AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, 5 December 1900, Page 14

AGRIC ULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

The crops in the West Taieri district (writes our Outram correspondent) are looking well, though in several places they have the appearance of being too heavy. The wet weather is hindering the sowing ef turnips. There is still a considerable portion of the Henley district under water, and several fields of crops i^hat were covered with water for some days are now quite yellow. The water is pretty well off Robinson and Ashby's farms, but they will be heavy losers, as their crops, winch a fortnight ago looked so well, are now quite yellow, and it is feared they will not recover. They have been pumping continuously night and day since the flood. There is still a great quantity of water on the Maungatua side of Lee Creek, near Berwick, on what is known as part of the Henley estate. A great portion of the farms owned by Messrs Baxter, M'Lean, Kempshell, Ross, Lyall, and M'Kay are still under water to a considerable depth. I The crops along Maungatua, on the high 1 ground, are looking very well. A number of the farms in the West Taieri have suffered to a considerable extent by the overflowing of 1 creeks and 'drains. Tliq priaciaai sufferers

are Messrs J. Devany, J. Lindsay, J. Sutherland, P. Sutherland, G. Nichol, and J. Bruce. The low ground on the farms of Messrs J. M'Neil, J. Bolitho, and D. Millar has been pretty well covered with water. Taking advantage of the legislation passed last session the Auckland and King Country Natives are taking steps to place their surplus lands in the market. The Maungatautari block of 44,000 acres and several other large blocks near Kawhia are to be at once opened up for small settlement. Several cases of false packing of wool came to light when buyers were passing wool after | the sale on Friday (says the Timaru Post). A nice, bright, fine fleece or two had been neatly placed at the mouth of some of the bales, and | so shown to the buyers to value, but on examination of the bulk the bales were found to contain inferior wool, such as coarse and dingy crossbred fleeces, the result of which was that the wool was rejected, and rightly too. It is satisfactory to learn that the settlers on the Starborongh estate have obtained an excellent water supply, and that the anxiety which was felt on this point when the proi perty was cut up for close settlement has j been quite dispelled. A good flow of water ■ (says the Marlborough Times) has been tapped over practically the whole of the flat, i at a depth not exceeding 16ft in most cases. | The Lake County Council have decided to pay 2d a dozen for birds' heads and eggs. Exporters of cattle and sheep from this ; colony to the old country have for some time j recognised that they had a formidable rival in South America, and this view is also held by Mr Meuli, of Manaia, who has just returned from a trip Home, which included a stay of three weeks in the Argentine. Had it not been for the outbreak of foot and mouth disease, which led to Argentine cattle being declared infected, that country would now have been sending large numbers of live cattle to Britain. In 1893 and 1899 over half a million live sheep were sent away each year to the English market. Live bullocks for the same years were over 300,000 for each year. Mr Meuli thinks the Argentine a magnificent country (says the Wanganui correspondent of the Wairaiapa Daily Times) and one which has some splendid land. j Mr John Jarvis, of Rongotea, secured -28 ! prizes for pigs at the Wanganui show the other day.' A train consisting of 27 trucks of sheep, drawn by two engines, passed through Oamaru on Sunday. The sheep were stores destined for Studholme Junction. Berwick notes, in last Saturday's Taieri Advocate: — This corner of the plain ha 3 suffered somewhat severely from the flood. Several residents had eight or nine inches of water in their houses, and as for the paddocks and back yards, well, they were simply lakes. Of course, the tremendous rush of water that came down the Waipori River caused a considerable amount of damage. We have heard of two cases of loss of stock directly attributable to the flood. Mr S. Shaw lost 50 sheep, which strayed on to a small flat at the side of the river ; and six cows, belonging to Mr J. Wilson, that were depasturing in a clover paddock which had been covered by flood water, died suddenly, most likely through eating the grass 'whilst the silt was still upon it. Another theory is that red clover, in the time of excessive rain, fills up at the stems with water, and after being eaten by the cattle, causes them to swell to an abnormal size, speedily causing their death. A gentleman acquainted with the dairyfarming industry in Taranaki supplies the Oamaru Mail with the following figures, which he states show the average results obtained :— A farm of 100 acres will cost, say, £1000, and will carry 30 cows, costing £150, milk-cans, cart, and horse will cost another £50, giving a total outlay of £1200. The yearly receipts may be estimated as follows : — Produce of 30 cows, each £5 10s, £165 ; calves and pigs, £60; total, £225. Interest on £1200 at 6 per cent, is £72, leaving a profit of £153. Working expenses are small, as the farmer's family generally does the work.

The Timaru Herald of the Ist inst. reports as follows on the local produce markets: — There was no change on the week in the prices for wheat and barley, late nominal quotations still prevailing. In the oat market, however, the activity noted in our Dunedin reporb of Thursday last has affected the Timaru market, and owing to the inquiry consequent thereon the market has hardened, and is likely to harden still more. The needs of the South African market are mainly responsible for this, and at time of writing there is a steamer in port shipping about 30,000 sacks for South Africa. Good lines of Danish and dun oals are now quoted at Is 6d to Is 7d. We may add that other shipments are likely to follow the shipment now being handled by the s.s. Bushmills.

The forthcoming show of the Southland Metropolitan Society, which takes place on the 11th and 12th inst., will wind up the series of agricultural exhibitions for the year.

The following are the shipments of grain and produce from Lyttelton for the week /Mule 4 Friday^ jjQjjh. ult, JTor Capetown,;.

11,296 sacks wheat; for Australian ports: 20^ sacks oats ; coastwise : 179 sacks wheat, 104sacks oats, 11 sacks barley, 1233 sacks potatoes, 257 sacks bran, 988 sacks and 1757 baga flour, ■ 610 sacks sharps. Total shipments— < 11,475 sacks wheat, 124 sacks oats, 11 sacks barley, 1233 sacks potatoes, 257 sacks bran, 988 sacks and l7sT"bags flour, 610 sacks sharps. Total shipments for five 'weeks — 71,994 sacks wheat, 8853 sacks and 149,327 bags oats, 1637; sacks barley, 20,588 sacks potatoes, 2998 sacka bran, 5477 sacks and 9570 sacks flour, 2111 sacks sharps. Mr Joseph- Benny, a very old Ellesmere settler, died at his residence, near Southbridge, last Thursday evening. The deceased -had been farming in the Leeston district for 37/ years. He arrived at Lyttelton in October, 1861, and took up his farm in 1863. The late Mr Benny occupied a prominent position for many years as a member of the Ellesmere A. and P. Association, and was a well-known breeder of shorthorn cattle and Southdown sheep. , The following market report appears in the Southland Times of the Ist inst.: — There has been an improvement in the 'oat market during the past week, owing to the contract for 1 the supply of 5000 tons of oats to the Imperial Government having been placed with the Southland Grain Buyers' Association. The order comprises some 70,000 sacks, and, be- , ing too large for any one firm to tender for, we understand the Invercargill grain buyers .. decided to send in a joint tender, and divider" the order amongst them, which was .certainly the wisest policy under the circumstances.' The price obtained has enabled the buyers to give farmers Lj.d per bushel more than the markets warranted a week ago. There seema'"' to have been very keen competition between the whole of the tenderers, from Canterbury South, and two Canterbury firms who had! * joined together to tender ran the Southland Association very closely for the contract, the Southland price being 24s per quarter, c.i.f., South Africa, while the next Canterbury tender was only 24s lid per quarter. Practically no business is being done at present with Australia] the market there not having responded to the improvement in prices here. We believe another order for 5000 tons has been, placed b^' the Imperial Government, through a London firm, in Canterbury, but the price has not transpired. There seems to be an abundance of oats offering in the market at present, and there is every reason to believe . that when the present orders are filled values may go back fully Id to 2d per bushel. At the Timaru wool sales on Friday last biddings were fairly brisk, but as 1 " owners were not j>repared to accept the low prices ruling, a considerable proportion was passed in. Compared with opening rates last year, prices showed- a drop in values of, say, sgd on haJfbred, 4d on three-quarterbred and crossbred, 4|d on merino, 3d on pieces and bellies, and Id to lid on locks.

The demand for land in the Canterbury district, says the Press, appears to be still very keen. Large numbers of inquiries are being received by the Land Office for information respecting the Spey block in the Kaikoura district, and in the Marlborough land district. At present there does not appear to be any likelihood of any large area of Crown , lands in the Canterbury district being thrown, open for selection.

Great consternation was caused in Waimate last Friday morning, when, it became • known that Quinn's grain shed at Studholme Junction was on fire. The buiTding waa stacked full of grain, some 25,000 sacks' altogether, and consequently there was great diffi- ' culty in reaching the locality of the fire. About 40 men were employed in carting the ' grain away from the shed, with some seven or eight teams of horses. Mr Horley, Mr Quinn's manager, is of opinion that the fire w&s caused by vermin. The fire was confined to a space of about 50ft by 40ft. Much of the grain which was stored on account of the farmers of the district was got out undamaged. Most of the grain in the store was uninsured.