NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

Otago Witness, Volume 25, Issue 2321, 25 August 1898, Page 5

NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

The determination of the Christcliurch Meat Company to establish retail Organising shops in London for the sale the of New Zealand meat is one Meat Trade, that ought to be hailed with

delight by every stockowner in the colony. The extensive export business done by the company places them in the best position for bringing about this highly desirable reform ; and if this is one result of the prestige the company has earned over its appropriating the term " Prime Canteibury," then we must acquiesce, as we in these southern parts of the colony will_ derive some benefit from the extra profits which ar» certain to follow the setting up of New Zealand meat shops in London. The greatest hindrance to th« success of our export meat trad* has beon di«hone"st dealing on the part of the London retailors, who have all along sold our best meat as English or Scotch, while all tho

i inferior kinds were pawned off ps New Zea- j land meat. In spile of what has been said and written to the contrary, that is the prac- I j tice that has been indulged in to the detriment of our meal product. If retail shops j are established in London and other import- l ! ant towns, and our meat judiciously adver- , | tised, a great deal will bo done to break down j the insular prejudice which has constituted an almost insurmountable barrier in the past. The Government propose to rote a sum of £250 to furnish the A gent-general v.ith the necessary funds to adverli&c New Zealand moat in England. That will make a very good commencement, but doubtless it will soon be found advisable to increase the Par- ' liamentary vote for thb desirable object, for if by so doing a farthing per pound can be added to the selling price ot our meat the colony will be handsomely repaid for ony moneys expended in advertising. It is a pity, . though, that the slcckowners could not form * an association, as the dairy farmers have done, and undertake the English retail business on their own account, for there is always the ' danger, if a monopoly is allowed, that the producer will not reap the full benefit of the enhanced price. This is a subject that intimately concerns farmers' clubs, many of tho members of which are shecpowncrs, and con- ] tribute their quota to the frozen meat ex- ' port. But unfortunately, where their best l interests are concerned, the farmers a^e most apathetic, and it is found next to impossible ! to effect combination amongst them. The ; farmers' co-pperalive associations already in operation have been productive of much good, and could kindred associations be formed all < over the colony it might be found possible aftenvaids to form a New Zealand Assoeia- i tion, as was dono in the case of the dairying ' business. However, we must be thankful in j the meantime that retail shops will be opened i in London and elscwsere in which New Zea- ' land meat will be sold on its merits. If that is done we need ha\e no fear for the result. We can produce mutton equal to any grown in England, and need nofc fear competition in the open market. The unusually high prices that have ruled for wheat lately owing to a geneWlteat ral shortage in the world's j Frospeots. supply, together with the ' operations of Mr Leiter, who held so large a quantity of American whe-at for a speculative rise, have given a stimulus ' to the cultivation of that cereal in these colo- j nies. Tn New South "Walc3 there is a vastly J increased area under wheat this season, a,nd j no doubt the area in New Zealand will be greatly in excess of that devoted to the growth of this cereal last year. With the prospect of a glut in colonial markets timely preparations for relieving the apparent glut are beingmade in New South Wales. Mr Fairbairn, the Australian representative of the English Co-operative Association, is arranging a series of meetings amongst the wheat-growers cf New South Wales, with the view to making a co-operative effort to export the surplus wheat .after next harve-st. Mr Fairbairn will also visit New Zealand for the same purpose, a? well as the other 'wheat-producing districts of Australia. He has expressed the opinion that it is control of the surplus of the wheat crop that controls the market, and sees no reason why, with co operative shipping arrangements, the colonial farmers '• should not be masters of the situation next season. Unfortunately in the past the farmers have been too much at the mercy of the grain agencies, which virtually controlled the . markets, and there is no hope of making the conditions better without co-operation. The only way to meet the menace of capitalists like Leiter, who attempt to " corner " the markets, is to form large co-operative concerns. The farmer members of the co-operative associations would be bound to sell only through the association, which, managed by capable commercial men, would not be so likely to take the tempting bait of a slightly enhanced price as the individual farmer, who fails to see the iron hand beneath the glove. Unless the farmers in these colonies combine to protect I themselves they will be at the mercy of every fluctuation of the market, or as tho capitalist pulls the wires. A colonial co-operation would, however, be in a position to act independently, and would therefore ship and sell grain for the farmers to the very best advantage. I hope therefore to learn that Mt Fairbairn gets a cordial reception in this colony, and that the wheat-growers of New Zealand will fall in with any proposal to form a strong co-operative organisation for dealing with the wheat surplus, which according to present appearances will be considerable "next season.

The remarks of the writer of " Notes from the North" anent the class Very True. of sheep for freezing aro

much to the point, and state tlie case just as I and many oilier^ find it. If farmers want to freeze slip op or lambs on their own account they are subjected to restricted conditions as to weight, size, and quality in order to get them passed at the works, but it is invariably the case that Imyers sent out from the works to pick out fats never 'by any chance pass over a big', oonvsn-looking lamb if at all fat, notwithstanding that they are saying all the time that they must have them small, plump, and prime. For all I know the big ones are passed on to the butchers and don't get frozen at all, but, at any rat» they are taken from the farm with the freezers. So long as the farmer gets his pric« it does not signify much to him what vagaries the buyers may display, but it is certain that th» freezing companies do not

j practice what they preach when they lay so I much stress upon tiie weights being within I certain limit's, and yet, as my northern friend says, grab all the biggest and heaviest they ' can get at the price. . The annual report of the experimental station j in connection with the lowa fAn _ Agricultural College, iJ.S.A., Interesting gives details of the results of I'^pcrimcnt. a series of experiments to test the difference between the milk of cows recently cahed and of those that havo been in milk ior a greater length of time. The froah cows tested were four in number, and Lad been in milk a couple of months, while the others, seven in number, called "strippers," had been milked for six and a-half months. Both lots of cows were fed exactly the same ration — viz., sheaf oats, 81b ; clover hay. 61b ; corn, 61b ; barley meal, 31b ; and sugar butts, 51b. The total amount of milk from the fresh cows separated was 9721b, and from tho strippers 8861b. The experiment v/as conducted in January, tho coldest month of the year, necessitating the cattle being closely housed and artificially fed. Tho cream was ripened at a temperature of VOclcj to 75deg. The percentage of fat in ', the cream did not vary much. The churning was done at a temperature of 4-odeg to 56deg, which is very low, and the time varied from '29 to 75 minutes. To hasten the ripening process, a 7 per cent, starter of sour skim milk was added to the cr&am after separation. The report of the expert who examined the product was to the effect that the flavour, colour, i and texture of the butter approximated so closely as to indicate that the period of lac-t-ition has no direct influence on the quality j of the product. The report goes on to say | that frequent complaints reached the college j of the difficulty experienced in churning when I the cows have been a considerable time in milk; but the true cause is the quality of the food supplied in winter, which is too often '; deficient in material to form butter fat. Im- > proper ripening of the cream is another cause j that must not lie overlooked. In very cold i weather arliiical heat is required, and the addition of ii little sour skim milk as a starter j oiight certainly to be tried. Unless the cream is kept at a sufficient temperature to admit of the development of the lactic acid germ 3, instead of ripening a putrefactive fermentation is set up, and that i? what leaves the bitter taste in the butter. By means of proper feeding and care of tho cream all the difficulties of butter-making disappear. In i order to ensure the cream churning readily ! the cows must be fed on something better than turnips and straw, which is about the poorest food milking cows could have. For store cattle such feeding might do to take them over tho winter months, but for milking cows it will not do at all. The quantity of turnips should be very small, ainl the balance made up of either oaten hay or good grass ha3\ A little oat cake may also be used to advantage. I see by an English farm paper that a certain vet. has made some very seaThe Chnnge sonable and appropriate reof marks about stock troubles Season. at the end of winter. Many animals, he says, do well enough on their winter feed until the spring begins, and then they seem to go of): their feed and get out of sorts generally, milch cows showing that something is wrong by a reduction in the milk yield. He says ' symptoms of ill-health at this time are usually due to indigestion, as the digestive organs hn,ve been for some months dealing with a large proportion of dry food in the stock rations, and in some cases the animals have not had the , same amount of exercise to which they are , accustomed during the greater part of the year. There are many forms of indigestion, and a variety of ways in which it shows itself, I but, as a rule, the first symptom is that of j going off the feed, and the animals affected ; do not clear up their rations in their usual hearty manner. An observant farmer, says ' this vet. will notice something wrong in the appearance of the dung before he is led to ' feel the skin or look into the feed boxes to ( see if the food is cleaned up. He says that J the appearance and consistency of the dung ( show what a bea^t is fed upon, and ako I whether the food is properly digested. The liver, too, is generally affected in this back- j end-of -winter indigestion, but a little judicious ' treatment will soon put things to rights. A { change of food is desirable, and more liberty | for excrciso in the case of dairy co\ys or stalled j beasts. A dose of purging medicine may be , beneficial, and especially a drench of an aperient character.

When food is taken into the stomach of an animal a contest is set up Salt is Good between the digestive power*! for Stock. and the natural tendency to

fermentation common to all articles used as food when placed under the influence of warmth and moisture. If the digestive powers be vigorous and the food ia suitable and within the limit and power of digestion of the stomach the food undergoes the proper and natural changes before fermentation can interfere. When, however, such is not the case, and fermentation intervenes, and form? unhealthy and painful gases in the stomach, it is necessary that some corrective should be administered to prevonfc fermentation until digestion is well under way. Far this purpose common salt is very suitable as it prevents decay and fermentation and gives the digestive powers a chance to operata. Stock farmers are well aware that salt is good for stock in a genaral way, but this th«ory about aiding a weak digestion is perhaps new to some. It certainly ap-

pears to be a probable result of the use ot halt that it should act as a preservative to tha food in an animal's stomach as it is well known to be a preservative for food of all kinds before it is swallowed.

It is a moot question with some farmers

whether a thick croo of small

Large turnips gives moro weight of Versus Small bulbs per acre than a thin Turnips. crop of large bulbs. Thera

is no necessity to argue about the matter as it can bo proved by weighing a plot and comparing results, but then an clement of uncertainty arises when. it becomes a question of how big tho roots in a thin crop must be, and how thick the crop and how small the roots in the other case. As there is no uncertainty about arithmetic, that being one of the exact sciences, this question can best be settled by a few simple calculations. For comparative purposes it is necessary to get the solid contents and then the matter is easily settled. Taking the bulbs of any root crop as spheres, then bulbs of different sizes are to each other as the cubes of their diameters. To put this plainly I will take nine turnips and show their comparative solid contents by means of a few figures. The diameters can, of course, be ascertained by cutting the roots through the middle, and the figures apply as well to mangels, swedes, potatoes, of any other root approaching a> spherical form. They aro not true spheres, but must be reckoned as such for the sake of comparison. Suppose, then, that the diameters of the nine turnips are 4-, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 inches each, respectively. The cube of the figure is obtained by imiltiplying ifc three times ; thus 64- is the cube of 4 because 4- x 4 x 4 equals 64, and so with the other diameters. Thus the cube of each of the nine turnips is as follows: — 64, 125, 216, 343, 512, 729, 1000, J337, 1758. The solid contents of these are, in round figures, 33, 65, 114, 175,268, 381, 523, 697, 904. When the diameter of a root is doubled the solid contents are increased eight times, thus the solid content of a root Bin in diameter is 268 which is eight times 33^, the contents of a 4in turnip. When a diameter is trebled the content is increased 27 times, so that a 12in turnip contains 27i times as much solid matter (if the root ia sold) &s one 4in in diameter. Now, if I have a crop of turnips 4in in diameter there would have to be 27 times as many of them in a given space as would be required in tho same space if they were all 12in roots. Roots of this size are not very common, but it serves as an example of how the bulk increases with every inch in diameter. Suppose I lake 4in roots as what may bo termed small turnips, then eight of these would have to occupy a space equal to that occupied by one turnip Bin in diameter. This can be fairly reckoned a large turnip as a 4in one is a small turnip, so that these latter would have to stand eight times as thick as a crop of Sin roots in order to be of equal bulk per acre. Now, what we call a thick crop is seldom eight times as thick as what we term ' a thin crop, therefore the thin crop of large roots should be bulkier than a thicker crop of small roots. Q.E.D.

Aghicola,