BRITISH AND FOREIGN AGRICULTURE.

Otago Witness, Issue 1627, 27 January 1883, Page 6

BRITISH AND FOREIGN AGRICULTURE.-

By last mail we have files of the British Agricultural journals for all November, and from the Mark Lane Express, compile the tables given below, showing in detail operations ia the London corn and provision markets during the month. As will be perceived, quotations for breadstuffs vary but little from those in last month's report. During the first week of the month American red wheat declined from 6d to Is per quarter, and buyers held off for lower rates. As these were not conceded by sellers, business came to a standstill. In the early part of the second week the trade was more animated, but notwithstanding repeated efforts of sellers to effect a rise, buyers would not respond, only the needy making purchases for immediate wants. During these two weeks barley was in demand at previous rates, but oata were dull at from 3d to 6d decline. Throughout the third week transactions in wheat continued dull in the extreme with the exception of New Zealand samples, for which an advance of 6d per quarter was obtained. American shipments were on the increase, and holders of Kussian grain were more disposed to effect sales. Barley unchanged ; and oats, which had advanced again, receded. In the week ending November 27th prices for foreign wheats continued disappointing. Russian was sold freely, but the tone of the market was adverse to sellers.' The visible supply had increased largely, and with the known large surplus buyers were confident that a still further decline in prices is merely a question of time. PRICES OP GRAIN— LONDON.

It will be observed that as is the case invariably prices of butter rose with the advance of winter, and the tenor of advices indicate a continuance of extreme rates until early summer. On looking over the Cork quotations the great disparity in price and quality must _, appear most remarkable ; first quality medium ' being worth 150s per cwt, while sth ordinary is set down at about one half that value, or 76s per cwt. As the prices of beef and mutton should prove interesting to farmers and graziers, we [ this month give a table of London rates during November. Cattle and sheep are there sold at ' per stone of eight pounds sinking offal, but we give the figures at per lb so that they may be 1 readily understood. ' LONDON FAT STOCK MARKET (SMITHFIELD).

With regard to prospective prices the i-ane Express of the 27th November states, store stock begins to recede in value, as a rule, whilst prices for fat stock get higher. J-here is now a remarkable scarcity of good mutton, and as this scarcity must obviously continue for the present, it would seem that extreme prices will rule far into the spring, or even later » The policy of increasing ftip. me i J £ frozen meafc from here so that they would be placed on the Home markets during

the winter months has been repeatedly pointed out in the columns of the Witness. Superior mutton, in sound condition, landed in England any time between the middle of November and end of May would be certain of a ready and remunerative sale. Prices are then invariably much higher than during the summer months, for not only British, but Continental and American feeders of stock must house and artificial feed at considerable additional expense. Supplies from Europe and America fall off in winter, when there is the largest consumption of meat, and it is the duty of our exporters to make such arrangements as will enable us to benefit by these circumstances. It is all very welt to send regular shipments, but these should be doubled or trebled for the season when there is a certainty of better demand and much higher prices. During our summer mutton is cheap, but if shipments were then made they would reach British ports at the season of highest rates there. Cargoes despatched from Otago between the middle of December and end of March would relieve our markets and reach Great Britain when beef and mutton are scarce and dear. This is a question which has a twofold interest for shareholders in the Otago Refrigerating Company. A large amount of money has been invested in the enterprise, and shareholders ought reasonably to expect interest on their money within a moderate time, or at least that the shares should be negotiable ; but as stockowners as well, it is of tenfold more importance that the business should be diligently pushed, inasmuch as it would secure good prices for their cattle and sheep. Just now mutton is quoted here at lfd per lb, nor does it seem probable that a better price will be obtainable during the remainder of the summer months, yet the operations of the company appear to have subsided into a liteless jog-trot routine which promises ill for the future, and certainly justifies the disappointment pretty generally felt at the almost imperceptible effect the enterprise has yet had on the stock market. It is possible the directors can explain away the apathy, but they should be required to do so. With mutton at its present price here, surely there is a wide margin for profit on shipments to England, if despatched within the next three months. English winter rates for meat would fully justify timely arrangements for the necessary vessels, and this could have been the more easily effected because the ships would be here at the season when they would readily fill up with wool or grain. It is to be hoped that instead of useless grumbling the shareholders will attend the next annual meeting, and so bestir themselves that some vitality may be infused into the conduct of the business. The readiness with which Americans recognise and apply any inventions calculated to effect economic reforms affords a striking contrast to the slowness of British folk and British colonists. Already cooling stores for the reception of _ dairy _ produce are quite common in American cities and towns, and now the Chicago slaughtermen have revolutionised the beef trade of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and all the large centres of population, by_ forwarding immense supplies per rail in chilling cars > to cooling stores fitted up for their reception in the cities which promise a market, and where they safely keep until they go into consumption. Writing of the new trade, Bradstreets (New York) states, " Heretofore when western-dressed beef came to New York, it came to hand in a slovenly condition. The meat now coming forward is of fair quality, it has been carefully butchered, and is presented to buyers in an inviting manner. Proper receiving-rooms have been built, and the trade that has for some time past been successfully carried on in Boston and other New England cities bids fair to be lucrative also in New York." The Chicago Drovers' Journal states that during the past twelve years a large meat trade has been carried on between that place and the cities and towns on the seaboard during the fall and winter, the ordinary weather of the cold season being depended on for keeping, but "a large amount of the beef thus treated often became as hard as severely cold weather could make it — a condition which alioays impairs the quality of fresh meats to a certain extent." The Americans appear to have learned by experience that freezing meats may be carried to an extreme, an opinion that was advanced here at a preliminary meeting of the Refrigerating Company, but which was disputed at the time, but the fact remains all the same, that the more the tissue of meat is disturbed the more its decomposition is facilitated on its return to a normal temperature. In describing the business as conducted by Chicago firms the Drovers' Journal states, " Swift Bros, are slaughtering 650 head daily in this way. They have their own refrigerating cars, and make their whole business at every point more like clock-work. Hammond and Co. also carry on a heavy business, and in the same wa>. Both of these establishments send the meat to New England, where it finds a ready sale." Large slaughtering establishments are being erected in the extreme Western States, and " a formidable company with a heavy capital has been organised in Texas, to carry on the business between Texas and any, or all of, the chief consuming markets of the north." " This new departure " (remarks the Journal) " has been causing great excitement among the slaughtermen of New York, Baltimore, and other large cities, as it kills their trade in beef effectually, and it now looks as though this was one of the new revolutions that is never to go backward." The season for the usual winter fat stock exhibitions in England opened with the Norwich show. The Champion Cup for the best steer was awarded to a Devon which took first prize in its class at the Smithfield Club show last year, and the Champion Cup for the best cow or heifer fell to the Scotch polled heifer — the champion heifer at last year'B Smithfield Club show, wher9 she Avon for Sir W. Gordon Cumming the £50 cup as besf female, and the 100 guinea plate as best beast in the show. The reserve numbers were in both cases shorthorns. The heifer exhibited by Mr Ackers is described as a magnificent animal. The champion prize for wethers was awarded to the Prince of Wales for three " good Southdowns." The week following the now celebrated Birmingham Show was held. Of this year's exhibition the Mark Lane Express observes, " The quality on the whole may be up to a fair standard, "but individual merit, or else clasa merit, or both, is rather difficult to the seeker until the orossbreds are reached." These, however, are described as very satisfactory. The winner of the cup (Mr Price's Hereford steer) for the best animal in the yard won it last year, and the cup is now that gentleman's for good. The same animal takes the first prize of £50 as best Hereford, first prize in his class, and other awards. This bullock was only second last year in his class at Islington, but was noted for trie extraordinary daily increase of flesh. He — three years and eight months old, weighs " "K. and has gained 47Glb since he " nOv> „ -' oq *- .%} second prize in 21cwt lar x*. -"nek of Mr Price's was exhibited last y^. ' better ia this class goes to another bui_ «-»» —a massive, really first-class animai, front than the cup winner. In the class lv. Hereford heifers under four years the winner is Mr Lloyd's Lorna Doone, a showyard celebrity m the breeding classes, but now pre-

siimably barren. The shorthorn classes were only " of fair average quality, but as a division of the shovy not by any means strikingly meritorious," andin the race for honours "were not in it." The third-prize steer, under four years, was the second heaviest beast in the show, weighing 22cwt lqr 81b ; the heaviest animal— a Welsh ox— weighed 23cwt lqr 201b. The shorthorn cows were a very poor class ; amongst them Casquette, a showyard crack in the breeding classes, now takes third as fat, coming to the butcher barren at four years old. The Express remarks, " This is not much to boast of after all; at fourteen years with a record often calves, the case would be different." The class for shorthorn heifers contained one superb animal, bred by Mr Collard, and exhibited by the Queen. It is reported of this animal " The heifer as she stands is one of the best shorthorns exhibited at fat stock shows during recent years." In addition to the class prize this heifer won the £50 prize as the best shorthorn. The Scotch polled classes contained animals to which great interest was attached, amongst them last year's Islington champion heifer, which was first in her class the previous week at Norwich. She only obtained a plain first in her class. The Islington champion steer was also shown, but was also only first in his class. Close beside these, but in another class, stands a Highland steer which,, says the Express, " knocks them out of all tune. He is exhibited by Mr Drummond Moray. . . . For breadth depth, and quality of meat this Scot beats everything in the show ; but under his shaggy coat there is an occasional unevenness, notably at the rump, which no doubt lost him^he champion cup." He, however, tookthvjft^e in his class, and the prize of £30 as the tyest Scot, beating the Islington champions. The show of roots was the best ever seen at Birmingham. Sir Robert Lloyd Lyndsay was first with Sutton's mammoth long red manfels weighing 521b each, and first for Sutton's Serkshire prize yellow globe weighing 421b each. Mr Webb, of Benham, Reading, won two silver cups with the same varieties from Messrs Sutton's seeds, and Sutton's champion Swede won the cup given for twelve Swedes. The Argentine Republic promises at no distant date to become an extensive wool and mutton exporting country, According to the official statistics for the year 1881, sheep numbered 57,838,073, while m that year the ntfmber of sheep in the whole of the Australasian Colonies was 73,960,047. The shipments of wool from the Republic in 1881-82 were 247,000 bales, against 207,000 bales in 1880-81, 220 000 bales in 1879 80, 209,000 in 1878-79, and 215,000 bales in 1877-78. Mr Richard Stratton, the famous shorthorn breeder, has for some years been experimenting in the cultivation of flax for paper making, and contributes an article on the subject^n the last number of the Journal of the Royal Agricultural^ Society of England. He maintains that it is is more profitable to grow than import, and for the following reasons, it is less risky, it is an entire Change for the land, birds do not touch it at sowing time, it can be sown later than spring corn, giving more time to clean the land, and rabbits or hares will not eat it. He admits that it costs more to cultivate, harvest^ and thresh. This is a serious objection to -flaxgrowing where labour is high and hands scarce, but how is it— we might ask Mr Stratton— that the area'under flax in Ireland is decreasing yearly ? It has been grown in the north of Ireland during generations for linen manufacture, and would command higher prices for that purpose than paper manufacturers could possibly afford to give, yet its cultivation has been perceptibly lessened within the past few years. Mr Stratton, however, is so confident in his opinions that he purposes putting 100 acres under flax this year. The following is the report in the Royal Agricultural Society's Journal of the trials of Laval's Cream Separator which obtained the society's prize :— In the first trial 4cwt 3qrs 10£lb milk, or about 53 gallons, was passed through the Laval machine, and the cream, which was churned in one of Messrs Thomas and Taylor's churns, produced 211b of butter, weighed after passing through a butter worker. Samples of the separated milk were taken during the run, one in half an hour from the commencement and one just before the close of the trial ; these were analysed by Dr Voelcker and gave "29 and '20 of fat respectively. This was the one hour trial, and the milk and cream commenced to flow in three minutes from start of trial. In the two hours' trial Bcwt 2qrs 181b of milk or 97 gallons was passed through the Laval, producing 34§lb of butter ; the separated milk showing in three different trials "38, "21, '35 in 100 parts. From this it wil^ be apparent that the separator takes much more cream from the milk than is possible under any plan of setting. The power required to work "the machine in the hour trial was taken by the dynamometer and registered two-tenths of a horse power, the rotating vessel making.'between 6000 and 7000 revolutions per minute. :

■ Nov. 6 Nov. 13 Nov. 20 Nov. 27 Coarse & inferior beasts second quality do ■piftiilfi large oxen Prime Seoi? . . Cqar>\e& infeijorcjieep ,^Qond',buati.ty [do Piiu\egonrae jvool do s^eSoa^(Jo.>yt? d,o Large coa^. P< ime tmiall do Large hogs . . . . | Small poikers ..| d. d 6 6$ 6f 7? 8i 8J 8| 9 9 9| d. d. 6 6} 8i 8J 9 9i 9 9J Of 10,} Id? 11* Ll* HI 8J 9 >9 9J d. d* 6J 7 7 7J 8 9 9 9? 9 10 9| 10-J 11 Hi U$ 12 85 9i 9i 10J % 7 d. d. n 8j 8J 9 9 91 9 02 93- 10i II 113 111 134 9 9i 9| 10i 5J 6 <? 61 l>2 7 7ij l/;j Majck

Week ending Nov. 6th. Week ending Nov. 13t)h. Week ending Nev. 20th. Week ending Nov. 27th. " s. s. H. S. S. 8. WheatEnglish, red, per Im. qr English, white, pc; Im. qr American, No. 2, per 4961b Californian and Oregon, per 4961b Australian, pur 4961b. . New Zealand, per 4961b „ long berry, per 4901b .. Calcutta, per 4961b . . Bombay, per 491i1b . . Dantzio and Konigsberg, per 4961b St. Petersburg, per 4981b Ghirkas, per 4961b .. Persian, per 4961b . . s. s. 35 41 35 41 35 41 35 43 37 44 37 44 37 44 37 46 44 49 44 48 44 4; 44 48 44 47 48 50 42 ii 44 47 48 50 40 44 44 47 48 50 40 44 44 47 48 50 40 44 45 48 37 44 37 45 45 47 37 43 37 45 45 47 37 43 37 45 45 47 37 43 37 45 50 53 50 52 49 51 49 51 39 44 32 41 33 40 39 44 32 41 33 40 39 44 34 41 33 40 39 44 34 41 33 40 Barley — English, malting, per Im. qr. „ grinding, per Im. qr. Persian, per 40ilb Black Sea, per 4001b .., French, per 4161b Saale, per 4481b Swedish and Danish, per 4481b .. 32 50 24 30 20 21 21 22 28 3b 42 50 32 50 24 30 20 21 21 22 28 36 42 50 32 50 24 30 20 21 21 22 28 36 42 50 32 50 24 30 20 21 21 22 28 36 42 50 30 40 30 40 30 40 30 40 Oats— English, per Im.qr. .. Scotch, „ Irish Swedish, per 3201b . . Russian „ 22 30 22 30 20 26 20 21 20 21 22 30 22 30 22 26 20 21 2U 21 22 30 22 30 22 26 20 21 20 21 22 30 22 30 22 26 20 21 20 21 PeasEnglish, maple, per Im. qr. „ white, per Im. » grey, per Im. qr Canadian, per 5041b .. FOREIGN BUTTEI 42 46 40 44 42 46 40 44 42 46 40 44 42 46 40 44 30 36 _ 30 36 38 39 30 38 _88_39 :— lon: 30 38 38 _39 DON. AND !HEES: I 8. S. I I 8. S. I 8. 8. I I 8. S. ButterDanish, finest, per cwt » fine „ Normandy „ Canadian, selected, per cwb Jersey, per cwt Irish, fine, per cwt . . 140 146 120 126 120 130 140 148 130 130 120 130 140 148 130 136 122 130 140 148 130 130 120 130 108 112 124 116 122 100 108 U2 126 116 122 104 112 112 124 116 124 104 112 120 128 110 128 Cheese — American, white, per cwt „ coloured, per cwt 62 60 66 70 62 68 61 68 5660 64 60 68 56 62 6fi 56 60 66 LI HRPOi G. Butter - American and Canadian, choice .. Second, and stale, do S. 8. 8. 8. 8. 8. 8. S. 105 120 70 85 105 120 65 85 110 125 70 85 115 125 70 80 Cheese— , English, Sept. makes „ earlier do 61 62 45 55 62 63 43 56 62 63 48 55 63 47 53 CORK. Ist quality, mild cured 2nd „ „ 3rd „ „ Ist „ ordinary 2nd „ „ 3rd „ „ 4th „ „ sth „ „ 8. 146 125 114 123 105 93 83 75 8. 150 136 117 138 110 95 86 76 8. 150 1-3 117 137 109 94 87 81 8. 142 124 116 125 104 92 84 75