OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

Otago Witness, Issue 1903, 24 July 1890, Page 11

OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

(Pbom Ode Own Cobbe3PONDent.) ; Chris'xchuhch, July 21. !

THE SEASON*

The long drought has at last broken' up. From the beginning, of , this month the weather has been showery, and as scarcely a day passed, without some rain the total fall has been considerable. Last Saturday a genuine southwester — wind, rain, and sleet — passed over Canterbury, and gave a thorough soaking to the ground softened, by the previous showers. The temperature has been generally mild, with only about four sharp frosts, and vegetation has not bus Sained any great check, so that farmers are getting their sheep through the winter with muoh less difficulty .than was anticipated. Of course hand-feeding is in general practice, but the results are so satisfactory that in the present low price of oats little grumbling is heard as to the trouble and expense. Certainly sheep have seldom been in better condition at the time of year. Farm work is well advanced, "and the young grain crops as well as green stuff for feeding off have made good growth, and are In some' localities already in use. Old grass is being broken up to a greater extent than was intended, the grub having in many places completely destroyed it.

LIMB is being applied with beneficial effect to many of the grub-infested paddocks, but the railway freight prevents its use beyond a certain distance from the kilns. A newspaper controversy lately took place as to lime being a suitable manure for the bulk of the Canterbury laud. Mr Barkas, late Lecturer on Chemistry at Lincoln College, stated that Canterbury soil generally was sufficiently rich in lime without the addition of more, but Mr B. F. Wright, who has the Mount Somers Lime Works, was able to show bj undoubted authorities and actual analysis that the plains land generally was much deficient in that component. There can be no question that no benefit can result from the addition to the soil of an ingredient of which it already contains a sufficiency, and it is equally certain that a manure which gives satisfactory results on certain land may be worse than useless on others. Farmers who go in for scientific reading— as they all should to the extent of knowing the composition of various soils and the oharaoters of different species of plants— have derived much information from the recent transactions of the Philosophical Institute, which have included papers on the formation of the soil in different parts of Canterbury. A very simple course open to those who wish to know exactly what manure to apply to their land is one which I have previously recommended in your columns— namely, to send a sample of the soil to the School of Agriculture, Lincoln, to be analysed, and the sender will be informed as to the best means of adding to its fertility. There is no charge at Lincoln, but if th« farmer prefer it hp may avail himself of the arrangiwi'ts made by fchr Witness, whereby all buch information and advice may be obtaii>ed at n vri} moderate fre. No farmer can pursue his avocation with success uuleas he be thoroughly acquainted with the nature and proper treatment of the soil of his farm.

THE SCHOOL OP AGRICULTUBE.

The bill introduced by the Hon Mr Stevens dealing with the future government of the School of Agriculture has caused consternation to the Board of Governors of Canterbury College, from whom it is proposed to altogether remove the control of the institution. The bill provides for a board of management, three members are to be appointed by the Governor and six member* to be elected by the governing bodies of the several societies registered under the Agricultural and Pastoral Societies Act 1877 within the land districts of Canterbury and

| Otago. The bill also makes provision for a ! refund by the Canterbury College to the proposed new Board of Management of the Lincoln Agricultural School of the sum of £7954 with interest. The governors, supported by the opinion of their solicitor, maintain that their act of 1876 authorised them with the consent of the Governor-in-Oouncil, to invest any part of the moneys arising from the sale of their land endowments, not exceeding £10,000, in the purchase of sites and erection of buildings for the purposes of the Canterbury College. The solicitor says : — " It seems to me that the act imposes no restrictions as to the moneys from . which this £10,000 aiay be taken, but that it gives the college (subject to the con&ent of the Governor) discretionary power to take . the proceeds arising from the nale of any reserve. It would appear that the act, whilst clearly providing for th« '&ppropriatinn of the income of tho reserves' of moneys ari»in<,'* therefrom for the promotion of t,he particular branch or branches of edneat'on for which the reserves were made, yet recognises that a general education and particular branches or departments of science or education may most conveniently b taught iv one centre, and that some of the branches cannot well be taught separately, and with the object of preventing any question being raised as to the proportion iv which tbe cost of central buildings should be charged against the apecific trusts has given the Board of Governors au absolute discretion in the matter." The committee appointed by tbe board .to report apon the bill .views with alarm tbe attempt at the colonialisation of auyof ' the board's endowments, and dissents strongly from the proposal that th« £8000 should be refunded to the School of Agriculture fund sought to be established under the bill. The committee consider that no Buch ohange in the management of the Agricultural School as is proposed in the bill is called for, nor in the interest of the institution should be brought about. It has been decided to oppose the bill by petition, and to ask that the governors may be heard in opposition. Meantime the following is the committee of the board for the management of the School of Agriculture :— The Chairman (Mr F. de C. Malet), Messrs John Grigg, L. Harper, R. Westenra, W. H. Spackman, W. C. Walker, F. D. B. Neave, T. W. Stringer, and the Hon. J. T. Peacock. What the majority of them know about it they may know themselves, but nobody else has any idea. It seems to me that a very simple way out of the difficulty would be for the governors to appoint a committee^ of say four of their number, and call in to join them say three good practical farmers, of whom there are many in the neighbourhood of Lincoln and Christchurch— well-educated meu, who would willingly undertake the duty. The chairman and secretary for the time being of the Canterbury A. and P. Association might also bo included. No aot of Parliament would be required ; the Board of Governors would still have the financial responsibility and the endowments, and the £8000 would not necessarily have to be refunded to a special account. The sohool is a Canterbury institution, but there is no reßtriotion as to the part of the colony or the world that students come from, and the analytical and experimental departmentslire as open to Otago and Auckland as to Canterbury , farmers. The school is now doing good useful work, better than at any former period of its existence. There are 40 students, with room for only five more residents. Experiments are being conducted withne.arly every kind of farm seed, manures, &c, and the results will be published as soon as ascertained. Poultry and bee farming are to be entered upon. The grain yield on the farm last harvest was very satisfaotoryj the average being »s follows, viz:— Wheat, per acre, 42£ bushels; oats, per acre, 63| bushels ; barley, per acre, 35 bushels; or an average all rounfl of 45 J bushels per acre, the total amount of grain grown being 9300 bushels. The cost of each person in the establishment last year was £28 13s 9d per annum as compared with £25 2a Bd, the cost in 1889 at Dookie College in Victoria, mentioned in the report of the late Royal Commission. The small excess is in coat of servants, due to more extensive buildings, and to expenditure upon fuel, an item whioh does not appear in the Dookie accounts.

ITJNGWORM.

Sheep seem to be suffering more than usual from lungworm this winter, and some heavy losses are reported. There is a certain cure at present not much more than locally known, but for the efficiency of • which I can vouch— Joseph Ford's Lungworm Mixture (patent). • (

FROZEN MtJ^TON.'

The scarcity of feed last summer told upon the quality of some of the mutton shipped from Canterbury in the first three or four months of the year, a fact that haa not escaped notice at Home. Some shippers have been able to keep the quality up to the usual high standard, and have obtained prices higher than newspaper quotations, most of this class going to private agents in London. More recent shipments will, I think, be found to be up to the üßual quality.

MAEKETS.

There is not much to add to the reports regularly published in the Witness. There is a general feeling of confidence in the grain trade, and some large speculative purchases have been made. Potatoes are also firm. Sheep are again higher in price, and my prediction of 259 for wethers has several times come close upon fulfilment. Beef is a shade better, consumers being driven to it by the advanced prices of mutton. Pigs are steady, the market having been relieved by the large operations of the country curing establishments. Sheepskins have not fallen so much as the bad accounts of the London wool market warrants. Wool shippers are in trouble ; I hear of one whose pnrohases last season will result in a loss of £25,000 to £30,000. Some difficulties in the fellmongering trade are reported, but most of the men in that trade now are sound and able to stand a reverse. Horses of good stamp— whether hacks, harness, or draughts— sell well. Mr John Grigg has collected a good lot for India.

POULTRY.

The Sydenham and Christchurch Shows passed off successfully, and the exhibits were quite up to those of previous years, some classes, indeed, showing a distinct advance.