FARM NOTES FROM ENGLAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 10415, 13 April 1897, Page 3

FARM NOTES FROM ENGLAND.

[BY OUR ENGLISH AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENT.] London, February 20. THE SOWING SEASON. After nearly six months of rainy weather, there is still no appearance of a settled period which would allow 'of the commencement of sowing. An immense quantity of rain fell during the first half of February, causing extensive floods, which spread over a large acreage of arable land as well as pastures, in some parts of the country, seriously damaging, if not destroying, wheat and other winter crops, and doing a great deal of injury to ploughed land not yet under crop. Some of this land was under water for a fortnight; but this was chiefly in Lincolnshire and parts of tho adjoining counties, especially in the Fen districts. The time has come for sowing spring corn ; hardy peas should be in the ground by this time, and beans should be planted before the end of February to secure the best results. Hardly any progress has been made at present, as the land was sodden with water at the beginning of this week ; but next week, if the weather proves fine, the drills will be kept busily at work all over tho country, as this week's rainfall has been very slight. THE STATE OF THE WHEAT TRADE. The weakness of the wheat markets during February has been a subject of general remark, and even papers which usually take a " bear" view of the trade express their surprise at the decline of prices under existing circumstances. - The average price of wheat has fallen 3s 8d a quarter since the last week in November, although reports relating to the supply of wheat for the rest of the cereal year have pointed to a rise. The fall is entirely due to the course of trado in the United States, which even Dorabusch's List characterises as extraordinary and inexplicable. " There is no palpable cause," this authority says, " for the erratic movements of quotations at New York and Chicago. It has been asseverated many a time and oft that hardly enough wheat remains in the country to satisfy home requirements and maintain stocks at a safe level, and yet day after day Transatlantic markets break on a transient excuse, and business is thereby disorganised, if not paralysed, in tho centres of European trade." Beerbohn's List shows that the American visible supply on the Ist Febru> ary is nearly four million quarters less than in 1896, and over six millions less than in 1895, and it is well known that American farmers' stocks of wheat are much smaller than usual. Tho latest reports from Argentine show that the crops in the principal wheat-growing provinces havo been almost totally destroyed by locusts. The Buenos Ayres Standard says than "there will be nor more than enough for seed in Santa Fa" and Entre Rios, There is absolutely no explanation of the fall in the United States, except the statement that the market has been wrecked by the " bears," who have been persistently selling distant "futures" at prices equivalent to 48 or 5s less a quarter than those of wheat on the spot. By thus doing they have prevented all speculation in actual wheat, which otherwise would have been bought extensively in view of the impending scarcity. Thus they have depressed the market and gained immensely on their near" futures ;" but, unless lam greatly mistaken, when the American Agricultural Department publishes the usual estimate of wheat in the farmers' hands on the Ist of March, the situation will be seen to be so strong in favour of a rise in prices that all the trickery of the " bears" will be powerless to prevent it.

THE LAMBING SEASON. The latest) reports from the lambing flocks, including the Hampshire?, Shropshire!, and SuffolUs, are more favourable than those of the early part of the season. j Stili it is now 'certain that wo Bhail nob have a .large crop of lambs. Abortion has been more common, and twins have been fewer than usual, while there have been rather more losses of both owes and lambs than are common in a good season. Tho low condition of the owes aftor a season of drought last autumn and tho wetness of the winter account for tho disadvantage referred to. Scarcity of keep is almost universally complained of; and, unless we get plenty of early feed, flockmasters will not have at nil a prosperous season, as their exponses liavo already been greator than usual. THE COMING SHIRE HORSE SHOW. Tho eighteenth annual Show of tho Shire 1 Horse Society will be held in London oil Tuesday and tho throe following days. The | entries number 553, a total "which has been exceeded on only two previous occasions. ! There are 319 stallions, or 56 more than there were last year; 217 mares and fillies, a deereaso of 6; and 17 geldings, the same number as in 1896. AGRICULTURAL IMPORTS. Imports of agricultural products in January were generally on a reduced scale compared with those of tho first month of last year, but this is not the case with some kinds of grain. Of courso tho quantities for a single month aro liable to great variation in accordance with the weather and the haphazard arrivals of cargoes; so that it must nob be assumed that the current year is to be one of small imports. The receipts of grain and flour may be given for five months of the cereal year ended with January I FIVE MONTHS' GRAIN AND FLOUR IMPORTS.

The extra wheat this season was needed to replenish reserve Blocks, laid nearly bare at) the end of the cereal year 1895-6. The latest quantity of maize beats the record for the period. Other leading agricultural imports are compared for the first month of the three calendar years OTHER PRINCIPAL AGRICULTURAL IMPORTS. .

The total of dead meat was 2,000,910cwt last month, as compared with 1,329,1390wb, and 1,819,7060wt in the corresponding periods of the two preceding years, The supply of mutton fell off from all sources; but it is nob worth while to go into details on one month's figures.

1891-5. 1895-0. 1800-7. Qrs. (Jrs. Qrs. Wheat .. .. 0,723,904 6,033,577 7,080,917 Flour and wheat.. 2,790,020 2,879,933 8,223,574 Total .. .. 9,519,030 9,503,510 10,304,491 Barley .. .. 4,039,879 3,422,160 3,017,200 Oats 2,455,854 2,220,719 3,198,573 Peas 209,223 299,811 383,130 Beans .. .. 458,034 413,219 334,744 Maize .. .. 2,483,071 4,253,751 5,971,128

ONE MONTH. 1 1895. ' 1890. 1897. Cattle No. 20,507 40,130 35,937 sheep „ 02,20.-1 f.9,784 34,004 Beef, fresh Civt 140.033 240,Oil! 212,405 DO,, salt „ 21,334 25,070 11,863 Muttoi „ 1 $8,700 285,119 211,442 Pork, fresh „ 30,181 32,677 38,400 Do., salt „ 20,261 29.203 10,043 B:lC0n „ 326,891 450,304 430,720 Hams ' „ 91,057 112,015 101,045 Meat, preserved „ 74.230 88,015 00,844 Do., nnenumerated „ 13,008 18,293 21,281 Italibits „ 15,1:19 15,243 17,718 Butter „ 291,481 277,589 582,041 Margarine „ 91,050 81,128 70,901 Cheese „ 125,270 109,536 118,2091 nops „ 40,008 39,623 IS,110 Potatoes „ 112,793 41,072 23,405 Wool, thousands of lbs 90,435 92,959 117,972