FARMING NOTES.

Manawatu Times, Volume XLVI, Issue 1977, 19 November 1921, Page 2

FARMING NOTES.

AGRICULTURAL SHOWS. ■LIST OF DATES. The following are the dates of the remaining Agricultural and Pastoral Shows in the Dominion this season:— Stratford. —November 23 and 24. Nelson. —November 23 and 24. Otago.—At Dunedin, November 30, December 1. Auckland. —December 2 and 3. Southland. —At Invercargill, December 13 and 14. 1922. Horowhenua. —At Levin, January 18 and 19. Woodville. —January 24 and 25. Feilding.—February 7 and 8. Dannevirke. —February 8 and 9. Masterton. —February 15 and 16. Marton.—March 1.

Notwithstanding the shearers’ dispute, wool-growers in this district are experiencing no difficulty in obtaining men. In fact, in many cases there is no need to seek them; they come in search of work themselves and willingly accept the rates offered by the farmers under the old award. Several growers, feeling the financial stringency very keenly, are preferring to help each other over the clip.

A “Manawatu Times” reporter, in conversation yesterday with a prominent freezing works authority in the Manawatu district, was told that the position as regards lamb, mutton and beef, was absolutely desperate. He was not a pessimist by any means, for such was the state of affairs, without the slightest exaggeration. It was a fact that not one quotation had been received from the London markets for New Zealand’s next month’s stuff. The past twelve months had been bad enough, but, our informant said, the worst is yet to come. Dozens of producers would bo unable to face the music unless some radical change took place very shortly. Those who could hold out for another year would not, in all probability, have very much to fear after that. As to prices likely to rule for frozen meats he was unable to give any indication at the present time.

Dalgety and Company Limited, Palmerston North, report on their usual Palmerston North sale on Thursday 17th Instant: We had a small yarding of both sheep and cattle practically all of which was disposed of at auction. Wo quote:— Sheep: Hoggets 8/ to 12/; medium 2-ths 6/; dry ewes, shorn 5/6; fat ewes 11/. Cattle: Yearling steers 17/6; 2-yr steers 37/ to £2; store cows 25/; bulls 25/ to 27/6; dairy heifers in calf £6, £9/15/ to £lO/5/; heifers, just calved £9/10/.

The N.Z. Loan and Mercantile Agency Co., Ltd., Palmerston North, report:—At Rongotea sale on Wednesday we had small yardings of both sheep and cattle. Competition throughout was dull, but we quitted practically the whole of our entry at late values. Quotations: Light fat woolly ewes 10/6, good fat shorn ewes 10/7; Jersey yearling heifers to £7 10/-, Friesian 15-months heifers to £6 7/-, light fat cows £2, cows with calves at foot 20/- to £2, store cows 10/- to 25/-; pigs, slips 23/- to 31/-, wcaners 14/- to 19/-. FEILDING STOCK SALE. (Own Reporter.) At the Feilding stock sale yesterday there was a very moderate yarding of sheep, and a fair entry of cattle. Th» sheep sale was decidedly dull. There was an over-supply of fats and prices realised showed a drop of about 1/ per head. Store sheep prices were also in favour of buyers. There was a much better tone in the cattle market, store prices brightening up considerably. The yarding of dairy stock was small and poor. Average prices were as follows: — SHEEP. Fat shorn ewes 9/, 9/5, 10/, to 10/10; 4-th maiden ewes to 11/: fat wethers, 10/ to 12/2; fat blackfaced 2-ths to 11/6; cull 2-ths 3/6 to 5/8; 2-th ewes to 9/6; mixed 2-ths (good), 9/6; woolly forward empty ewes 8/1; ewes In wool 6/4; aged ewes, with lambs 8/1. CATTLE. Dairy cows, £4/10/, £B, £9 to £l2; 16-mos S.H. cross dairy heifers, r.w. Jersey bull £3/16/; yearling Jersey heifers, £7/7/6 to £8; empty P.A. heifers to 3,7/6; forward empty cows to 32/6; cows and calves £2/13/ to £3/7/6; forward cows to £3/2/6; rough 3-yr steers £2/7/ to £2/10/: rough 2-yr steers, 80/ to £2; yearling steers 15/ to £1; small rough bulls 26/; pedigree 5-yr old Jersey bull £6; forward bullocks £4 to £6/2/; fat bul. locks to £9/5/. WOOL SALES. MESSRS. WEDDEL’S REPORT. Under date September 22nd Messrs Weddel and Co., London, report as under on the wool sales: — The seventh aeries of sales, which commenced on August 30th, was brought to a successful close on the 15th instant. There were 140,000 bales catalogued and were mostly all sold. The general advance quoted a fortnight ago was fully maintained, and, towards the end, prices for most qualities showed a slight improvement, During the last week competition from the Continent was perhaps a shade quieter, but this was not to be wondered at in view' of the depreciation in the value of the franc and mark, and the Industrial trouble in the Roubaix and Tourcoing districts, which, at the moment of wn-iting, shows no sign of settlement. The Homo trade, hpwever, continued to bid keenly right up to the end, and took a very much larger proportion of the offerings than it did the scries before. There was not a very grand selection of merinos from Australia, but one or two choice lots fetched extreme prices. On the other hand, the offerings from New Zealand were large and, on the whole, good, and Bradford, helped on from time to time by the Continent, was easily able to dispose of the large quantities offered.