STRATH TAIERI SHOW.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19759, 9 April 1926, Page 4

STRATH TAIERI SHOW.

A VETERAN SECRETARY. ENTRIES AND QUALITY GOOD. The twenty-fifth annual ' show of the Strath-Taisri Agricultural and Pastoral Society at Middlemarch on Monday was well up to the standard of those of former years. The weather was perfect, and the facilities provided by the spacious and well-appointed grounds made successful management easy. Any comment on this fixture in which the name of the secretary (Mr E. Walker) is not mentioned must certainly be incomplete. Mr Walker is a well-known figure in the district, and has served the society for the past quarter of a century in the arduous office of secretary. Many of the “grand .old men 1 ’- of the district will have learned with regret that this veteran servant of the .society, who has filled the office sq efficiently since the inception of the society, has at last bean compelled to re-

linquish the position owing to ill-health. With a good deal of pardonable nnde he related to me the progress made by the society since 1900, and waved his arm expressively towards a handsome pavilion and 15 acres of debt-free show ground. Ihe society's present position is standing testimony to the service rendered by Mr Walker. . , The entries were good numerically and qualitatively, and there was evident in almost all sections a pleasing competition and a fairly even distribution of the prizemoney. . ~ The cattle pens contained some fine animals, though there were also some entries which showed lamentable departure from type—a sign of careless mating and selectl°l!ie Shorthorns wcie a good bunch, Mr J. A Kirkland’s bull, which was granted championship honours, being a fine type. Polled Angus and Herefords there were none, unlike the displays of earlier days. The Ayrshiros all came from Mr W. D. Mason's farm, but the goods were there desnite Ihe .ack of competition. The Friesians were the pick of the cattle, and in the opinion of the judge would be a credit to any show, - The most, outstanding animal was Wi'towbrook lU. bo-, longing 10 Mr W. Robertson, a mature cow of exceptional quality. Mr Jns. White showed a good yearling bull, which was run very close by Mr Robertson's entry. The Jersevs were few. but good, Mr F. J. Keast taking most of the prizes. The dairy animals were more numerous, but of varied quality. Good ones there were in plenty, but the bad ones were very poor. All the cattle showed remarkably good condition, despite a scarcity of feed. The horses attracted the most attention. and of these the draughts were the most interesting. Mr A. Carruthers showed manv of his recent importations from the United Kingdom, but most of them showed signs of a long voyage, and were hot finite good enough to defeat some splendid specimens exhibited by Mr IT. Tisdall. Honours were about even with those two breeders. and_ Mr J. T. James showed some stock which, though compelled to take minor positions, was of a satisfactorily high standard. Other successful exhibitors were Messrs W, Moynihan and P. M'Fadgen. In the thoroughbred and hackney classes there was no paucity of entries, and no lack of good quality stock. Here the honours wove most keenly contested, and no competitor took a great proportion of the prizes without effort. The sheep pens contained high-grade animals, but not enough of them. From such a district one expects a much larger exhibit. The various breeds were only sparsely represented, a dozen or so head constituting the whole entry in some breeds. The fat sheep were the best on show, and the judge had no easy task in awarding' the first and second tickets. The lambs were well built, and in the best of condition —real profit-makers for the grazier. Pigs, dogs, and poultry came in for some attention, but the numbers we>.a scarcely sufficient to create any competition. Farm produce and field roots were exhibited iu abundance, and indicated most successful cultivation and careful tending of crops. The dairy produce and baking sections were where the women shone. The entries were especially -encouraging, and great interest centred round the building in which these exhibits were housed. A. and P. societies owe a good deal to the feminine exhibitors, who are always ready with their entries, and keen to make the show a success. - Although the show provided a good day out for of the district, it did not lack a certain Interest and instructive value, it was obvious, as it has been been in many other places this year, tha!. the. show- is going back. Whether this will be remedied when the Exhibition counter-attractions are removed remains to be seen, but there is certainly room for a good deal of improvement in the interest and work put into shows by farmers and breeders all over the province.