WOOL OR MUTTON: WHICH SHALL IT BE?

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 8814, 1 March 1892, Page 6

WOOL OR MUTTON: WHICH SHALL IT BE?

The time is not very far distant when wool, hides, and tallow were the chief products from our flocks that the owners depended upon to obtain the needful money with which to carry on their land improvements and stock rearing. Of course, there was always a certain quantity of mutton required in the various townships in the colony and for station and farm use, but this demand made very little impression upon the vast number of carcases which every year was required to be pot rid of for one cause or another. In those days the weight value of the fleece was the chief thing kept in view in he selection of flocks. Where merino flocks were kept the quality of the wool was tho first consideration, and

----- wools were reared «-u« > °f . e Bt fP le and weight of fleece nr. obtained were practically the onW kept prominently in view But m , ltr -| , this respect are now changed £*"'1 adaptation 0 the principle ofSid £* 4 i fically produced to the freezing of th lr L at 1 °. n °™> and by the use of the ea m f 1 ciple on board shin if i. „ 6 PT- ' the"?°th Cnrcaf,e ' of,, nutbon andKbT the farthest portion of the K lob o in ?V, ; and wholesome condition to w ? T market may require such meat B T" • This discovery, and its practS F' tion on a commercial scale h„. revolutionised the views of f„ com f J H • stock merchants as to the est! 1116 ?! 8 ' I ' l ■ of flocks. It is now found that th r"® the carcase in a frozen state is ai s» V ' J,Q ' 1 or more as that of the fl Pec i f 8lUcl > : value is thus given to our *h ' ? ; while a method of successfully S ? ably exporting the carcases of 01ll 1, ! has been established, it would seem -l , in many instances, forgotten that i,L ' every breed of sheep that produces X°' of superior quality. Those who ' uT 10 ' frozen mutton have certainly a ril° U state what quality of mutton thou Hi" 1 ; for the money they pay, and it shofd'k 1 our flock masters duty to supply th« . ticular quality. This les.on,it Wo „,7 at pear, some of our settlers are Zi, 4 ' to learn. It is well know® tT? longwoolled varieties of sheep, such "J J Lincoln, are not good mutton nrorU however well adapted they may L. reduce a heavy fleece of good com hi, pr ' The form of this cla,s of sheen * '°' calculated to make a tidy-100k,,,,, 001 W in a foreign meat market, the ff h^ 3 ' fine in grain, and by the time -i Line!?! brought up to the degree of far 1 ' quired for the frozen meat market found that its weight usually run- X from 651b to 751b, instead of f, om r--601b, which the London purchasers n',ii re ° Ihe result is that such meat sells - J ' in the British markets, and when J ? affected the price is frequently lower I would otherwise be the ease if some c 2 black-faced or Down varieties were J either as pure breeds or from ctW Ihe varieties of sheep most celebrat ,1 mutton producers are those that dm* produce so heavy fleece* as Lincolna irr unproved Leicester, and to this c iX stance is no doubt attributable the', willingness shown by small settlers at if' to change the character of their flocks fk purely wool producers to those that I* yield a good fleece and at the fame tfr give a quality of mutton which is 1* calculated to secure the highest pricesT tainablo. Many settlers appear to . aiming to secure the highest possible val" for the fleeces produced, and expect to tv the same price for an inferior quality >' mutton that is given to a genuine mult, producer. The two extremes eannnot secured, and the disappointments alreal experienced in the sale of the coarse 1 il coin carcase in London is such that we & ticipate very soon a lower price will be-nve for Lincolna for freezing than for other breed I better adapted for that purpose. 'I'),] ' result will be that what is gained in en 3 weight ol fleece will be quite, or perh.J more than lost in the price obtained for the I carcase for freezing purposes. I ' Other objectionable practices have been creeping in of late in the management ofouij flocks, which will probably soon LeshamV rectified by _ the cash test. V,' a ijLj to letting tails of lambs remain undocketf until they are sold, for the ourpose n< doubt of improving their appearance in u',< eye of the purchaser. The ox-ration o, docking them has then to be p;rformed at the time of killing, and the resjlt is a sad disfigurement upon the carcase vhen frown thoroughly depreciating its value very considerably. instead of the tail b»inl' healed and nearly rounded off at the punt" it presents the naked bone protruding some distance from the drawn up flesh, and us a new ragged look compared with t.h)se that have been docked in time to have he wound healed over before being killed. Another objectionable practice, much cob. plained of, which has of late been adopted with lambs, and that is in allowing them:o remain uncastrated until killed, or only a week or two before being killed. Tlis J practice is believed to have its origin in tig notion that the lamb in an entire condition will grow more rapidly than otherwise, bin the flavour of the flesh is thoroughly deteriorated, and the frozen carcase has quite another look when this important operation is performed e&v\y as whew it is delayed until the animal is killed for the frozen chamber. So annoying have these little tricks become to those who deal in our frozen mutton, that we feel sure practical steps will soon be taken to put an effectual stop to them. It would be well, therefore, for sheep-owners to take these hints in good part, and adapt their practice to meet the requirements of the trade. It is of no use in trying to force an article on the market that is not wanted, and he who does so will be sure to become the financial loser in the long run. Another consideration in favourof the suggested changes is that though the Lincoln produces a heavier fleecc, it takes a much longer time to mature than do the Hampshire Downs, the Shropshire, and others that could be named. Early maturity both with sheep and lambs is a circumstance which has its money value, though oftentimes little attention is given to it by settlers.