STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES, By Droves.

Otago Witness, Issue 2504, 19 March 1902, Page 8

STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES, By Droves.

Weekly StocJ: Sales : Fortnljhtly : „ „ „,. , , Invercargill, luesdays -Burnside, Wednesdays „ Ashburton, Tuesdays Monthly: Aaa. n^ton, Wednesdays Clinton, Palmerston, WintoT), and WaiFcrtniqhtly: kouaiti Balclutha, Fridays " Periodically : Gore, Tuesdays j Heriot.Kelso, and Kye Oamaru, Tuesdays I burß.

About 130 head of cattle were yarded at Burnside last week, and prices remained firm at previous week's quotation 1 - — best bullocks, moderate size, £9 to £10; good cows and heifers, £6 to £7 ss. I look for a firm market for some time, but do not anticipate any rise in price, as export* buyers are now paying \ery full rates, and export value must rule the price. About 1100 fat sheep were yarded, and this being a moderate yarding, prices improved by 1» per head. Best wethers 13s to 14s 6d, medium wethers and good ewes 10s to 11s — going to the butchers ; medium ewes about Bs. About 500 lambs found buyers at fiom 103 6d to 12s for prime. A considerable number sold at 8s to 9s.

At Addinglon last week the yarding of fat thetp was small, only 2400, and mostly ewe?. 'Ihere was a good demand for prime freezing wethc-rs, and these brought 15s to 17s, prime merino wethers 14s to 16s, best ewes 12s 6d to 15s 6d, inferior to medium ewes 4a 6d to 9s, a large number of the latter failing to find buyers. Nearly 13,000 store sheep wero yarded, and the late rains having pub a little heart into farmers the sale was better than for pome time past, especially for good lines of ewes and young sheep. Some of the sales were : 402 twotooth ewes 11s to 12s 2d, two and four-tooth 11% 300 six and eight-tootli 7s 7d, mixed agc-s 7O7 O to 9s 6d ; about 2000 fair wethers told at 10s 6d to 12s; about 2000 store lambs 5s to 6s 6d.

I give the following extracts to show that, at any rate, I have Mr H. C. Cameron. cur produce commissioner in London, on my fcide in much that I have written re our export trade: —

In the course of on interview with a lepieseritntive of Biitish Refrigeration he ca^t a good deal of light upon the causes of the piesent depression in i l^ frozen meat tiade.

e« lis said, "the state of the tiade i° at present vciy bju Prices are low, and stocks are mcrca-ini. Oje thing, that has been very dctumental to the trade i-s the policy pursued by some holdeis m retaining their meat in s'oie for seveial months, in the hope of prices rising. Prices have not risen, but have instead leceded fiom what they were a few months ago, and the lesult is that theic have been considerable lo=qoo. The meat, by tins long sto.-age, hfs loot us blconi, and bemg put on the market now ha= to be sold at c <*iert icduct'on in price, But ihis 13 iiot :he i.liolc of tlic mischief. Ihe meat roid m ',uch bad condition dcs dan. ape to the rood meat, loweimg the maiket a" lound and prejudicing the t; oc d name o,' New Zcalaiul meat gene: ally. 'JLhus the people w !i o keep meat i:i this way net oiily loae money theinselvts, but aie the caus" ol tuious Joss to ihe producer-, m Ihe colony."

"But do iiol the pionucers of meat from the other countries suffer from the same cause/ qreii'-d our lepresentative. "Not directly,' was the leply; "the fault is one v. Inch ncculiarly characterises those engaged in t'le New Zealand tiade. It does not ortur m the Ameiican trade. The Amencan shippers

SELL THEIR :iEW IMMEDIATELY ON ARRIVAL, wLen :t is fiCsh and bi.ght, i>o matter what the pi ice at the monioat. The Tcsult is that ths meat gives more satisfaction and gets a good name, whereas New Zealand mutton, owing to the fault of which I complain, has been hurt."

"Still, tliis cannot account entirely for the depression ni the New Zealand trade," ieKiarked the mterwev. er. "Bx no meai.s,'' absented Mi Cameion.

"There are other causes, and one of these is attributable to the fact that the price of most household commodities has been raised more or less since the South African war began, and the purchasing power of the sovereign is, therefore, not as great as it was. Allowing that the:e is the same amount of money being spent, there is less of each article being consumed, because of the diminished purchasing power. The trade in frozen meat, now chiefly consumed by the working classes, suffers in consequence. I believe that the two factors I have mentioned, coupled with the increased supplies which have been received during the year, are fully sufficient to account for the unsatisfa_ctoiy existing conditions and for the great depression in the trade. It should be remembered, also, that at this time every year we find dulness in trade. Poultry, game, rabbits, poik, and all other meats of "tfiat description are m season, and they, of course, reduce the quantity of frozen meats sold. This year, however, that dulness seems intensified." "Do you not think that for.uer high prices may also have something to do with it?" "Yes, that is exceedingly piobable. Last year, as you know, prices rose to an abnormal point, and, of course, when an article goes up like that, there is generally a falling off in demand, and the reaction carries things to the opposite extreme. Possibly we are now paying the price of former prosperity." As the interviewer listened to Mr Cameron's dismal recital, his spirits seemed "to sink to the temperature of frozen mutton.. THE BO Oil IK BUTTER. But the casual mention of dairy produce caused a marked thaw to set in. Mr Cameron positively beamed, and the pessimism, of the metrviewer began to melt away "Daily produce!" exclaimed Mr Cameron, looking as bland as butter. "Ah! that is quite another story. The trade in that i.s booming. It is as bright as -the other is dull. The market has opened well, and the new season's supplies are coming forward in splendid condition. There is a good demand for New Zealand butter, caused by the improvement in quality during the l?st two seasons and the increased distribution throughout the country. It was received very favourably during the last two years, last year especially, and the result is that this season there is a very good demand."

In the course of this interview. Mr Cameron pointed out that Danish butter had, in the meantime, the highest reputation on the market: — •

But, according to Mr Jago, it contains 12 per cent, of water and 85.6 per cent, of butter fat, whilst New Zealand butter, of which he had nine samples, contained, in tbe lowest sample, only 7.2 per cent, of water, and in the highest only 8.1 psr cent., tho butter fat percentage being so (high as 90. He fuither said that butters of the Danish type are very close to the standard of 1001b, whilst I\ew Zealand butter represents 103.4 per cent, of the standard, and 96}lb of it -would go as far as 1001b of Danish.

Mr Cameron then gave tho interviewer full information regarding all that tho Government is doing for produce in the way of grading and instruction, and has evidently furnished this important journal with woodcuts depicting this such as appear in the yearly agricultural report. Thtse illustrations are ghen with the account of the interview. Further, Mr Cameron «poLe of eggs ai.d fiuit as follows: — AN EXPERIMENT WIT II EGGS. The interviewer n.^:t asked, somewhat g.nger'y, for information on the \ cry de'icate sub ject of eggs which ha\e been so skilfully and .scientifically classified by Dan Leno. It was the colonial egg that interested our representative on this occasion, and he couught to learn whether any miracle could be pel formed whereby that egg might, with safely to the consuming public, be tian&rormcd into the common egg of commerce. "Oh, yes," began Mr Ci.meioii. "I have been trjing to hatch something, hut " Then he paused, as he not'-d the bewildered look on the inteiviewer's face. "Don't be alarmed," he lOMimed. ''I hav n vo intention of comjWinq; with t!i" New Zt .'.- land poultry, »t r> only :' tchciie I r.m hatching." Oui irpreTTit.it. \p looked pio.'oind'y leheved, and as!::d Mr Cameron to let him into the secret.

"Well," said the latter, "it is not much of a secret. As the result of a pniagraph in the English papers, I ha\e recently been overwhelmed with letters about eggs and various processes of preserving them. All my correspondents have patents, and, of course, each of them claims that his process is the o:ily effective one. Some undertake to pieserve eej^s for 12 months, and then sell them i.i r uch peifrctly fresh condition that any h;n meeting them would want to sit upon them."

The interviewer looked mildly sceptical, and Mr Cameron hastened to explain that he did not feel disposed to accept these eggs on trust. "In order to make a test," he p.oeeeded, "I have selected one of the patents, and sent two boxes of eggs on board one of the vc=- = els voyaging to New Zealand. One of lhe«e Doxes is being earned at a cool tcnipsiatuie., and. the

other as ordinary cargo. They will be brought back from New Zealand, and* on arrival here, after a double voyage of four months, they will be opened. That will be a very good test." ''For the sake of all concerned, I hope they will stand it," remarked the interviewer. "Ii; seems to me that the reputation of the New Zealand hen is being staked upon this venture." THE PROSPECTS FOB FKUIT. "Is New Zealand doing anything to develop an export trade in fruit?" was the next question. "Two years ago an experimental shipment was sent, and it turned out successfully, the net price realised being renmnciative. Thafc shipment was entirely composed of apples and a few pears. The New Zealand fruitgrowers have not gone in very extensively for cultivation with a view to export. For what they grow they nowl find a good market in the colony— one which gives* better results at present than bhipnients to this country would do. But while fiuit-growing in New Zealand, like many other industries, is only in its infancyyet. I think that there is a good future for it in the export trade, &o long as growers are satisfied with a 'fair price."

Mr Cameron has further given important information to many papers, and has duly advertised New Zealand butter. The fact is patent to all thafc New Zealand butter is of the finest quality on the market. It J3 important to note this, as our Australian, friends won't admit it ; but they will be obliged to do so eventually.

The Journal of the Society of Arts of January 3 publishes Professor Jago's lectures, in which the superiority of New Zealand as an agricultural and pastoral countryis largely dealt with.

In reference to branding of produce and 1 the new Government regulations thereon, a lot of opposition is evinced. The dairy expert of Victoria denies that New Zealand' brands are taken of? and Australian substituted for shipments to South Africa, but we have overwhelming evidence that such pirctices have obtained largely in the past. Many exporters here, agents for Australian houses mainly, *aid that the dairy commissioner was going too far in this matter, and' that his regulations would mm trade. Such has certainly not been the case. At the time this question was agitptpd, and when the new regulation was issued, we were selling butter at lOd per lb, f.0.b./to Australia, while now we are selling it at about lid, and there is a strong market. An effort i 3 being made by a section of exporters, particularly in Wellington, through the -Chamber of Commerce, to bring pressure on the Government to rescind those regulations. I hope, therefore, that every dairyman in New Zealand will support the dairy commissioner and the Government in their action over this matter.

There has been a stormy di^cn-sion in leading British papers over Mi Seddon's protest against the army meat contracts being given to foreigners, and I must admit that many of our opponents have a strong argument against us. I give two extracts w Inch explain my meaning: —

New Zealand imposes protective dut.es upon. British goods, and gu es no advantage to imports from the mother country over imports fiom foreign l.ations. No co'onv doss g've any such advantpge except Canada, and Canada only allows a reduction of one-third. Not a. shilling of protective duty is levied upon any aiticle of colonial produce when it comes into the United Kingdom.

When the United States refused reciprocity to Canada, Canada for the fir=t tune lowered her tariffs in favour of the United Kingdom. But at this moment England has no privileges over any other country in the markets of New Zealand, and it is a little too much that New Zealand should forbid the mothei country to buy meat in Aigentina. . . . "Heads I win, tails you lo=e," is Mr Seddon's. offer. " You will take oui sheep and we will take jour iron, oi not, as we plea&e.

I ha^ c always advocated an Imperial zolverein policy, and now is thf* time to strike for it. Let the Faimers' Unions of New Zealand rise to the occasion at once, andl send a message to our Premier to advocate this departure at Home. I believe the Premier and the Government aio fully prepared to do this, but if a iini'ed bony like, the Fermers' Unions give h>m a petition) to this effect 1m Iruids wi'l be greatlyv strengthened. Ido hope the) will now rise above .-mall piiish politics in the meantime, and do this good thine for themselves and all New Zealand. The faimers are reaHy the exporters, although town merchants appear to be. These have, in manyi cases, conflicting interests, and it must nofe bo k>ft to thorn to deal with. Agriculturists of all kinds have but one common interest, aud on this &übject thcii" interest is and

squst be absolutely favourable to an Imperial Eollrerein. „ Ab'out_ a', fortnight ago, I advisee! Australians who were .prating for rain' to first "of all jemove.,.tho. < protective duties on - food stuffs, as- per their Federal tariff, and then •Providence, acting on the principle of helping those who help themselves, might do the rest. It seems to me that there is a prospect of their being obliged temporarily to remove these protective walls if only to prevent famine. The demand for produce is good, and likely to be so. The Union Steam Ship Company's steamers are now running full. I anticipate a good demand and good prices for grain, potatoes, and all produce through the coming six or 12 months, so advise farmers to stand firm for fair prices. The effects of the drought in Australia are very severe.