TOPICS OF THE DAY

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4307, 16 March 1901, Page 4

TOPICS OF THE DAY

CRCSLTY TO SHEEP. Two men named Charles Andis and Harry Radford. were charged at: the Police Court yesterday with conveying sheep between Wellington and Pctone in such a manner as to erv'e then' unnecessary pain. Sub-Inspector Wilson prosecuted. Radford did not appear, and Anstis pleaded guilty. The. police stated that the defendants had eighteen sheep closely packed in an express, the legs of the animals being tied together. The ehtCp were covered up. His Worship spoke very strongly in condemnation of cruelty as seemed to have beett IttEcterl. The defendants appeared, ho eaid, to have no charity or kindness whatever. Common humanity demanded that men should he more thoughtful about dumb animals. He was afraid there was so much of this sort of thing that he must inflict an exemplary fine. Each of the defendants would be fined £5, with 13s

costs, or fourteen days’ imprisonment in doliiu.lt. They were allowed a week in which to pay the money. Subsequently, Mr JJrovm, of the Gear Cornpuny, made an appeal on behalf of the two men for a remission of he fine. 1 lie sheep had been, brought into town, ho explained to his Worship, to be sent au’iiy by steamer, bub as the vessel could not take them they had to be sent back to where tin y came from. They could not ho driven at that time of the day. Under these circumstances, the lino was red need In each case to £l.

THICKS OK NEW ZEALAND LETTER.

Tho report of the Government Produce Commissioner on the London dairy produce market, published in another column, opens up a question of vital importance to tho milk-producers of this colony —the prices realised for their but ter and cheese, on tho Home market. Almost from the time tho factory manufacture of dairy produce was established under tho fostering care of tho Departmerit of -Agriculture, it was pointed out to New Zealand producers, and reiterated year after year, that if the best prices wore to be secured, tho produce, would have to bo shipped regularly every season to some reliable agent,, who could thus, by keeping his retail customers regularly supplied with it, build tip a, reputation for the particular brand of butler or choose. In spite of this sound advice, however, the practice has been common to try a new agent every season. This has been the principal reason why New Zealand butter lias never been sold under its true designation. In this way, a, London grocer would buy from bis wholesale people a certain brand of New Zealand butter for which ho would work up a certain connection. Tho next winter season, however, he would (bid the wholesale house could not .supply it, and that an opposition grocer had bought it from another agent. Hie same tiling would then happen to the opposition grocer the following season. This practice became so common that tho London grocer was forced to invent a. brand for hims6lf, and sell all Now Zealand butter under that brand. It is generally admitted that the highest price will never be realised for New Zealand produce (butter particularly) until the different brands are consigned to the same agent season after season, so that tho butter, always going through the one channel, can have an opportunity cf establishing itself, as a distinctive and high-class butter, vit-h the Loudon consumer. An interesting fact in connection with Danish butter and tho quotations made by tho Copenhagen committee is that—so it is stated by some of tho leading London dealersthe high-priced Danish batter never comes into competition with New Zealand butter, but is sold to tho margarine factories, which must have the fresh- 1 est and finest butter to take their oleo. Tho Danish butter sold oh the Homo i markets, so the same authorities state, ■ is sold at about the .same rate as New 1 Zealand. i

WAR OFFICE REFORM. A few days ago particular* were cabled from London of the manner- in which the British army is to be greatly increased in .strength, hut no mention was mads of the method of dealing with contracts ami supplies of munitions, about which the War Office is palpably in need of advice for its betterment. This was proved long ago, when it became known that the British Government had been offered, and had refused, the very Viokers-Maxims with which the Boers subsequently did.such terrible damage among our troops. Another startling instance of official laxity is probably revealed in the fact lately cabled that a. number of German 'guns supplied to the British troops at Aidershot were found to be so defective that half of them had to bo returned to Woolwich disabled. Discussing probably the contract for these very guns, a contributor to an English magazine recently wrote:—“At the beginning of the South African war wo were treated to the edifying spectacle of the English War Office scavenging Europe for any material it could pick up. Fortunately for our amour propre, some of the great Continental makers could nob, and others would not, supply our demands; bub an order for eighteen batteries, or 108 guns, has actually been placed by our War Office with an unknown German firm called the llhoinische Metallwaaren Fabrik! .... These subterranean orders have been given to a firm that has never made a field gup, or any other gun, for any Power on earth.” In view of what has ;iow happened, that seems to bo an almost prophetic protest.