage of butter-fat. It is most important that tho animals should be properly stripped. Some do not tiling that this matters very much, but we all know that when we wish to dry a cow off we leave part of the milk,in the udder at each milking for a time and then we milk her at intervals only till she goes at last completely dry. As I have said, excitement has a good deal to do with tho flow of the milk. Tho moro excited the animal is the less milk she will give. She will hold up her mijk as the saying is. Something of the same sort occurs in our own case when the mouth goes dry when we experience sensations of fright. The milk is not contained in a hollow from which we can draw it "at will. It is secreted in- some way in the gland which is called the udder, made of fatty tissues and ■ secreting cells at;well as veins and arteries. In milking it is a good plan to put a little vaseline on the teats or the hands. I could never milk with the dry hand, but I like to use a little vaseline, which makes tho teat soft and moist, and keeps it in good order.