AGRICULTURAL AND PASTROAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2529, 3 September 1902, Page 6

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTROAL NEWS.

The Invercargill Dairy Supply- Company Las leased Glenhantj Dairy Factory from the Government. This will be a boon to settlers residing on the property, which was recently resumed, and be an inducement to others to secure sections not yet taken up.

It is now certain (says the Melbourne Argus) that th« beet sugar industry cannot bo resuscitated this year. , The Victorian Minister of Agriculture, w^io is extremely anxious to set it on its feel again, because be thoroughly believes it possible to make it pay, recently asked the 15-ector of Agriculture (Mr Wallace) to consult Mr M'Lean, M.H.R., who has an extensive practical knowledge of the industry sas followed afc Maffra, as to the prospects of restarting the factory at that place this yeaV. Mr M'Lean. lold the director that it is aow much too. late to resume operations this season, as by now the planting of" the beer, should be in, progress, and that the land should have been ploughed and winter fallowed in April. '"To begin now/ sarya "Mr Wallace in -Tiis memorandum of his interview with. Mr i r 'Lean, '' woultl most assuredly be "a f ailure, a,? it was because of badly-jn-epared" land' that the two seasons in which the ■> factoryworked were not satisfactory!" Mr Taverner does not despair, however, -fie states that he fully intends to makefile effort next season and to start in good lime.. ■'* ~~

During the past few days, (saya the Press> quite a large number of men-aud boya.-bave been engaged at the Kaiappr- and Papamii railway stations packing potatoes for South Africa. Many hundreds of lons are beingpacked into 1001b boxes. There were-aboufc 10 truck loads of timber for the boxes, cut, into lengths for nailing together, which, wore sent up from a Southland sawmill. Itapid progress is being made -in order to catch the direct steamer, and care is being-. taken to mako the shipment a success, though the fea-aon is rather late. The shipment from New Zealand is expected to consist of 27,000 cases, of which 8000 will *b» token from Picton, 17,820 from Lyttelton, aud the remainder from Dunedin.. One hundred and forty-seven thoussino: vcarlinj; trees were lined out at the Statenursery' at Tapatmi during lafit week, arecord six days' work , "", • The Frimley orchard at Hastings', already the largest in the colony, is being added to. Twenty-eix "acres havo just ..beep, planted with peach trees. ,' According to the Duustan Times, over 2000 fruit trees, including orange** lemons, and figs, are to reach Clyde" this week. They are to be planted on the west bank of the river, within a mil© from the" town. v Fully 10.000 cows were dehorned^ in Taranaki alone .during last autumn, md it is~ probable that in- another year or two horned dairy herds will -bo a thfiug of the'-nast. A large area is being sown for oats' oit" Edendale estate this sea-sou—^no- less;-tf«m 1800 acres, the most of the so'wirig beingnow finished. , , On the 18th a mob of catfle from nb» "Marion Downs, Queensland, was' sold afc the Adelaide (S.A.) cattle market, realisingprices ranging from £11 to £18 7s 6d a head. Before reaching the South Australian border the cattle had travelled • 300 miles over country absolutely bare. . No water was available over the hsi stage^of 100 miles. It is said (writes the Southland Time* Lumsden correepondenit) that the- Casti©' Rock estate has been disposed of privately, so that the idea of the Government purthasiug is gono. According to rumour, th& estate is to be surveyed iuto suitable-sized blocks for clcfe settlement. < Writes the Knsign's Waikaka. correspondent: "There is a very large area ploughed here this season, and I am of opinion that a vory large orea will go into oats. Turnips are standing out well, but there are not a great many fat sheep to be picked up. The» up-north buyers have fairly cleared the maiket." , On July 19 the Cape Time? published the following special cablegram from -London: "At present there is an unusual • demand from South Africa for ploughs, 'and th» manufacturers in America- canndt ma *j£ them fast enough to meet this unexpected rush." A correspondent writing from Capetown to the editor of the Lyttelton-Times in reference to this message, says : I suppose it is quite impo t sible for New. Zealand ploughs to be sold in South Africa? The American plough is not liked fjy^many, people here, but there is no other in wi© market, and they are compelled to use what they can get., There is room for- lota ot other improved machinery." -„_ Residents of Levin are considering t&ev possibility of lowering the Horowhenua -Lake to permit of draining 3000 acres of. land suitable for dairy Tarms. The flaxmills on the Manawatu line are working at great pressure at present, some* of them turning out five tons of fibre por stripper daily. The different mills find lucrative employment for a large number of hand's. .... . Mr Bernard Veech. Mountain View. W el« lintrton, last wr-ok obiained a fleece from aprize merino sheep that scaled 301b, and from a year old ewe" another weighing 101b. From two stud rams the fleeces also-scaled 301b and 201b respectively. At thp last meeting of the Raglan (Auckland) Farmers' Union the following resolution was carried:— "That the club iirg»upon the Government the necessity -for acompulsory examination of entires, and, suggest the devising of some scheme* \or subsidioing the best horses in each district provided that they stand for. service at anominal fee "

A conference of Government veterinary sirjeons is being held afc Wellington, one of tuo objects being to have uniformity all over tli© colony in the inspection of meat. The Waimate (Taranaki) Witr.es3 'stateg that a farm of 100 acres at Gkaiawa recently realised £22 an acre. The chairman of the Land Purchase Board is to visit Lawrence on Tneeday or Wednesday of this wieek in connection with th» proposed purchase for close settlement of the Greenfield Estate. , Although only a fortnight's notice^ was given, the contract for the supply 01, »0 tons of potatoes for South Africa is com-

Growers of Fruit should consult NnniO antj Blur's general catalogue 'of Planta, in. which will be found not only a. collection of standard varieties, but aIP" the latent novelties worth growing. In this catalogue will also be found an up-to-date g«ectli» of $eedf of gll la«d».»i

•*|>jglg!Mfc and the 8000 boxes have been railed - 'SJ^Hftfe-Korfolk at Picton. The Government '.. , has been extremely careful in - 's<aggtyißmg the selection of potatoes, atid is j^yH§|j£ satisfied with the quality. One hun''SSJHp thousand - feet of -timber were used for vjsHfr boxes. Blenheim is- supplying nearly - :^rothird of the- quantity to be shipped by ?ijsilb* c crops 'over South Canterbury are - ~i£l||Lphowihg well above tho ground, and ■ TjMJjli,Bm*l weather that has prevailed of promoted a healthy growth. The '.- - «<j*||jinder wheat and oats this year is ; .^l^r»^Si*iivPress) extensive, and, given a good „, •easbn, Hfebountiful harvest will be the /•ji'£s&£y^y B *' nani -A- ant * **• Society closes '. 'iStCyeiir: ju3%ended with a credit balance of \, :JtZtt S&lOd, filter spending £42 10s 4d on •ft'i^JJji'", 6&etion. bfe, sheep yards, which is conv«ry satisfactory. "' '^'-jt^uf said .that the number of fat wethers /:,«T*ilfcDle in Southland is not sufficient to , v/wipply; tho demand, and that the local trade ■KfirJwir have to kill hoggets before the season mum>v£:- ■ ||p£!LWaikaia settlers are anxiously looking forl&vard to the time when the Ctago School pr' Commissioner's will, put the portion of the '* Hyde Home Estate in the market, the lease ' <jf which will shortly expire. The property Jias been surveyed into seven farms of about 200 acres each, and it is hoped that (writes "the Standard) in tho near future it will be settled, and, a dairy factory started. A circular issued by the Department of Agriculture notifies that the steamer Kent has been appointed to load live stock, refrigerating ' cargo, and general cargo from this -colony to South Africa about the end •of September. Tire freight .to Durban and Capetown will be: — Horses, £12 10s; stal- . lions N £17 10s; grown cattle, £9; heifers '■ffour in a pen),- £6; shippors to provide food . 'jind '.attendance. A free passage will be -. given' to one attendant for every 25 bead - grown one for every 40 heifers, and on«£ for every- 25 horses. The minimum at .««ch loading port must be 100 head cattle, , 200 Jiorses, and 150 heifers. \ Mr T. W. Kirk, Government Biologist, . says that of the annual exports of this colony, three-fourths are contributed by the agricultural and pastoral industries. He estimates the losses of this colony from weeds •on grain and grass lauds at £338,556 per year.. This' is based on an estimate that ; last yeaiv one-tenth of the colony's culii rated area was occupied by woeds, but ho contend^-that a truer percentage would be „ 25. and" at that figure the loss would be .V, dBS 4-6,489.' ■j In liis lecture ' to fanners in the Cant<rjjklnmr A. and P. Association's rooms on the |§23rd ult., Mr T. W. Kirk said there was no effectual means of dealing with the California!} thistle than simply cutting the leaves an inoh-'below the surface as soon as they appeared. But the farmer had to be ? junremicting in this if he desired to be suo- *> cessful. Close aud persistent cutting with "-a^hoo was better than any chemical applica.p'tion. - The lecturer also drew attention to [' the danger of w<yd-seed dissemination that - Inrk-ed in the straw packing of imported .agricultural machinery. He had examined on •' several occasions th« stra-sr in which such machinery had been packed, and had found "" innumerable seeds of weed**, s>ome of them *of the moat noxious kinds. His advice to farmers was to burn all such imported straw -without delay. V.The Minister for Agriculture for Victoria }iaV decided not to establish a dairy college #fte? the unfortunate experience of Victoria \ ivith tho Horticultural College. He prefer 3 ■--aiTOodel farm, and subsidiary experimental Sycolleges. t .Owjng to tho Egmont and Wanganut A. usi 'P.-. Associations being unable to alter i'-ir-shbw dates, the Manawatu Association I , ;:i hold its show on November 12, 13, and j *2Afi.he some dates as tho Canterbury Metro- I ripolitan .fixture. f r£\ Ti>e" Mossburn correspondent of the Southland' Times writes: — After a remarkably fine - spring is beginning to show itself — xhe rabbits aro breeding and the birds are looking for nesting-places. There is a slight i-pring in the grass, but it will be a long Tune before* there is a good bite for stock. Turnips have not stood the feeding that was oxpected, and have in mauy cases been finished some time. There wero several slight falls of snow through the winter, but none of them heavy enough to keep stock from getting feed. Ploughing- is well advanced, and, given good weather in Septembe», the crops will be got in earlier than -usual. In both Oust and West Eyreton farming operations are being pushed along with all speed (writes tho correspondent of /the Christchurch Press), and the fine, springlike weather of late has enabled many of the ■ farmers to get laud. /ready for crop that. wader more unfavourable conditions, would #t>ve had to be left in grass. Consequently, 2,t is expected a larger area than usual will be under crop this year. The autumn-sown crops look exceedingly well — a stronger and ■iealthier growth has not been seen for some years.- A fair number of lambs, too, are to be seen in the paddocks. Several farmers Jiave suffered a considerable loss with their ewes, as usual as this time of the year, left on the whole the prospects are encouraging. A bacon trader of Wellington, Mr Kuch, Sho is at present visiting the Palmerston or& district looking for pigs, states that

[ he is experiencing the greatest difficulty in . I securing baconers and porkers of any de- •. ' scription or of any weight. At the present i time Mr Kuch is absolutely unable to purchase, even at 4£d per lb, pigs to meet the • retail demand in Wellington. In tho Palmerr ston district lie has been able to secure a few to keep his own business supplied, but he has been unable to obtain any for supply to the trade. The shortage of supply, says Mr Kuch, ig just as great in regard to 1 poultry. Birds of the right quality are unobtainable; even, mongrels are difficult to secure. Mr Kuoh declares that there is a good market in Wellington for all the pigs and poultry that can be supplied, and he is confident that the bedrock prices which ruled in the city three or four years ago will not occur again. Correspondents of the Mataura Ensign : — Maudeville: Ploughing is well forward, 'and sowing will soon be general. Those who have stock for sale are reaping a fine reward. Cattle of any sort are at a premium, and sheep are on the mov» upward, dealers being very active in picking up small lots. Tbe unprecedentedly mild winter has enabled farmers to hold on to their stock, and with -every appearance of an early spring, the prospect of a good demand for stock of all kinds up to the New Year is almost assured. No doubt tho demand from New South Wales has been the cause of the demand for cattle and fat sheep. — Clinton: I notice lambs running about on some of the farms now", and although they are rather out of season, they seem to be doing well. Turnips Jiave stood well during tho recent dry weather, but tho end in most cases seams to' be in C sight, the last break having been entered on. Rabbit poisoning has been pushed on vigorously of late, and from all accounts has been successful. Sneaking at a meeting of the TJppor Hutfc Farmers' Union lately (Bays tho .Wellington Post). Cr George Brown expressed his conviction that tho ,dc»y was not far off when the whola of th© meat -freezing companies would be found to have combined, and then woe betide tho email butcher — he would have to go. Tho flourmilling trust had shown settlers that not only did the prico of flour rise to benefit the trust, but at the same time (he trust lowered tho price at was willing to pay for wheat. Had it not been for th© South African trade, the producer would have been at the mercy of the combine. He urged on members the necessity for keeping an eyo on thefe ramifications cf the companies, and eaid that if the Farmers' Union did not proceed with its co-operative freezing company (200,000 shares of wh'ch he understood wero guaranteed), then it would be necessary for the State to step in and buy up the whole of tho trading companies (uid put an end to th© trust. He a>o called attention to the necessity for a stipulation that' subsidised traders should not call at Australian ports after leaving New Zealand. Ho stated that the freights from Australian ports by these vessels were- frequently lower than thcpo charged in this coloiry, and that practically the State was subsidising steamers to carry Australian produce, at lower rates thau tho New Zealand produce was taken for. He viewed subsidies for cheap freights ' in the same light as subsidies paid for cheap and quick despatch of mailt — the former would benefit tlio country districts, while the latter was principally in favour of the towns. He albo caikd attention to the matter cf stock export now going on to Australia, and said that now the Union Steam Ship Company found they could get full -cargoes of slock they were increasing the freight in-s-tead of putting on oxtra vessels. The tendency all through was to bleed the producer, and he considered that the Government would_be quite justified in talcing action in tho matter. j The Department of Commerce and In- | dustry (observes tho Lyttelton Times) is proving of real service and benefit to farmers. Mr T. E. Donne, the secretary, who is a. practical man, has assisted the farmers jjirough the potato of3er for South Africa K?Vend- ' ing Mr J. Tipping, Government icfe.Vtor , and grader, out into the country among the ! farmers to chow them how to pick and case ' their potatoes. j At the last meeting of the Waikak? Valley branch of the Farmers' Union it was riecided to set aside certain evenings for the discussion of general political questions of interest to farmers and others. The first of these meetings will be that on the 17th October, when the subject will bear on taxation, and will be introduced by Mr M'Cloary reading a leading article from one of the Home- single-Lax papers. It is hoped by these political discussions to interwt the young farmers of the district in public matters, and, if the remark of one speaker is to be taken as the ultimate object, to qualify them to become members of the Legislature. Correspondents of the Southland Times: — Mataura: The month has been an exceptionally one. Ploughing is well forward and sowing pretty general. We have had ' very little frost or snow, consequently feed has been plentiful ; stock are in farir condition &n r 2 brhitflng good prices. Several farms i ha,ie changed hands at satisfactor}' prices, i and a number of others aro under offer — : Waikaka: I am told that, a few patches < have been sown in, but the grain would be ; just as well in the stack unless the land is very warm and free. The sowing of oats ' will not be begun for a while yet, as it is i found that earhr-sowa KOP gets much i

damaged by the birds. Stock are doing fairly, and feed is hanging out well. Those who , bought wethers and have sufficient feed to fatten them will do well this season. A lot of shee-p have died on turnips and young grass this year. Mr Wilkie, of the Stock Department, says that it is a kind of braxy that is killing them. An expert informs the Napier Daily Telegraph that the butchers in New Zealand are now paying upon 100 bullocks £350 raor© than they did two years ago. In fact, he says, all meat has risen something Jike 35 per cent, in the two years. Tbc prize H*t of the next great Christmas Fat Stock Show of the SmithfieJrt Club has just been issued. It is, as usual, a very imposing compilation, and makes liberal provision for the different classes of stock. In all, the prize money offered amounts to the substantial aggregate of £384-3. In most of the principal cattle classes, prizes of £25, £15, and £10 are offered, while in the majority of the others the prizes offered are £20, £10, and £5. A number of the sheep classes get prizes of £15, £10, and £5, while the others have prizes of £10 and £5. For pigs, too, ' very liberal provision is made, most of the classes having three prizes of £10, £5, and £3. The usual carcase competitions will be again brought off in connection with the show.. A meeting of the Amberley Breeders' Association was held on the 25th ult., Mr G. B. Starkey in the chair. Last year's catalogue was adopted, with the following additions: — Class for draught and hackney stallions, three years old ; brood mares, "hunters," and three-hor6e teams, also a driving competition. The date of the show was fixed for the 9th October, to be held ; in the Amberley Domain grounds. j The balance sheet of the South Canterbury Dairy Company, to be- presented to the first annual meeting of shareholders, shows a deficiency of £456 15s in the profit and lOS 3 account, this loss being incurred before the factory began operations. In the five and ahalf months the factory has been running there was some loss in the first two months, but this had been made up and a small profit of £7 odd made on the whole period. The sum of £1421 17s 4d had been paid for milk, and 1 £1905 Is lid received for cheese and butter, besides £260 worth of cbeese on hand. There are 507 shareholders and 3324 shares issued. Mr Gilruth, chief Government veterinarian, says that unless something is done to prevent the introduction and dissemination of anthrax, Auckland province will become such a hotbed of disease as can only bo equalled by two other places in the world. At the annual meeting of the Palmerston North Dairy Union on the 26th ult., the report and balance sheet were adopted. It was decided to pay a 5 per cent, dividend on paid-up capital ; suppliers will receive 5 per cent, bonus, and the balance be carried forward. Messrs Parson? and Grove were re-elected directors, and Mr Wilbefoss was re-elected auditor. An interesting account comes from America of the progress of telephonic communication in rural districts there. "Within th© last seven years no fewer than 200,000 instruments have, been put into 'farmhouses, chiefly in the- middle Western States. In tueh districts the telephone exchange manager usually becomes an editor also. Wh&n the evening pnpers roach him he prepares a "iimmary of the most important news. At a fixed hour ho connects with all his country subscribers and reads hia compilation, co that the oeoup.-.uts of farms many miles from the nearest railway learn the chief events of the day almost as soon as do the people in the e:tiea. The ne\vß include* weather forecasts, Etock reports, and other information of immediate value to the subscribers. Notes from last Friday's Winton Record: Store bullocks ara very haid to find, as every corner from one «nd of the country to the other has been searched for everythingthat is fit to make beef. Some of the northern men have been down, and some are here at the present time, making a raid upon us for cattle. We hear of two lines — one of 140 head — going to Mr Dixon, of Portobello, and anotner of 53 head to Mr Walter Klackie. of Glasgow Farm, Taieri. — It is time that something was done to effectually check the growth of ragwort in Southland. When a Crown lands ranger states that the country will be over-Tim with it uailem it is promptly attendoa to, the matter becomes a serious one for the farmer, whose land will be rendered useless by the spread of the weed, and who^e horses and cattle are in imminent danger through partaking of ft. One certain means of keeping it down is to turn shepp out to feed upon it, as they seem to like it, and ran eat it with impunity where horses and cattle cannot. Tl<e annual meting of the Wyndham A. jnd P Society was held on Thursday la*t, Mr George Hunter (president) in the rhair Fhe report and balance sheet were laid ho. Fore the meeting. The committee congratulated th-^ members on the success of the •how held in December last. The receipts iinounted to £293 13s 6d and the disbursements £271 9s Bd, leaving a credit balance )f £27 3s lOd, which your committee are consent member 3 will regard as satisfactory, ivhen it is shown thai the sum of £42 10s \d was expended in erecting sheep yards md making other improvements on the ihow ground. The Piwiulacd; «m 4 they bad

every reason to congratulate themselves or tho result of last year's show, and he saw no reason why the society should not make even greater progress during tho ensuing IS months. He moved the adoption of the report and balance- sheet. Sir M'lntosh seconded the motion, which was carried unani mously. The election of officer-bearers resulted as follows : — President, Mr R. G. Car son ; vice-nresidents, Messrg S. Heath, S. Clarke, R.'Blackley, A. LaitUaw, R. Shields (re-elected), and M'Call; secretary, Mr W, J. Currie (re-elected) ; treasurer, Mr DA. Raymond (re-elected) ; auditor, Mr R. Paull ; hon veterinarian, Mr Patereon ; and a dislriot committee of 39 members. This concluded the business of the annual meeting.—The date of next show and the advisability of instituting a stallion parade were mentioned-? but it was decided to hold over consideration of these matters until next meeting. The annual meeting of shareholders in the Mataura Dairy Factory Company took place on Wedaiosday last. Mr John Gray (chairman of directors) presided, and there were about 40 shareholders and suppliers present. The Chairman, in moving tho adoption of the balance sheet and report, congratulated the suppliers on receiving good prices for their milk. Everything about the factory was now in good order. The present period might be considered the end of the cheecemaking era and the commencement of the butter-making era, as consideration had been given to the question of devoting tho operations of the factory to making butter. The company had been in existence 15 years, said some perhaps thought that not' much had been paid- on the money invested. Some years they had paid nothing, but. for the 15 years they had' paid ecfual to 4 per cent, on the capital. He considered that satisfactory, and that it would compare with any institution in their midst. The last <three years 6 per cont. had been paid, and fdt some years before that 5 per cemt. had been given to shareholders. Returns like that gave the shareholders little to complain about. He moved the adoption of the report and balance sheet. Mr W. Scott seconded tho motion, which was carried. Messrs R. Dickie and James Craig (the two retiring directors) were re-elected on the motion of Messrs Reid ond Espie. Mr Stevpnson having resigned from the directorate, Mr R. M'Bridc (Charlton) was elected in his place. Mr J. C. MacGregor was re-elected auditor at a remuneration of £4 4fl. The directors' honorarium for the pact year was fixed at 10s per meeting for the meetings attended by them. — The Chairman introduced the question of the erection of a butter plant. An extraordinary meeting had been hold recently, at which authority had heeai given to the directors to instal such a plant, but nothing had been done. Tho diiectors believed that the necessary money could he raised by debentures. After the matter had been discussed, Mr M 'Bride moved — "That the factory continue to make cheese for another season." Mr Allotfc said that ac the oheese^making had been satisfactory to suppliers for so many yeara he would like to know what were the reasons for the suggestion that a creamery be put in. The Chairman said they had been forced into the step by people sending* their cream to Inyorcargill, and by the fear that other parties might come nmongst them and erect skimmers. Ho would like to see them make an agreement to send thftir milk to the factory if the directors continued to make cheese, zmd he suggested that Mr M'Bride add that to his motion. Mr M'Bride agreed to tho addition. Mr Mac-Gibbon said that the motion must bo conditional on the supplier* guaranteeing their milk ; otherwieu, tho directors, knowing all they did know, would not be justified in accepting it. Further discussion took place, and th© motion was put and earned with two dissentients. At the "VVaimate Magistrate's Court, on Thursday la«t, before Major Keddcll, S.M., judgment was given in the action brought by the County Engineer against H. W. Dutid. This case was»brought under "The Publ'c Works Act, 1E92," against defendant for failing to comply with an order of th© Wftimate County Council to cl<\ir gorse from '*!■« ro.viii le fronting defendant's l?nd at Ilrolt. The cseo had heen di%mis-ed by the S M. Court at Waimate on the ground that it was not proved that the prorse on the road had sprung from the seed on defendi.nt's land. An appeal was made by the complaiuaut council, antl the Supreme Court jur'afe had anullcd the decision of the S-M. in tho lower court, in effect adjudging that, no matter from what source the growing Rorse aiuUinro had sprung, the owner of tho land is resnonsiblp for the removal of the nuisance. Consequently the S.M. Court's de- , cioion of di=mi.«sal had to be altered. This wa« now flone ; and a fine of 8s 2d inflicted, defendant to pay £1 8s costs. The Ida Valley correspondent of the Xaseby C'hroßjirle writes: — Very little ploughing ' is done yet. Some afternoons one or two ploughs can be ?een in the fields, but tho work doiiG would hardly take a prize afc aploughing match. M'Addie Bios, have just finished our threshing, and the crops in mnit cases threshed out well, the yield per acre being far ahoie the average. Turnip crops are standing feeding well, but the ' theep are not doing quite as well as usual owing to the heavy rains leaving the ground ' in a muddy condition. Rabbit trapping is < at a standstill as a result of the frosts. t Estimates by competent authorities (ears ]

the Kawhia Settler) go towards showing that there is not a loss quantity of flax near the seaboard of the Kawhia County than a hundred thousand tons. The value of 'flax in the market is £28 a ton. A large area of flax land near 'the harbour has recently been acquired by a settler from the south, and -it is understood ■ that rrnills will bo at work there a3 soon as possible. But there is not the ghost of a road leading: from the flax country to the ocean outlet of Kawhia Harbour. A road of ten miles, over easily accessible country, would pub these extensive flax lands in touch with the deep salt water of Kawhia Harbour. The recent high prices at Homebush saleyards for fat stock have drawn attention to record sales of fat stock in New South Wales. Mr Frank Reynolds, of Tocal, supplies us with the following, which we believe are record prices: — On 18th August, 1859, Mr A. Dodds (of Long and Dodds) sold at Maitland two fat bullocks (Devons) at £48 each, one to Mr Andrew. Sparke and one to Mr Lee; also four fat wether 3as follows: — Two to Mr J. Ternes, £4- 16s to £4 14s; one to Mr J. Brunker, £4 6s ; one to Mr A. Sparke, £3 17s ; two ewes to Mr J. Brunker, £4 10s each; one ewe to A. Sparke, £4 12s. These were Leicester sheep, and were bred at Tocal.