OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

Otago Witness, Issue 1897, 12 June 1890, Page 18

OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

Chbistchubch, June 9. THE SEASON. The continued dryness of the season is the most constant agricultural topic. During the last four weeks we have had a few hours' good soaking rain, and ploughmen have been able to make rather batter progress; but the total xainfall for May amounted, over most of the low country, to only little more than half an inch, and a copious downpour is yet wanted to restore the land to its normal state of moisture. Two heavy falls of snow are reported from the back country, but the hills were scon cleared by the nor'-westerß, wbich have been unusually prevalent for this time of year, and which have quickly counteracted the effects of what little rain has fallen. Fatm work— threshing and carting grain particularly excepted— is hardly so well advanced as it should be, but early wheat is coming up well and winter catch crops are making good growth. Live stock are in the best of condition, but farmers who are breaking up Btubbles are obliged to market their sheep, and tbe large numbers thus offering have weakened the market for stores, while tbe temporary stoppage of the Belfast Freezing Works has led to a drop — also beyond doubt temporary — in the prices of fat sheep. Freezing will again be in full swing in a few days, and such is the regular demand for sheep for export that there is every prospect of prime crossbred wethers being worth 25s each before shearing. Cattle are certainly attracting more attention, hardly yet to the extent of improved prices, but in being saleable, whereas for a long time they were not, GBAIN. Deliveries of grain have been checked by the simple fact that stores everywhere are f ulli and shipping is scarce. Country railway 'station platforms, and often a quantity 'of adjoining ground, are occupied with slacks of sacks |of grain, and the scramble for trucks has been very sharp and not creditable to the Railway department. Farmers 'who were anxious to get their grain despatched met the trains day after day in the hope of having their requests for trucks attended to, and much heartburning and newspaper correspondence has [followed. The Chamber of Commerce has taken up the matter, andg it is hoped will bring gthe commissioners to deal with (this important' traffic in some systematic way. A great deal of wheat changed hands last month, but during the last few days the market has {been rather quiet. Oats have been irregular, and prices are on the average slightly weaker. Barley is very dull. There seems to be a good market for barley only once in two or three years, but ,on the 7 whole it is a paying crop for farmers who can grow a good malting sample. Though none of the very large graingrowers have Bold their' wheat in the colony this season, there have b9en some very extensive purchases. One firm alone has one of the large sheds at Lyttelton, another at Addington, one at Ashburton, and others of less magnitude all filled with wheat, besides having bought two or three ship loads in North Otago, This film must have suffered severely the previous season, but cannot fail to have done well this year. 'PIGS AND BACON. Active warfare has broken out between farmers and the bacon-curers. A very large number of pigs have been fattened this season, and as the production of bacon in Australia is also said to!have!inoreased ourers, have dropped the price at which they were willing to buy pork by nearly Id per lb ; indeed, in tbe open market they were only giving on some days 2Jd for what a year ago they were paying 4d. They have also adopted a very narrow limit of weights (1201b to 1401b) for which they will pay the top price, and the principal curing concern stipulates that pigs must be delivered alive at the factory, instead of, as heretofore, being killed at the farm, and the pork forwarded by road or rail. As a -consequence the North Canterbury farmers have started curing for themselves at Rangiora on co-operative principles and under strict management. The Ellesmere farmers wore making arrangements to send 6000 pigß during the season to tho Dunedin market, but have formed a company on similar linoc to the North Canterbury concern, with tho difference that the curing is to be done by the Belfast Freezing Company, and thq bacon is to b3 disposed of through this Farmers' Co-oporative Association. A newßpaper controversy betwoen the chairman of tbe Christcburch Meat Company (Islington Freezing Works)— with wbich the two largest curers in Chriotchurch have thrown in their lot— on the one part, and some of the chief moverß in the farmers' organisations on tbe other Bide, has run into some dozens of columns, the former asseverating that tbe curers are tha truo friends of the farmer, and the latter denouncing Ihe iniquity of the curers' ring. The Flemington Dairy Facbory, near Asbburton, is being utilised by farmers in that district an a co-operative bacon-curirg factory. P. evious venturepby farmors in curing their bacon oli their own account have not baen altosrethtr succorsfu', but with 2£d ns the average valuo of pritna grein fed pork farimrs can hardly run inue 1 * ■ %li e this season. WOOL, The qur srion of whether farmors Bhonld sell their Wool hi tbn colony or in London hue be^n a good dpal argue 1 latoly. A London houso (Messrs Buxton, Ronald, & Co. — a very intelligent firm) issued a circular taiejy strongly advocating selling ftt tho L-iudon sales, and giving what purposed !o bo tha result of tho sale in London of 10,000 -b^les wool bought in tho colonies, fhowing re iHsation of fmm Jd to 5d [ier lb ov?r colonial conl. The figuros, which wore quoted in tho Witncs, at firni, sight ap peared very utrikiag, bufc on ajialysiathe result doos not •'o strontrly ahoy/ tha advantage of shipping Home. Prices of only 8992 baloa aro given — what became of tho balance is not stated, and tha average realised over colonial cost is ljd per lb. The wool was sold in the November and February sales, and as a further fall ha<s since occurred those who sold in the colony did not do so badly after all. The penny and a fifth would barely pay shipping and sale exp°nsea. Goldsbrough's circular eatimftte3 that if the wool bought in the colonies last season were resold in London tbe original buyers? would loße no leaa than £825,000, which of course represents tho profi) made by the grower by Belling in the coloaios irwlen/< oC ia tho London palos. In some qu&itOLS it U thought, and a cabla massago F*'itPH as much, t'lft'o there will not be so inftny HouiO I.uvor3 nt, tho colonial sales h\ future y>'^ r i-, b.i'. 'iure i-. not much fear of any poikiub foiling off in the attendance or buying power. HOBSXS. A corre jpondont to tbe Witness a few wosks ago wror f of 'mo scarcity of good carriage horses in Now Z3alapd. There are perhaps a dozen pood pair 3 beicg driven in the colony, and probably the reason more are not bred ia hncanae thore is no internal danand for them. There i j . Mwftya a sale for carriage horses in Melbourne and .Sydney, but in New ZoaltmJ tub Booiul conditions do not call for

much display in this direction. Some attention is_, however, being given to breeding horses of this stamp — showy-actioned horses over 16hdB high. Visitors to the Timaru, Ohristohurch, and Dunedin shows last year will remember the imported carriage horse Orpheus, owned by Mr iSimmons of Timaru, a sire eminently calculated to produce the sort of horso your correspondent writes about, Hia owner's idea is to breed up a more substantial and stylish clasß of mares than the general run now to be seen on farms and stations, and this is the very greatest of wants in this country. Breeders also need to have in mind tbe adage that half the breed goes in at the mouth, and that unless mares and foals are well fed and sheltered during winter, the produce of the best sire in the world will never be anything else than weeds. In the more genial parts of the North Island foals do very well running out at nights, but in this island during winter wellbred foals must have some Bbelter in cold or wet weather. In the markets anything suitable for India and any good young farm sorts are in good request, but the tagrag and bobtail of the saleyards are fast losing any value wbich they may have had. SHEEP STEALING. The seriouS'losses wbich farmers are sustaining from their sheep being stolen have caused much comment. A Sheepfarmers' Association was formed in the Northern distriots a year or two ago, and measures were devised which it was hoped would prove effectual in preventing these robberies. The lobb of about 400 crossbreds from a farm at the very headquarters of the association shows that the effectual safeguard is yet to be discovered, or, at any rate, adopted. The compulsory recording by auctioneers, dealers, and others of the brands of all sheep passing through their hands would be a step in the right direction, though auctioneers say it would be impracticable. But the system adopted in Scotland years ago of a patrol of special police with power to go anywhere that a sheep was likely to be, and call upon any person having sheep in his charge to account for them, and to keep a register of all sheep travelling, would soon stop the traffic in stolen sheep. A email farmer in South Canterbury lost £200 worth of sheep last year between August and shearing ; and another a few miles away lost 700 during the sir months preceding last shearing. It is a serious matter and will have to be resolutely faced in the early future. THE SMALL BIBDS PEST. The Asbburton County Council is making heroio efforts to mitigate the small birds nuisance. At their meeting last week it was decided to offer 4s 2d a hundred for heads during this andjnext months. The price is good enough to attract plenty of catchers, and the bill will mount up to a tidy sum. THE SCHOOL OF AGBIODLTDBE. The annual report of the farm examiners of Lincoln College Bhows a very satisfactory state of affairs. The Selwyn County Council will -if permitted by law— give two scholarships to farmers' sons attending country sohools. HOBSESHOEING. Farmers are up in arms against the vise of Is to 2s for shoeing horses. Farriers state that the old rate did not pay, and that the recent advance in the price of iron has made matters still worse. Metal merchants are with the farriers, and will not supply iron to non-mem-bers of the Farriers' Union. THE WANGANDI OATTLE. The troubles whioh afflioted the fine mob of Wanganui cattle whioh were Bold at Addington market laßt week seem to have been increased, if not altogether oaused, by some inadvertent hitches in getting the cattle shipped, unshipped, landed from rail, and paddooked. There seems to have been avoidable, though not culpable, delay at each stage. The S.P.O.A, will inquire into the circumstances. The cattle sold at from £7 15s to £10 10s a kead. FAEM SALES. Sales of farms and stock are about as numerous as usual at this season, but not more so, showing that farmers generally are in a fairly sound position. Good land is wanted by numerous applicants, but owners' ideas of values are too high to lead to many sales. Poor land is not wanted. Implements and sundries at clearing sales Bell extremely well.