UNDERTAKERS’ HORSES.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1061, 30 June 1892, Page 5

UNDERTAKERS’ HORSES.

The Live Stock Journal ha 3 an interesting article on the horses employed by Dottridge, a famous London undertaker. We extract the following : The fact that all the horses in use in this business are entire brings out some odd communications. Mr Dottridge declares that he ‘ never knew a horse, with a Roman nose, to be illnatured.’ Surely that is not a common verdict. Then he says that the ‘ blacks ’ will not allow horses of any other colour to be associated with them. ‘lf a coloured horse is stood in one of the stalls, the ro3t of the horses in that stable will at once become miserable and fretful. The experiment has been tried over and over again, and always with the same result.’ The ‘funeral horse’ stands about 16 hands and weighs about 12 to 13 ewt. The car does not weigh above 17 cwt ; and, even \sith a lead c ffin, the ho vse* have the lightest load of any of our draught horses. They are very intelligent, and get to know the cemetery roads ; and, on coming into them, fall into a proper pace of their own selves, wan tin practically, no driving. In Ftmle's he gets a good deal of slops ; and it is found

that to have ‘I he funeral horse’ in good condition he ‘ must have the rye-bread of his youth.’ Oats and hay are of course allowable ; not so clover hay or beans, ‘ tor it would not do to heat him.’ His mashes consist not of bran, but equal parts bran and liu-eed. * The horses have to be changed about, until they find fit companion*, and then everything goes harmoniously.’ It is odd that it is impossible to forecast which horses will, and which will not, go together. The practice always has been to name the horses after church and chapel dignitaries ; but this has had lately to be abandoned * All the horses named after that kind of person ’ —quoth tho head horse-keeper— * go wrong somehow.’ Besides, the very names seemed to be an agency for stirring up strife. There are about eighty of them at Dottridge s each horse having his name put up over his head. The writer of the paper was told * General Booth is most amiable, and will work with any horse in the stud.’ As a rule all the Salvationists are doing well, but the keeper excepted Railton. * He had a plume put on his head last week, for the first time, and that upset him. He shows a deal too much blood and fire.’

‘ What do you say of Stead?’ Was the next question. ‘Oh Stead! a good horse, a showy horse; but our customers like them showy. He does a lot of work, and thinks he does more than he does do. We are trying him with General Booth; but he will soon tire him out, as he had done others. He wouldn’t work with Huxley nohow.’ Further inquiry produced the information that tho steadiest team in the establishment —the best for a risky job—was made up of John Knox, Dr. Adler, Cardinal Manning, and Bradlaugh. Tyndall goes well with Dickens, but can’t stand Henry Ward Beecher. Morloy works comf jrtably with Balfour ; but ‘ you can’t get ITurcourb to be a pair with Davitt.’ In connection with these bizarre associations, we may give the comment of a Yorkshire coachman whose mistress determined to call a pair just sent from the jobmaster, ‘ Moody and Sanicey.’ ‘ Taint much of a compliment, ma’am,’ was the rejoinder; ‘ one horse is a whistler and t’other’s a roarer.’ Here we may take leave of the selections at King’s Cross. It is quite certain that, even for live-stock owners all kinds of curious nuggets are still to be dug up in London. Sometimes they are found in veins ; sometimes in ‘ pockets ’ —ln miners’ lauguage; but in one holding or the other the careful digger will meat with them everywhere.

WORMS IN SHEEP. QUEENSLAND EXPERIMENTS. Early in October last Mr Gordon, the chief inspector of stock for Queenland, at the suggestion of a number of sheepowners, applied for permission to employ Mr James Irving, M.8.C.Y.5., to test a number of specifics of worm infected sheep, and, after inquiry, the application was approved by the Colonial Secretary. Two lots of sheep were obtained, numbering 15 in each lot. They wore obtained from the Darling Downs, and were known to be badly affected with worms. The experiments were carried out at the Indooroopilly quarantine station, the chief inspector being present during a part of tho time. Mr Gordon, iu forwarding the report to the Colonial Secretary, describes the post-mortem examination which was made as being more careful and thorough, the stomachs and intestines throughout, as well as the lungs and bronchial passages, being examined.

Mr Irving says:— * On the 30bh March I made a post-mortem examination of a sheep—one of 15 sheep sent from the Darling Downs to the Indooroopilly quarantine grounds for experimental purpose?. This sheep had a considerable number of thread worms (Strongylus contorus) in: the fourth stomach (Abomasum), and was also affected by a nodular disease of the intestines. On the Ist April I administered six different iemedies to 12 sheep namely :—-Nos 1 and 2, solution of arsenic ; Nos 3 and 4. turpentine mixture ; No j 5 and 6, Hayward’s mixture ; Nos 7 and S, cocoanut oil ; Nos 9 and 10, powder supplied by Dr Thus. L. Bancroft; Nos ll and 12, salt and lim r . The remaining two sosep Nos L 3 and 14, were kept as control animals and did not receive any medicine. No 3 sheep died shortly after receiving the drench ’Vein the effects of the turpentine, a little of which got into the windpipe. A postmortem examination of this sheep was made directly after, when it was found that the fourth stomach was free from worms, and only a few thread worms were found in the small intestine. On ihe 10r.li April the sheep numbered 1, 2,4, 5,6, 7,8, 9, 10, 11, 12 received similar doses of medicino to those administered on the Ist April. Oa the 21st and 22ud April post-mortem examinations were made of the 13 sheep. On the 26th April a fresh batch of 15 sheep were drenched—numbers 1,2, 3 with liquor arsenicalis; 4,5, 6 satonineand gentian root; 7,8, 9 lime and salt; 10, 11, 12, Hayward’s mixture; 13, 14, 15 were kept as eontrolanimals, and did not receive any medicine. No 5 sheep died on the 27th April. This sheep was a very sickly-looking animal when alive, the lips and nose being swollen, and wool dropping off its body. Post-mortem examination revealed thread and tape worms, and extensive nodular disease of the intestines, The remaining 14 sheep were destroyed on 3rd May, and postmortem examinations made.

‘So farastheseexperiments have gone the preparation of arsenic has given the best results ; it is the cleanest and most easily adminetered, as there is

only one fluid ounce in a dose, and the sheep drink it readily. The other remedies being more or less nauseous the animals have a decided objection to swallowing them, and this is a matter of consideration where hundreds of shoep have to be drenched. Sheep Nos. 1, 2, and 3 of the second batch only received one dose of medicine, and on post-mortem examination showed more worms than did sheep numbers 1 and 2 of first batch, which received two doses of medicine.. I do not consider that one dose will be of much avail, and would recommend that three doses should be given at intervals of nine days between each dose. The sheep to be kept without food for at least 12 hours before a dose, and for two hours

after ; they may be allowed water half an hour after receiving the medicine. Nearly all ,of these sheep were more or less affected with a nodular disease of the intestines. I am told that this disease has been noticed by sheepbreeder3 at various times during the last 12 years in. the Darling Downs district. The adult worm is found in the large intestine of sheep in considerable numbers, and the embyro in the tumours or nodules in the walls of the intestine. These tumours are most abundant about the ciecutn or bung, although in some cases they are distributed throughout both the small and large intestines. The small tumours, which are scarcely the sise of a pinhead, are found in the submucous tissue. They appear like a sac filled with fluid, and having a little globe floating within. By using magnifying power the little globe is seen to be a cyst, with a worm enclosed. By careful dissection the cyst may be separated, and fiaally the worm itself may be separated. When the little tumours become larger than a pinhead and entirely filled with the cheesy matter, their structure does nob materially change, but is more difficult to make out. It is at this stage that the worm escapes from the cyst, and begins to wander within the capsule which its presence ia the tissue has caused. On dissecting the

large fresh tumours the worm is found in the mass :of cheesy material, which is now quite abundant, filling the cavity, and producing tumours as large as the end of one’s finger. This cheesy material is usually hard, dry, and brown at one end, and soft, yellowish green at the other. It is in this end that the worm is to be found. If some of tho harder tumours are examined it may be found that there is no greenish material in them and no worms. These hard tumours may be of all sizes, and are found at all time?. From these the worm has either escaped, or, in the case of the smaller tumours, the worms have died The form cf these tumours is usually spherical, bub the cheesy material may appear as a long mass, or it may apparently fill what seems to have been a worm track. The last appearance occurs most often in the small intestines. From the mucous side these tumours present little if any colour. The older ones may present a greenish yellow appearance, especially if the mucous membranes over them be thin The diagnosis of this parasitic disease can only.be made from a post mortem examination. In the living sheep there

may be signs of general debility bloodless lips and eyes, thin sides and flanks, dry wool, <fcc. It may be that nothing else will be noticed but that the flock is not in quite good condition, or in severe cases the diarrhoea or emaciation may be excessive. As the adult worms are comparatively few as compared with the tumours, it is probable that theadults of this species cause but little trouble; bub the embryos, on the contrary, cause a great deal. For the tumours caused by GEsophagostoma columbinum there is no remedy except the removal and extermination of the adult worms. These adults are usually buried deeply in tlie mucous secretions and attached to the membrane of the large intestine. They may be found in considerable numbers in older sheep. The medicinal remedy must, therefore, be one which will remove them from these places. It is probable that some one of the surer remedies used for other intestinal parasites will do for these. The killing of the adults will, of course, lessen the number of eggs with which the sheep become infected. As the eggs of this parasite pass to the ground the sheep may get them while pasturing or drinking. The same care in changing pastures, in pi-oviding good drinking water and a plentiful supply of salt, should be observed as for other parasites. If pastures are known to be permanently infected, then they should be turned

over to other stock for a year or two before being again grazed on by Bheep.

DAIRY CONFERENCE. (PRESS ASSOCIATION.) Dunedin, Thursday. At a meeting to-day of the Dairy Association Mr T. Brydon, the chairman, in the course of his speech, said that London was likely to be the surest market to go to. Higher prices had been got in the provinces, but trial shipments otherwise than to London had not proved so satisfactory. Messrs Angus and Birch were appointed directors. The meeting then resolved itself into a dairying conference. A resolution was passed that all factories should send in guarantees to ship through the associations a fair quantity of their output, and thus put the association in a position to deal with the shipping companies. It was resolved that j|d per pound for butter and cheese in a cool chamber and in a frozen chamber was a fair freight. Mr W. B. Walters gave a lengthy and interesting report on the cargo of the Doric, by which steamer he had gone Home. He mentioned that he had placed a thermometer about the skin or lining of the ship, and found that there avas sometimes a difference of eight degrees between there and the

ship’s hold, proving that there was no current of air through the cargo and no insulation. Exhaust air from the refrigerating chamber was used for the cool chamber, and as he passed through chambe.t he found it strongly impregnated with acidulated gas which passed through the butter chamber. Mr Walters recommended that cheese should be well dunnaged to allow a free current of air, which should be maintained throughout the voyages. He attributed many of the failures to the stoppage of the refrigerating engines during bad weather, causing the exhaust air to be reduced, with a consequent rising of temperature. The cool chambers at present were simply a farce. He recommended appointing a person to see the cargo properly shipped and stowed, and the appointment of an agent in London to take charge of dairy produce, as at present it was kept in store without proper ventilation, mixed among bones, hides, &c, where the temperature frequently rose to 90 degrees; A shed should be built similar to the one for American produce, and the shipping companies should arrange for the proper distribution of air under and through the cargo to dispel the heavy noxious gases which were a cause of trouble. It was resolved that until cool chambers are properly constructed it is safer to send butter in freezing chambers.

The following resolutions were also adopted:—‘That the Government be asked to provide, or assise in providing, cool storage at the main ports of shipment.’ * That the Government be asked to provide, or assist in providing, a dairy produce store in London, where shipments would belanled and reported on by a qualified man.’ ‘ That the members for the district be asked to influence the House to have the charge for carriage by rail of dairy produce reduced to grain rates’ ‘That a delegate should interview the Government on the same subject.’ ‘ That the Government be asked to arrange with the Railway Department for lower rates on cream and butter going to the nearest factory system among small outlying settlers.’ ‘That the Government be asked to deal with the question of branding produce on the lines indicated in the annual report.’ ‘ That this meeting does not recommend the adoption of the bonus system either on produce exported or factories elected.’ ‘ That a meeting be convened of both cheese and butter makers, when papers will be read, and the question how milk and cream should be paid for discussed.’ That the committee make an effort to obtain more members in the North Island, and that the name of the association be then altered.’ ‘That the insurance companies be approached with, the view of obtaining policies covering partial damage.’

Mr Sawers mentioned that the Government intended to appoint two additional dairy instructors this season, and that it had been decided to remove tlie duty on parchment paper used for packing butter.

Daring last season the Middle Island Dairymen’s Association shipped 924 tons of cheese and 27 tons of butter to England. . The Wyndhana factory shipped over 109 tons of cheese.

AGRICULTURAL JOTTINGS, An artesian well is being sunk at Hawera. If tire experiment is successful several other wells will be sunk. Poverty Bay is progressing. It is expected that quite 25,000 acres of bush will be felled this winter. The freezing works have been a great boon to the local sheep farmers and there is a better demand for land than there has been for years past. The Knights of Labour are often very unjustly abused as being enemies to the farming interest. The following, from the Manawatu Standard, willprovethe absurdity of the statement: —ln one locality on the other side of the ranges, in the bush, Mr Chester was asked .£IOO for a section or which he wanted to erect a butter factory. At another place he was given all the land h© required, for as long as he liked, at a nominal rent, to cover the cost of the grass. In the latter case the settler was a Knight of Labour, and a thorough Liberal, and did not even keep dairy cows, his only object being to push on the district.

Messrs Stevens and Gorton, the enterprising auctioneers are pushing ahead into new fields. They now hold regular stock sales at Pahiatua. The Normanby Horticultural Society held their annual general meeting last week. The report stated that the number of members had increased throughout the year; the accounts showed a balance to credit. Mr Livingstone having resigned the position of president, Mr Heslop was duly elected in his stead. • • t • Home buyers of New Zealand produce are beginning to see the importance of dealing direct. Mr Kowin, a representative of the firm of Lovell and Christmas, a wealthy firm of provision merchants in London, with branches at Manchester and elsewhere, has left for the Colony. He will be stationed in the Hawera district, as a resident buyer for the firm. The owners of stud horses in the Wairarapa are likely to meet in Masterton in a few days’ time for the purpose of taking steps to obtain a concession in the charges for horse boxes on the railway during the stallion season. It is considered that if the railway rates were reduced there would be a greater interchange of horses, whereas now a stallion is practically confined to one district for the whole season. In the interests of good horse breeding, facilities for economical transit are of considerable moment. —Wairarapa Daily.

Big turnips and monster specimens of the mangel wurtzel have taken the place of the big gooseberry. A Dunedin storekeeper has on view a swede turnip weighing 261 b. Maniototo can beat this, as the local paper chronicles a display of three mangels, weighing in all 1021 b, the heaviest being 371 b. They were grown at Eden Creek by Mr John Weir, without the use of manure, and he has any quantity 301 b in weight. Mr Pyke should induce him to send a load for exhibition in the parliamentary lobby. At Leek, England, lately, John Plant, a farmer, and his daughter were fined, with costs, £4O for selling butter adulterated with 94 per cent of margarine. Served them right. The reasons for the milk of a newlycalved cow going bad are many and very different. An English authority says : Improper feeding, constitutional disorder, local disease of the udder, and infective influences all account for cows yielding abnormal milk; .while influences of a thermal} chemicals and electrical ebarac?'

I ter must sometimes be counted on. Very often when it is impossible to give a reason why bad milk should be yielded, we can remedy it by altering the diet, changing the sui’roundings, and giving a few doses of medicine. Change the food, see that the environment is sanitary, and give first a full dose of Epsom salts and nitrate of potash, followed by a tonic of :—Bruised juniper berries, half ounce; powdered gentian, ginger, and aniseed, of each two drachms ; nitrate of potash, one drachm ; and Epsom salts, four ounces once daily in warm ale.

The Brisbane Courier strongly advocates exporters of frozen Australian meat to turn their attention to Paris as a more desirable market than London, where the price of beef and mutton has for years been higher than it is in London. Lai*ge quantities of meat are sent from South America to Paris, and though the quality is said to be much inferior to Queensland produce it realises 1 fr. per lb. The cost of transit is less to Marseilles than to London, and it is urged that such a good outlet for their surplus beef and mutton should not be neglected by stockowners in the colony.

At the Ludlow Police Court, recently, a firm of auctioneers have been charged with an offence under the Markets and Fairs (Weighing of Cattle) Act, 1891. They had failed to provide a weighing machine at their auction yard, as the Act required them to do, unless they first obtained an order for exemption from the Board of Agriculture. It appears that a neighbouring firm had obtained the necessary order, and that the defendants had made application, but had noc received any intimation that it was granted. The magistrates adjourned the case until their next meeting, to see if the Board of Agriculture granted the exemption, and if not to give them time to comply with the requirements of the Act. This Act is an important one, and one which auctioneers cannot afford to ignore, for it is probable that magistrates will feel bound to enforce it by the full penalty if it is ignored much longer.

A colt should never know how much strength he has until he knows how to use it. The American Agriculturist says that if he once runs away he is never a safe horse afterwards, an 1, while he may to all appeai'ance forget it, there will come a time when he will run again, and the chances are he will do much damage. The harness for breaking and driving colts should be extra strong and heavy. The reins and bit, especially, must be stout enough for all possible emergencies. A straight bar bit is good enough for a steady horse, but it cannot be depended on with fractious animals. There are numerous kinds of bits that are easy when a horse is steady, but so made as to hold the horse when he tries to run.

The following are the points of the Border Leicester sheep : —Head : Long and fine, 'with a fair breadth between eyes, well covered with fine white hair ; open nostrils ; bright and full eye ; thin ears, well covered with fine hair ; 3trong under jaw ; and nose black. Symmetry : Equal weight of quarters ; straight and broad back ; shoulders broad and deep, with strong and springing neck ; head well set on, with fine carriage ; well sprung ribs, with straight underlines; breast wide and well down ; full bosom ; hindquarters long, with rump round and coming well over ; tail nicely set on, at right angle with back ; clean red skin ; legs well set at corners ; clean flat hind bones ; fine in forelegs below knee ; neat feet and ankles. Wool: Uniform quality, fine firm hair with a nice medium close set pearl bright colour, full covered under and on to thigh edge, deep on arm, close

up at ears, and well on to jaws; hip strong, but not coarse.

Queensland is exporting tinned pineapples. The company who have embarked in the trade expect to reach an annual export trade of 20,000 to 30,000 cases.

Lord Hopetoun, the Governor of Victoria, has just completed an experiment which shows the value of ensilage as food for dairy cattle. Some months ago a pit holding 40 tons was filled with, green stuff. Ltst week the pit was opened and the contents found to be excellent ensilage, which is greeslily eaten by cattle with beneficial results. A considerable saving of expense lias been effected by this method of providing winter food for the Governor’s cows.

Mr A. H. Wilson, dairy expert, gave a lecture on the dairy industry last week at Ashurst, where a syndicate has been formed to start a factory. He expressed an opinion that Ayrshire cows were the best for the Ashurst district,

Some of the Hawke’s Bay small farmers are endeavouring to induce Mr William Nelson to start a dairy factory.

We quote the following figures to show to what an alarming extent common weeds may grow if not checked by the agriculturist :—Some curious experimentalist, says the Queenslander, ha 3 been at the trouble of counting the seeds produced by a single plant of some of the commonest varieties of weeds with the following rather startling results .-—Wild carrot, 1200 ; dandelion, 1500; chickweed, 2000; cockle, 3200 ; campsion, 3425 ; chess, 3500 ; dock, 3700 ; ragveed, 4372; groundsel, 6500 ; ox-eye daisy, 9600 ; mallow, 16,500; motherwort, 18,000; fox-tail, 19,500 ; sow thistle, 19,000 ; mustard, 31,000 ; Canadian thistle, 42,000; red poppy, 50,000 ; burdock, 400,328 ; purslane, 500,000 ; lambs’ quarters, 825,000.