AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2589, 28 October 1903, Page 6

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

The railways by-law regulating the weight of grain-filled sacks appears in last week's Gazette. It provides that on and after February 1, 1905, the maximum weight of any Eack containing whe-at, barley, or oats to be carried by rail shall be 2001b. Any sack of grain exceeding 2001b weight is to be charged for at four times the ordinary freight rate.

A Waipawa correspondent illustrated a statement in the Hawke's Bay Herald about the existence of a keen denand for wool by saying that he had heard of one grower, whe-e wool was still on ihc sheep's backs, beiug visited by a buyer at 7.30 a.m. one day, and two others tried to do business before noon.

The Feilding Farmers' Union has approached the Feilding auctioneers with a view to securing to members a reduction in the selling commission charged. There is a thinly-veiled threat that if the reduction is not made another auctioneering business will be started at the instance of the union.

The Government is nu=hing on the negotiations for tho acquisition of the leasehold interest? held over the Tamaf: Block, near Dannevirke. The block contains about 35,000 acres.

At Eyrcton, Canterbury, Mr Alexander Scott recently lost a pedigree mare, valued at £100. This was the more unfortunate as three months sinca an eaually good draught maro also died suddenly. Th 2 Timaru Herald of the 19th* inst. says: At the •onf-erenco between tho Timaru Borough Council and tho butchers of the town, the othei day, mention was made of the sale of farm-killed pork in tho auction iooms of Timaru as an invasion of the town butchers' trade that ra fairness to users of tha abattoir ought to be stopped. It would appear that such sales of pork cannot be stopped, as swine are specifically exempted from the prohibition in tho Slaughtering and Inspection Act of sales of farm-kil'ed meat in a borough or within tln?e miles outside a borough. The farm, however, where the pork is killed must be outside the borough. On the following day the Herald makes this explanatory statement: We yesterday published a 'oeal to the effect that the establishment of a-n abattoir for the Borough of Timaru will not prevent the sale of farm-killed pork within tho borough. The exemption of pork from the operation of the act seems to be distinct and complete, except for a three-mile limit, in sections 3 and 4. Our attention has, howe\ er, been drawn to section 17, which contradicts that exemption, and provides that no meat shall he sold or exposed for sale in any district wherein there is a registered abattoir ; except such as has been slaughtered in a registered abattoir. • In "a" registered abattoir app&ars to permit the continuance of tho trade in small goods from Christchuroh if th-ese have passed through the Chriitchurch abattoir.

The Unde-r-secretary of Lands has scut ' the following lc-ttea- to the Marlborough Laud Board: — "I have to call your attention to the proceedings of the Marlborough Land Board as report-ed in the Marlborough Daily Times of the 17th inst. I notice there are-several applications to exchange the tenure of small grazing runs and pastoral runs into lease in perpetuity ; avid the Minister is of opinion that every cn=e in which the hoard propo-es to allow a leaseholder or ' licensee to exchange his holding into lea.'c in perpetuity, before being finally passed, phould bo submitted to him for his approval, as it was ne^er intended that holders of small runs and pastoral lease* should be allowed m a wholesale manner to exchange them into lease in perpetuity, without their first being surrendered and opened again for public competition, loaded, of course, with the value of any improvements made by the lessee. It is quite possible that legislative action may be taken this cession to prevent the land boards agreeing to this wholesale system of exchange. It is held by all competent legal authorities that the boards have full power to refuse such application-. " The board resolved to affirm j its action, which it believes is according to law, and which not only produces more ! revenue, but also secures a permanent ! settler. An extract from a letter from Montreal, Canada, received a couple of weekis back, reads: — "They have tome fin? pigs, hard as a lock, slid the fat white as snow, what j they call 'pea-fed.' Pigs are dear at present, rosting 6c (3d) pc-r lb ; if the farmer gets 2d to 2£d he is satisfied to grow them, j and ?11 the farmers are doing well, and j wages are good." Canterbury and Otago j farmers (says the Lyttelton Time?) are get- . ting sid to 6d for their fat pigs, not po i good a<= these Canadians ars described as being, and yet will not "grow" enough for local requirements There has been a good lambing peresntage in rome parts of the North Island, j At the Gwavas station, in Hawke's Bay, 345 | lambs wero docked a-, the piogeny of 255 , ewe.= Besides theee, 50 were lost during the seven* weather. Most of tho lamb? art 1 , alread} ready for the butcher. In the Ranjritikei. Mr James M'Oreqor. of "Wangahu, ob- [ tamed 120 per cent, of lamLs from 500 ewes, . This is believed to be a record for tho district. I

Although land oon-i-ting principally of ] uro roiid i« hut of ht'lo agricultural value, p.and po-'Sosses certain phy-ical qualities which render it veiy u-'-ful w- a constituent of •-oil" Its prcv<m<e in \erv heavy foils help 5 to rentier the hind light and open, and in addition to thi 1 -. if. stony particks being more ab«orl>"nf of the heat ray-3 of tho (■un than t!io ordinary earth, it-, presenro ili any quantity tends to ra co the normal temperature of tho soil j;e\pral degrees over that po—c-wd by Kind consisting principally of earthy mattr-r At one time it was thought that =and played an important part in tho economy of plant growth by supplying Mlioa; but afl it i.-- now known that •llica is not an e-'-ential plant food con-titu-ent. ~and docs not lank so highly as a manurial agent as it cnee did. — Homo paper. In regard to Mr Chamberlain's proposed preferential tariff, tho writer of "Agricultural Politics " in the Mark Lano Kxpress of September 7 remarks: — I eeo that ono cf the best-informed of the London conespondents — and the joumaliita who occupy this position are invariably men of considerable knowledge of internal politics — says^ that Mr Chamberlain is convd-.-rably chagrined over the lack of support frim tho agrarian districts. I can quite understand this ; and if the assertion be true, it provides us with a pretty insight into the anticipation of the Colonial Secretary. It meam-, of course, that he oxppoted to utilise tho agrarian interests :n Lis campaign — that, in fact, ho reckoned upon its inherited sympathy with the Protective ideal to war on

his side. And he apparently indulged ir* this anticipation without avsuming- that he would be called upon — at least in the latter stages of his economic evolution — to- make any special concession to the rural interest. At all events, we are entitled to assume this from the persistence with which every Toiy candidate, no matter where ho presents himself, lisps the one assurcace that though ho considers an inquiry into our fiscal system to be absolutely necessary, he is against the taxation of the people's bread. The following items of interest are from, the American Sheep Breeder for August: The famous Eng'.ish Hampshire breeder, Mr Carey Coles, recently rented, by public auction, for a month's service crnly, a ram lamb at the respectable figure of 576d01. Seventy lambs from the Fame flock made an average of 63d01. Another breeder — tho Earl of Carnarvon — sold fivo shearling ewes of tli3 same breed for 420d01. Evidently the English sheep breeders value Hampshire flesh, more highly than the committee of tho Louisiana Purchase Exposition docs. — We understand that Henry Dudding is makinggreat prep.irations to send Lincolns to the World's Fair, but if the preliminary classification is allowed to stand it will undoubtedly change rus mind. Mr Dudding has made the record sales for mutton sheep, having sold two Lincoln rams at 5000dol each, the highest price- ever paid for a mutton cheep. If ?.fr Dudding took every cash prize offered for Lineolna. he would only win 220d01. The World's Fair in 1903 gave over 2Goodol to the Lincoln 'breed. — Th-e ' novice whe-n selecting a ram of tho Down , or other hornless breeds of sheep should be very careful not to select cue with stubs — miniature horns. The experienced breeder aieeds no warning in regard to this matter. Although ranw having such defects are almost invariably robust and masculine in (■haracter, and in many other ways desirable as flock-headers, still, stubs brand them us being of inferior breeding. Such animals are generally unfavourably noticed by showyard judges, aaid they ehould bo in every instance disqualified. — In the death of Senator Matthew Henry Cochrane, Canada loses one of her foremost live-stock breeders. This honourable gentleman was best known to readers of tho American Sheep Breeder a= a staunch friend of the Hampshire amd Shropshire breeds of sheep. He was generally well known as a breeder and importer of high-c!a?s horres and cattle, and his "Hillhurst" farm was note<l as one of tho model agricultural establishments of Canada. Mi Ccc'iracie was also extensively interested in ranching in the Canadian Northwest. He was a self-made man, and started in life without a dollar. Ho was 80 years of age An interesting discovery was made by Veterinary Surgeon Desmond and Inspector Williams at Mount Gambler (S A.), last week. Two piga that were 6ubmitted to a post mortem cxaminatior were stated to b? affecte-d with measles. Mr Desmond stated -hat when tho flesh of a pig affected with the parasite of rnearle^ is consumed in a partly cooked condition, the disease ,may be transmitted. A peculiar instance of savagery in horses that L- seldom met with occurred on a farni near L.itrobe lately. k. farmer took six horses from a livery stable to graze, and put them in a paddock in which a two-year-old colt was runn.ng. The next day tho colt was found dead, and had evidently been set upon by tho other horse 6, and fairly worried to death. Its back was covered with the marks of bites, one ear was nearly torn off, and it had probably received serjous injuries from kicking, as blood was flowing from its mouth and icwtrils. — Australasian. Mes=r, .Samuel Vaile and Sons, the wellknown land agents of Auckland, advertise the sale by aucfion of 22 small farms near Auckland Those requiring farms in a mild climate, ea.=y of access, at cheap rate^ and! on easy terms will do well to communicate with tho auctioneers.