OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET

Otago Witness, Issue 2210, 9 July 1896, Page 14

OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET

(Prom Oob Own Cobrkspondsnt/) CflßisTcmrKCff, July 6. Until about a fortnight ago the weather was unusually flue, but then rain set The in, and although we have had Weather, some beautiful jiry, mild days since the country is at last wintrylooking and the hills are covered with snow. Until yesterday the snow did not extend far down the hjlls— indeed, many of the ruuholdors would have liked more saow to keep the sheep down on the winter country— bu 1 ; yesterday a ould sou'-webt rain fell on the plain?, with heavy snow on the hills, and to-day the wintry aspect is complete. Grass has been good up till now, and no matter how severe the winter may be it cannot do so much harm as tha last. Sheep and cattle are in excellent condition, and as * rule the country is under rather th*n over skocked. Farmers are well adv*nc»d with their season's work, and altogether tUo winter ii entered without apprehension. .

Holders of wheat are getting anxious. about the coarse of the market. They do Markets. not generally ' credit the offioisl estimate of the,, yield, bub from what I have seen and heard I am sbrongly of opinion that the last wheat harvest was one of the best, if not the very best, ever reaped in New Zealand. The most serious part of the matter is-that Aastralia,. instead of coming hers' for supplies, is getting them from America ; and the stocks still in growers' hands in Canterbury are larger than is generally believed. I understand that a large transaction reported early in tbe season did not come off, and if this wheat is sold, it h»s only beeo during the last week. However^ it is still a long time to harvest, and there ia yet time for the long-lqokfid-for Australian demand to come. A point in favour of holders i« that theic grain is in fir«trate condition. Oats nra very firm, and the best qualities are scarce. Other products are steady. A fair trade in grass seeds is beiog done.

Sheep went up with a run during last month, and though last week's prices may have been scarcely so high as those of a fortnight bafore, they are still at a level wh'ch is not warranted by the present price of frozen mutton in London. Good skins, however, are now fetching 5s 6d to 6i, which with the fat brings the net cost of the mutton down to a little over 2d per lb. Then the consolidated rate is only Jd per lb, so thab if all the sheep were of the best grade, ends would about meet. There must, however, be an allowance for heavy and light weights and for rejeofcs, so that buyers mutt be supported by c.f.i. coutoaots when they pay »uoh a price for sheep. Good wethera for turnip* are in a.% keen demand as freeztr3, the abundanca of the crop coiupolliug farmers to increase then- stosk. Store cattle are also selling well, and the supply is nob equal to the 'demand. Beet is steady at about a guinea a hundred for prime beef at auction. The public markets suffer from tbe quantity of both cattle And sheep entered as fat, but which would sell as well or better in the store sections. Pork ia 'scarce, and select weights, grain-fed, command 3-Jd to 3j-J, though some large curers do not buy in the Addiogbon yards. Horses for farm work are still wanled, and souud mares and geldings flye to eight ye irs old sell freely at £20 to £25 • extra sorts £2 or £3 more.

Oar two poultry shows (Chrisfcohurch and Sydenham) brought out exoel- ' Poultry. lent displays of " moat, of th« favourite breeds. Tbe " egg " ] breeds— Andalusians, Mioorcas, Leghorns, and Hamburgß—were moßt numerously and were very good all round. Dorkings and game were small sections of very great excellence, but the Indian game were not so large as is desirable. Laogshans, Orpingtons, and Wyandofctce were, good, but not so numerous as these all-round brteds should have been. Plymouth Reeks were poor, and the trio of' Scotch greys, recently imported, were, only useful— indeed, one of the pullet 3 w«s put in the £2 selling class and not claimed. The " feather " breedsCochins and Brahmis — were very imposing if their catalogued ages a>e taken as correct. The. Chrlstahurch show suffered from two wet days,-, and c&n scarcely have been financially successful. The absence of interest in table poultry wss jusb as marked as ever.

The South Canterbury landowners are once more agitating for Governmsnb Uabblts. assistance in protecting thxt pM't

of the country from invasion by rabbits. Most of the runholdsrs were present or represented at a meeting at Timaru on Saturday, June 27, at which it was resolved to patition Parliament to erect a main lioe of rabbit fencing about 170 miles in leog'h, the cost being estimated at about £20,000. In support of the petition Mr O. G. TriDD. Ottri

Gorge, pointed oat that at the letting of runs in 1889 an advance in the rental of £12,000 upon the upset was obtained, all of whioh was on runs above the liDe of the proposed fence, while on (some of the runs below the line there was a ccnoeßnion, and for several there w*s no bid on account of tbe rabbits. Mr Tripp also moved that the Government be requested to amend the Rabbit Nuisauce Act to provide that rabbit inspectors be" paid by and under the control of the Government, and not be in any way under rabbit boards. Tais was carried, the inaeting bsing unanimously opposed to the establishment of rabbit boards, at any tate unbil it was scan what the Government would do in answer to the petition. It was shown by Mr Tripp that the 1895 sheep returns 'showed that thera were .in the three South Canterbury counties— Geralaine, Mackenzie, and Waimate-1, 969,450 sheep, and in the three counties of Ashburton, Selwyn, and Akaroa there were 1938,402 sheep. The owners, it is stated," wish the Government to erect the main fence, and will themselves construct branch fences, the chief of whioh would follow the River Rangibats. It must be. said tlut South Canterbury is fortunate in having such energetic men as Mr Tripp and Mr G. M'Millan, of Mesopotamia, on the borders of the threatened district. Bath have gone to great expense in fighting the advancing pest, bat for which the rabbits mußt have been by this time well on their way to Christcburoh. The experience iv Amuri, Nelson, and Marlboroogh is that fencing is absolutely essential, by whatever other measures it may be backed up. Fences and natural enemies cleared tbe Kaikoura country so that one may travel day after day and not see a rabbit.

The annual meeting of the New Zealand

Farmers' Co-operative AssociaFarincrs' tion, Christchurch, took placs Co-operation, on Saturday, and recent events caused more public interest <han usual to be taken in the prr cesdings. This wa« the ft beec-th aunual meeting, and the ieport showed that the last was the best year in tho history of the association. Tbe vet profits were £12,281, with £2068 brought forward, making £14,347 to be dealt with. The directors recommended the payment of a dividend of 6 per cant, aad a bonus of 4 per cent, on cilled-up capital; a bonus of 4 per cent, to shareholders on tht-h- purchase* of merchandise and to the staff on salaries and wages, and. to refund 25 pir cuuX on all commissions earned ; to write 10 perce*nfc. off machinery and ofHse furniture, to add £3501) to the res3rve fund (bringing ib up to imrly £19,000), and to oarry the balance to nexbyear. The commissions earned during the year were £6817, agaiott £<t617 the prevhu» year, and the purchases amounted bo £133,139— 'ha highest yet reached. Only some 200 of the 1000 shares authorised to be issued at the previous annual meoting had been taken up at the 8s premium, though, as was pointed out at this meeting, the reserve fund and * amount carried forward was equal to 18s 6d a share, so that the premium could nob be considered excessive. Advances to farmers during the last eight years amounted to £1,058.471, of which £89,258 was now current, and the total losscb in this branch of the business, including £500 which was still doubtful, amounted to only £1650. The only objection to the directors' proposals was that 10 per cenfe. was too much to pay on the paidup capital, and the objector stood alone when a vote was taken. In his address the chairman stated that the present -distribution of the shares was at follows : — 2266 shareholders hold from 1 to 9 shares each, 435 shareholders hold from 10 to 50 shares each, 36 shareholders hold from 51 to 100 shares each, 18 shareholders hold from 102 to 200 shares eaoh. So that if by any chance the uncalled capital of £60,240 had to be cilled up ib had 2755 shareholders behind it, and was so distributed that it could be -paid up with little inconvenience to anyone.

The Highbank sale created a great sensation

It was calculated that in cash Miscellaneous, aud marked cheques abaub

£14,000 was held by the applicant? on the day of the ballot. The number of sections drawn by fem&lea showa that there is great need for an examination of the applications before tha ballot. A large majority of the successful applicants are sons, daughters, or other relatives of farmers in the neighbourhood.

Me«rs Nelson Bros.' freezing wo.-k9 at Hornby Ri'tj beiug rapidly proceeded with. I hear th!at a sharp look-out is kept for Q leensland ticks amougtt imported hides. Also, that not a single reaper and binder remains unsold iuCiiristchurch.