TROPIC MEAT.

Northern Advocate, 27 April 1921, Page 4

TROPIC MEAT.

The prospectus has been issued of a novel s clieme (says the "Australian Meat Trade Jorunal") for the export of frozen beef from districts which a.o away from the hub of civilisation, and which are not supplied with freezing works. The first object of thfe syndicate is to raise a capital of £10,000 locally, and then send an emissary to London to form a company of £350,000 to carry out the proposed scheme. It is proposed to purchase a steamer, and to fit her out to carry 770 carcase s of frozen beef, and make her a perambulating freezing works- The vessel is to be wherever cattle is , available at a cheap price. ,-Such places as Northern Brazil, the Amazon, Northern and North-western parts of Australia, as far down at Port Headland and the Roper River are mentioned. The cattlc will be ■killed, dressed, and frozen on board, and, like the whale, when she is full "up. she will go to Europe and sell her cargo. The promoters are sanguine and estimate the annual profits at from £210,809 to £239,>&&2.

KNAPDALE STUD DISPERSAL. The prices secured at the Knapdale dispersal sale may be taken purely as a reflection of* the present disturbed financial position, writes "Korari" in the "Weekly Press." ReI presentative breeders were in attendj ance from all parts of the Dominion, and it may be assumed that the choice lots brought forward owed their disappointing appraisement to the fact mentioned. When we see the champion Shorthorn bull of the Dominion—for most breeders will concede that the double Cllristchurch winner, Diamond Prince, is that, the occasional idiosyncrasies of judges notwithstanding—selling for 85gns-, whilst in his Sixth year arid with his show ring honours still fresh on him, it does not augur too brightly for the future of Shorthorn .breeding- The price does not represent a third of his annual earnings for outside, service fees. Apart from thi s b'a?gain however, some excellently bred stuff sold for grade prices and little more than what heifers were selling at in the pens a couple of months ago. Although some prices will be disappointing to the beneficiaries in the estate, and to the able manager, Mr A. Reid, there is one desirable result. -They allowed quite a number of district farmers to secure stoclc, which should be reflected by a great improvement in the quality of district cattle a year or two hence. "It's an ill wind, etc.," and 'buyers may congratulate themselves on their luck. The Knapdale stud has been one of the romances, if such a term may be used, of the stock-breeding world. It is only five years since the late Dr. McNab resolved on founding a stud. Within two years his imported bulls were .beginning to show an invincibility in the show

ring-, and the young ones coming along- "carried 011" to such good effect that the stud's name appeared in metropolitan lists with remarkable frequency. It is regrettable that circumstances necessitated the dispersal of the stud. It was being conducted with a correct conception of the necessities of Shorthorn breeding in the Dominion. We had been running along with too little imported blood- The Dominion stock wa s showing a disposition to become undersized, the blood to become thin, and the constitution consequently to suffer. Strong blooded bulls of the Cruickshank type, such as Knapdale imported, with their great size and good skins, were just what was wanted to re-establish the standard. It is.hoped that the value of periodical importation, so effectively demonstrated by the Knapdale management, will not be lost sight of by .our breeder s now that the southern stud has been dispersed,

CRIPPLING A STATE. The position in which South Australia finds itself after an exceptionally good season and a bumper harvest must be a source of grim satisfaction to certain Labour agitators, mostly in the eastern States (remarks the "Pastoral Review"). The story of the clever, designing, mon. key coaxing a cat to pick hot chestnuts out of the fire is recalled by incidents connected with the world-re-cord strike at the Broken Hill mines. Some time ago the miners at Broken Hill were cajoled into becoming mem-berg of the Coal and Shale Union, which has its headquarters in Sydney, and when the time arrived to begin the Bolshevik policy of paralysing industry imported agitators fresh from America persuaded mini er 3 at Broken Hill to strike, and to strike hard and long! These miners had been working under anaward altogether favourable to the request they made to the court. Their hours had been reduced under a guarantee that production would not fall off (a guarantee, by the way, which was not kept by 12 J per cent.), and theif employers offered to go back to the same sympathetic court which had already ladled out it.i favours with a very long spoon; but the orders were to "strike," and the iron rule of the modern union had to be obeyed! For eighteen ! months the strike continued thvoughj out a period when the world's metal I markets were at their highest peak. [ Australia' lost the opportunity of selling metal products overseas to j the extent of £15,000,000!' The men I lost several millions in wages, whilst i the. shareholders (mostly small in. j vestop) had to forego the dividends upon which many of them depended for their livelihood. Owing to the I geographical situation of Broken Hill, part of an extensive railway system in .South Australia is devoted to the transportation of coal and merchandise towards that centre and tnotalg in .return, but with the "hold up" these railways quickly became a non-paying proposition, and the State of South Australia, which spent money on building these lines upon which interest had to" be paid, and had provided equipment and staff, wa s forced through these outside influences to face a loss at the rate of £10,000 per week. Thus it has come about that" although Nature has greatly blessed the State with favourable seasons, so big a dram has been caused upon the railway system by the strike that the Government has been compelled to penalise all other users of all other portions of the State railway system to make 1 good the deficiency caused by the unwarranted industrial upheaval! Freights have been increased, fares added to, and the cost of transportation has risen considerably because a union, controlled from Sydney* wanted to use the miners for the purpose of breaking down hours and increasing wages. No sooner was the strike brought to a close than the metal markets of the world collapsed, and a portion of the plant at the smelting works which dealt with the products of Broken Hill was burnt down, and the whole industry , was again thrown out of gear. The incident is of great significance as showing how individual States and the Commonwealth, notwithstanding good seasons, may receive a deadly blow from impor-ted and local agitators, who seem to to hold ur," any industry or any State, just as they please. Our predecessors had a much better way of dealing with the bushrangers in the early day s of Australia!