IMPROVING THE DOMINION’S STOCK.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19066, 11 January 1924, Page 4

IMPROVING THE DOMINION’S STOCK.

FURTHER REFERENCE TO THE SEASON’S COMPETITIONS. (Written for the Otago Daily Times.) By Stockman. Both in the north and in the south the dairying breeds have tilled the centre of the picture this season at the shows. It is but symbolical of the trend of affairs on the land. Dairying has undoubtedly taken the front seat. But thh fat lamb trade, too, has made a great advance. Its earning position in the dominion is upheld in the showrings, too, by the fine displays of Southdowns from Canterbury North, and by English Leicesters and by Border Leiccsters from Canterbury South, and again by those mothers of our lamb, the Romney and the Corriedale. And with wool at an average price of £3O per bale as at Dunedin, the value of our sheep breeds is being almost daily emphasised. Yet, despite that, we are already known as a dairy country par excellence. As a matter of fact, New Zealand probably got the greatest advertisement of its career when the Director of the Dairy Division of the Department of Agriculture was able to announce last June that figures were available to prove that New Zealand had become the greatest exporting country of butterfat in the whole world. Although not represented at the World’s Dairy Congress held in the United States in October, the position New Zealand had won in- this connection was there expatiated upon, and the many world authorities who attended have no doubt since looked us up upon the world map. Ibe result of this investigation would be astonishing, for we do look ‘‘wee’ on a map. Naturally_ we could not win our proud position without high-class dairy cattle, and when we go to our show-yards we find that to-day the display made of the various breeds of dairy cattle is the great feature of every show of importance, and the time is surely coming when the names of the champion animals of each breed will become household words. Already they are much quoted abroad. Much more can be done, to stimulate improvement in our dairy cattle, and many of the associations, particularly those in Taranaki, have greatly improved their schedules by the introduction of new features such as the system of awarding senior, and then grand championships. J-tie junior and senior breeders’ groups are also excellent features, hntries in dairy cattle classes are now so largo that competitions of the kind are most desirable, and the next step required is the addition of classes for the progeny of the herd sire. These classes are termed get of sire ” classes, and should become the most interesting and instructive of any on -the schedule.

THE AUCKLAND SHOW. At this fixture the dairy cattle breeds have made a most notable advance. In recent years no province has made so many valuable purchases from other dairying districts of pedigree dairy stock. Ann these are iu addition to the old-established herds of the province, notably its milking Shorthorns, which have been maintained at a high level. Jerseys, Friesians, Ayrshires, and Milking Shorthorns made notable displays at the recent fixtures. Red Polls were not represented. Their future as a- dairy breed is still more or less problematical. NEW 7 ZEALAND IMPORTED STOCK. The presence of many of the imported Friesians purchased in Canada arid the United States for Messrs J. Court, Ltd., added greatly to the interest in the T neman display, which, as at Hamilton, was a noteworthy one. The New Zealand-bied cattle had no difficulty in winning all the principal honours, the imported cattle being on the whole disappointing. The type air ed at to-day must show the great depth and constitution of the old Longbeach cattle. Good udders ar e also . cs^ ntl i|' The champion cow at Auckland, Mr it. Mart’s Ardmore Fairy 111, although perhaps small in stature, was fashioned on very good lines. This cow was bred in the home province, but the winning three-year-old heifer and all the winners m the male section were bred outside the province. The three-year-old, a good cow, was selected for Messrs J. Court, Ltd.,*C» Taranaki prior to their decision to import ’ l . h ' s May Pontiac Mooie, bred b- the late Mr R. T B Mellow. The winning two-year-old heifer in milk, a most promising heifer of the Mercena family, was ex. 'bited by the Piri Land Company. In dry two-yoar-dds, an imported heifer, the pick of Messrs Court’s selections, won, but in yearlings a local-bred heifer defeated the imported stock The Piri Land Company also exhibited the first prize two-year-okland champion bull. Great mterosthas caitred in the career of this bull Bamfield Aetherland King Pontiac, for he was purchased from his breeder, Mr W. D. Hunt, for the record price of 510 guineas, calf. As a yearling he was undefeated and even scored championship honours. His career this year hoc been rather a " e *r lt one, for ho was only placed second at the Waikato Show, yet when it came to the championship the judge reversed h>s previous decision by placing this bull ahead of the bull which Md earlier beaten hrni-a very weak position for any " n ,, himself in. In view of the fact that this bull filled the position of champion at Auckland, it is interesting to note that his dam recently* completed a record of.B7PJb of hutterfat. and his tr-dam previmisly prod oed Us9lb of fat, while bis sire, Rosevale King Sylvia has already a daughter with a record of 8061 bof fat. It is. thus a case of champion producers producing a champion chow bull. Both the winning aged bull and the winning Yearling were bred in the Manawatu. The latter, by King Mercena, best yearling seen out this season j from Mr H. R. Green’s Oakview herd The interesting battle between the Kreeds to decide which could produce the IZt dairv cow type is a class which now finds a. place in but few schedules In its stead at Auckland, milking and butter-fat trials onen to all breeds were instituted. These resulted in a TRIUMPH FOR THE FRIESIANS

i-i, K roe d won all three competitions. The first competition for the Flume Gup, Wv the Vacuum Oil Company? to the cow of », breed or cross living the most butter-fat, attracted entry of 15 Friesians, Jerseys, Ayrslures, both first and second prizes, " Il . h a ing Shorthorn third. The winner ilr R Man's daughter of the proven butterfat sire Pietje Paxton, produced 1 551 bof butter-fat in the 12 hours. Fifteen cows aCh? competed m the class for cow producing the largest quantity of standar milk in tho 12 hours. Friesians again filled the two first places, and not only did the winner- 0 produce the largest quantity of standard milk («ilb). but her test was 4 1 per cent, of fat. The Lovell and Christ mas Cun, valued at lOOgs, and confined to purebred animals, produced the largest entry—l 9 head-but still tho Friesians were ab o to triumph, filling all three places in this contest for the cow producing the most bXr-fat in the 12 .hours. The winner produced 331 b of milk, test 4.7 per " en t and 1.51 bof butter-fat. The success of the Friesian cattle also serves to illustrate tho improvement secured in the tests of this breed. IMPORTED JERSEYS SCORE. The display of Jerseys was a very extensive one. Many of the winners had previously won at Hamilton, including Mr F Day’s champion bull. Masterful, imported from Jersey Island The reser-o champion was Mr W. Hall s winning two-year-old, Meridalo Beautiful Prince ihis bull which was imported from the United States, had just come out of quarantine, and in the opinion of many breeders was much superior to the champion in daily points. In the younger classes Mr VV. H. Micrs again had a sweeping success with tho progeny of his noted breeding hull. Distinction’s Twylish. This hull’s dam and his sire were both champions, while the former is a noted butter-fat producer and the latter a sire of producers. This is the right combination. Tho female championship was a contest between Mr D Watkins’s Eaton Lady Love, a grand-daughter of the Owl’s Yicfor, and Mr E, Griffiths’s imported heifer, Sybil’s Ginsv, by the great sire, Sybil’s Gamboge Both were three-year-olds, and this time tho New Zealandbred typo won. AMONG THE AYBSHIRES.

The Ayrshires wcro more noteworthy for numbers than quality, although good animals wore forward. Tho local breeder, Mr A. G. Gribble, won both championships, both animals being bred by Mr W. P. Harre, the Wanganui breeder, who made good use in the past of the Gowan Bank and Sunnysido blood. Probably the most promising animal competing was the winning yearling hull. 7his was Mr R. M. Somerville’? Lnnriston Rentpayer. which on the sire’s side represents tho most successful strains introduced by the New Zealand Government. youngster was champion at Hamilton, where the president of the New Zealand Ayrshire Association, Mr A. H. Hansen, officiated, but he was debarred from contesting the supreme honours

at Auckland. An equally large section came forward at Invercargill, where the Southland Metropolitan Show, held the week following Auckland, undoubtedly provided the best all-round display of stock seen in New Zealand for some years, excepting only that made at the principal fixture in Canterbury. AYRSHIRES IN SOUTHLAND, whore the champion butter-fat cow of the breed, in Mr A. M. Weir’s Ivanhoe Fancy, 724ib of butter-fat, was recently produced, are a very popular breed, and it may unhesitatingly be said that the best display of Ayrshires in the dominion is annually to be seen at Invercargill. This year both champions at the Southland Show were bred by Mr Weir, of Edondale. This feat is the more notable because so many of the best representatives of the breed drawn from other parts of the dominion were competing. The Canterbury champion of this year, the Otago champion of this year, the Southland champion of last year (bred in the Manawatu), and this latter bull’s full brother, which had won several championships in the North Island, all competed. In the open class, Mr Jas. Henderson’s butter-fat bull, Ivanhoe Reformer, scored. This bull is only a three-year-old. He is by General Haig from Ivanhoe Fillpail. one of the best daughters of Hindsward Jimmy, io-day the most noted sire of C.O.R. cows of this breed in New Zealand. The latter bull is the sire of the champion butter-fat cow of the breed •mentioned above, and the dam of the champion bull, which was of great size for his age, is the breed’s, second highest butter-fat producer, having recently completed a record of 16,3621 b of milk and 6461 b of butterfat. The two-year-olds were also of high merit. . Th*» Otago champion, Mr G. R. Herron’s Rising Star, from a Rankin bred cow. won, defeating a Manawatu hull from Mr A. Montgomerie’s stud and sired by the North Island champion bull of this year, Glencairn Craigellaenie. Other placed bulls in the same class were bred in Canterbury and the Manawatu. The yearling class also attracted a wonderful ring. The winner, Mr A. M. Weir’s Ashleigh Park’s Eclipse by Chudleigh of Lady Bank (imp.), which was purchased as a calf at a high figure from his breeder, Mr C. B. Morgan, Woodville, ia a coming champion. His dam is the noted butter-fat cow, Ellesmere Lasa. The judge, Mr W. Gillies, had a ddtieult task to separate this bull from the Canterbury winner, Mr C. Morgan Williams's iviaesgwyn Midnight, alsq from a noted butter-fat family. ,in the temale classes, Mr A. M. Weir’s entries or stock by bulls of his breeding had a monopoly 01 the first prize tickets. The champion cow waf a very sweet animal, but on tne small side in compansion. to the other winners. la fact, the Southland breeders are now producing stock with both size and good teats. The champion had already proven herself to be a first-class producer, as she now holds the Now Zealand record for junior four-year-olds with her pertormance of 5041 b of tat. About the keenest contest in the. females was in the class for yearling heifers. The placed heifers were a pair bred by Mr Weir, both by last year's champion bull, Ivanhoe Baron, these being separated by a Canterbury-bred heiier in Mr J. Parlane’s Goan Bank Princess. The dam of the latter was this season’s North Island champion cow, Maesgwyn Princeif. This is also going to the North Island, as sne has been purchased by the Hawera breeder, Mr Fred Mills, at record price. Since Ayrshire breeders began semi-officially to test their cows, and generally recognise that the first requirement of a dairy cow is that she should produce milk and butter-fat at a profit, and not be simply bred for the show ring, the breed has now taken a new leas© of life, and the bulk of the breed are being keenly sought after by dairymen. Sales of Ayrshires held at Invercargill at the time oi The show were singularly successful. Yearling bulls from tested dams sold up to 62 and 70 guineas, and there was plenty of competition for good bulls having good butter-fat backing. Most of the winners at Invercargill would win at practically any show in the dominion, although tlie North Island champion cow of this year is probably the best mature cow in the country at present. Should the Southland breeders be enterprising enough to send representatives of their cattle to the Royal Show they would do well.