CHRISTCHURCH SHOW.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 6362, 9 November 1907, Page 10

CHRISTCHURCH SHOW.

“PEOPLE’S DAY." (From Our Special Reporter.) CHRISTCHURCH, November 8. For the popular day of tile Christ: church show—tho day when tho majority of tho stock exhibits are judged and tho public may inspect the winning animals and enjoy the horse competitions—the weather was favourable. A groat attendance resulted. Tim Canterbury Association has the - good fortune of having its ground located in tho suburbs of a city, and a general holiday is observed for “people’s day.’’ Apart from the groat number of farmers who with their families hie naturally attracted to tho chief rural gathering of tho year, there is a town population of holiday-seekers to draw upon. It says much for the show that it should attract fully twenty-three thousand people, considering that fully tour thousand attended a trotting mooting held on a course adjoining tha grounds. COMPETITIONS. The ring competitions were the attraction of the day. There were also tlie judging of the light-horse classes, the mechanical milking and shearing machine demonstrations, and a vast array of side-shows. The finest stock displays were surrounded during the day by those specially interested, but the majority of the attendance, were to bn found at tho ring-side, but they had nothing like the entertainment provided at Palmereton. The judging of tho light horses was certainly a good sight for tho lover- of better light horses are to ho sos. .' Christchurch than at any- show c : - in the Dominion; but the jumping A ' poor and the management in the ring was below the good standard sot at Palmerston. HORSES.. / Two stallions in the 11jghtJiorse seo tion attracted considerable attention. They were a Welsh poj.y and a hackney.' The former, thp , first imported into the Dominion, is it wonderful _little animal, a pocket edition of e- ightype Clydesdale. A number havt bocm imported by the Victorian G comment with the object of oncon iging farmers to crass them with th‘ -- -nighbred mores, to got remounts. o ro. suit of such a cross would bo ai. excellent saddle-horse. The hackney is a light type of the English harne - horse and should suit Canterbury conditions. He is , not the useful horse Galantine (tho hackney of Ellis Bros., of Bulls) is, as he has no* the substance. He is a showy horse entirely, no* a stylish utility horse like Galantine. MILKING MACHINES. The attraction of the day to dairy formers was the working exhibitions Of two mechanical milkers, tho established L.K.G. and the transformed Hutchinson, now known as “The Dominion.” When tho Hutchinson milker first came out it'was constructed on a rinciplo quite distinct from all mil vg machines which had hitherto Ik .1 placed on the market, and one which at once appealed to farmers. Instead of the milk being drawn by suction through tubes into a sealed can it was forced direct from tho teats by means of pressure exerted on the teats by hydraulie power. Thus danger of milk oontnmationWas to bo eliminated, but tha machine failed in practical application. Apart altogether from ■ the numerous fixings and mass of top hamper it was found that nothing could be devised to keep the cups on the teats, which would shrink, and with any agitation on tho cow’s part would draw cut altogether. Something was required to keep the teats distended. Mr Bristow, , tho clever: I^ young Now Zealand mechanic whom Mr Wiggins, of Wellington, tho holder of the Now Zealand patent rights, employed to perfect the machine, failed after many months’ work to attain the desired effect by-ad-hering to tlie, original principle. He was forced to depart from it, with tho result that he has evolved a machine pi his' Christchurch workshop which promises to make a name for , itself wherever raws a,ro milked; but in doing so ho lias liad to make use of tbn suction '.principle. Ho has adhered, however, to the idea of drawing tho milk from the teats by means of pneumatic pressure, suction being only employed to keep tlie cups on tlie teats and to draw the milk into the can, six inches of air being taken for the purpose against the fifteen inches to sixteen inches usually employed with purely suction machines. Tho working parts of the cups and can have been'reduced, and tlie controller is,to be further simplified. Tho machine did excellent work in its public trials at the show-, and tho inventor and hie friends are confident, their labours have resulted in success, ; The Hon. J. D. Ormond bought the second prize shorthorn bull in tho yearling class to-day from the trustees in the John Deans estate, and the third prize Linralm ram hogget from the Near Zealand and Australian, Land Company—the latter at 30 guineas was cheap.