OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET

Otago Witness, Issue 2604, 10 February 1904, Page 16

OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET

(From Our Own Coi?r? i sposdent.') OHRISTOHURCH, February 8. Harvesting has gone on without intenuption, except in the localities The in which =hower= have fallen HarTest. during the last wec-k, an'l even there the delay ha^ not been more than a day, unless yesterday *6 rain, gentle in town, has bee/i heavier in the country. There has been a. hitch in threshing in the Ashburton district, but th& difficulty — a question of men's wages — appears to have been patched up. An advance in rates and wages was made last year, and with lower prices and lighter yields this year a reduction was rtttemptcd. The "tucker" bills, however, aro ab high as ■e^er, and the men claim that with the timo which will be lost in shifting, and the poor results of much of the work, they will be won-e off than last year, even if they receive the same wages. There are so many threshing plants now that competition for contracts is very keen, and rates arc cut tor/ fmo. The Ashburton owners ha\e formed a union and have resolved to affiliate with the Waimate Employers' Union ; but notwithstanding thii=, they are at variance amongst themselves, and while one section advises the men to join the Worker?' Union, other employers iefuse to treat with the men otherwise than individually. A good deal of grain ha* been threshed from the stock in excellent condition; but farmers as a nile do not appear to be in. a hurry to sell. Possibly as a consequence of this attitude buyers of wheat have dining the last two or three, days advanced their quotations, and iip to 2s 9d liias been paid for prime samples about equal parts Hunter's and Tuscan, at^ country stations, with l£d late to port. Very little pearl is off ci ing. Oats are dull, and Is Id for Danish and Is 3d for sparrowbills aro buyeiV nominal mtcs, though more wad paid a week ::g-o. Wheat is turning out fairly well un to anticipations, but oats are very small yields ; both are a capital sample. It .is said that the Millers' Association prohibits its 'n embers from buying more than a elated quantity each per week, and that there is dissatisfaction amongst some of them at being thus unable to purchase at cheap rates when they were certain of prices rising. It >"s more than ever difficult to get authentio information regarding this organisation.

Rain is badly needed for the grass, rape, and roots. The country has Lire turned very brown during Stock. the last fortnight, and it is to be- hoped that yesterday's showers have extended to the northern districts and inland. There are many failures of turnips md rape, and the fate of much moie is hanging in the balance. . Nevertheless, farmers dare not lose any chance of securing ewes, and it is said that good fourtooth halfbreds have been sold as high as 22s 6d; up to 21s 3d was made at tho Alford sale ten days ago, and it was thought these sheep, which were of typicaJ freezer-breed-ing character, would have fetched more. People seem to think that the crack linos of two-tooths at the Amuri March fair will fetch 25s — one tvnt-er predicts an approach to 30s ' Certainly eneep are very scarce, but farmer? are understocked, and ?annot go on cropping, and mutton and iamb are at good prices, so sheep must be got somehow Sheep are scarce everywhere ; a friend who has been trying to buy in tho Hawko's Bay and Wairarapa dktiicts tells me there is not half the supply of fieezers that there was last year at this time, and that good owes are almost unobtainable. The first shipment of stores that were brought down to Canterbury hung fire; but there is no danger of such a fate meeting those which are now on the way, though farmers will not have them if they can get Canterbury-bred sheep at any price within res ton. Beef cattle offer no inducement to farmers, as the present price of beef leaves a deficit on cost of stores and grazing. Thero is a fair demand for well-bred weaners and yearlings for some of the new settlements — Annan in particular — and for stations on which there is rough country with shelter. Fat pigs are scarce, which keeps tip the price of beet baconers to 4d or a shade over, which is beyond export value. Some of the North Island curers must ha^e burned their fingeis badly by outbidding tlieir neighbours who held orders, and then having^ to sell the bacon at slump prices. They have not been seen at Addiugton for a long time. Bacon, has to be at famine prices indeed to warrant 6d to 6£d to be paid for pork, besides carriage, commission, etc., a* wa3 often done a few months ago.

Fruit has been poured in here in enormous quantities from all quarter* Frail. this season, but at present he supply is more moderate. The rottenness of the aystem of marketing has been clearly shown. Apricots sold at auction at 2d to 3d and peaches at little more (sometimes less) are- retailed 1 at .hree times these prices, some of it very fine fruit, though during the hot epell a good deal was ovej-iipe or heated when it got hete, Pri-

vato consumers can now get gocd fruit by the care at reasonable prices, md are talcing advantage of the opportunity. Growers who have a reputation foi grading well— and this is &oon gained— have no difficulty in selling tlieir fruit. Whole ca=cs can be turned out without a speyk or spot being scon on a single fruir. No "wormy" fruit i j coming in ; a *v stem of Government inspection io being, or has been, organised, and the act will be strictly administered. But a better ■system of disposing of all grades of fruit i; urgently needed, most of all in Canteibury, where the orchards and gardens are scattered all over the country, and preserving works in the glowing districts are impracticable.

' The scoined wool of the merino rams which competed for the Merino The Cup, is on exhibition in tho Merino Cup. Agnculaural Hall, The cup , has to be won three times. | The rams competing in 1903 for the prize i were entered and shown at the Christchurch ' November chow in 1902. They were kept ' for a year by the. association, and ehown , again bsfc November. They v. ere then ' fhorn, tho fleeces wore scoured by a com | petent wool-scourer, and valued by experts, j the most valuable fleece being the winner lof one point towards the cup. Twelve pens of ram-5 hoggets (three to five in a ' pen) were entered, but iwo rams (entered ; by Cuherden E-tate and Mr W. Macfarlano ra-pectively) died during the winter. 1 Mrosrs En.or Bros. '(Mount Grey), aie , this year's winners, with a fleece valued at I l$? 8.77 d. Mr A. W. Rutherford (Mendip | Iiills) was epcond, with a ficecc valued at 12s 4.9 d, and Me sans H. Wharton and Co. (Highfield) were third, with a fleece valued at 12? 2 25d. Tha lowest value was 8s , 2 18. The cup was won in 1901 by tho New j Zealand and Australian Lund Company i (Hakataramea Estate), and in 1902 by Mr C. ! Goulter (Blenheim). A scrutiny of the. ' "score sheet" reveal? come curious facts. > The winners had also the lowest scoring ' sheep but one in the competition ; the I second had a companion which was no ' ; higher than thirty-third ; the third and th© ! thirty-fourth wrro from the same flock; i , and the node which supplied the fomlh also i furnished the lowest on the list (fortieth) as I well as tho thirtj--sev enth. The pen which I gave the best average result was that from i hie Land Co.'s Hakataramea Station, which ! scored seventh, ninth, and fourteenth places, ! avciag.ng 10. The two survivors of the Cul- ' verdeti trio averaged ll^d, and as the ram ! winch died was the best of the. trio entered, : aud was expected to go near winning, this ' entry must be sympathised with for bad ! luck. Messrs H. Wharton and Co., Hiohfield, were third, twelfth, and thirty-fourth average 16 l-3rd ; Mrs Nicholls, White Rock, tenth, eighteenth, and twenty-second average 16 2-3; Gerard's e-xecutors, Snow- ! don, fifth, eighth, fifteenth, twenty-first, and ! thirty-eighth, average 17 2-5 ; Mr A. W. Rutherford, Mendip Hills, second, twentieth and thirty-third, average 18 1-3; Messrs i.nsor Bros., Mount Grey, first, nineteenth, twtnty-ninth, and thirty-ninth, average 22, being sixth in average result ; Mr C. Goulter, Blenheim, sixteenth, twenty-fourth, nd twenty-sixth, had the same average: and then follow Messrs F. H. Smrti, 'Timaru, 25; T. A Phillips, Rakaia Gorge, 26 4-5; and Carter's trustees, Blenheim, 29. Mr W. Macfarlane, Culverdeu, was another unlucky competitor, In, best sheep djina, the remaining two being eleventh and thirty-fifth, though there was only Is 7d difference in the. value of the two fleeces. The- sheep had a trying winter, and it was remarked at the show last November that they did not look so well as those of the previous two competitions, although they had every care that could be given to sheep which had to be kept under natural conditions. ! The wool was, with very few exceptions, I well grown and of good quality, but nas rather faulty in appearance. This year's winners— Messrs Ensor Bros, (sons of the late Mr Charles Er.uor)— were very successful with their sheep at last season's shows. They go in for Corriedales as well as for rneiinos. Another batch of cows was destroyed la*t week, tuberculosis being General. present, in eve/y case, and in most the udder or adjacent parts being affected. A deputation to the Piemier at the beginning of the week stated that the milk of these xn\s had been sold in the city . nice they were condemned, and that they had not been valued as prescribed by the act ; but both the« 3 statements are declared on authority to bo false. The deputation (of the Dairymen's Association) did not get any encouragement to hope for increased compensation or latitude, but were told that "somebody" was at fault in not carrying out the law more stiictly, and he would see into it when he got to Wellington. He also stated that in future the Government would not reduce its loss (compensation on condemned cattle) by utilising any portion of condemned animals lor food purposes. Mr S. H. Graves, who is well known, throughout the colony in connection with bar>J,in;r, stock, srA produce, has born appointed New Zealand representative for Messrs W. and R Fletcher (Limited) a leading firm in the frozen meat trade.

It is said that inquiries have bep-n received here as to the prospects of supplying mutton to the- Sydney market in the near future.

There is much talk regarding a cow owned by Mr John Reiin.i&, of Doyleston, a highly-

renpeeted colonist and a daiiy farmer of over 40 year:' experience. This cow's milk has given Babcock tests cf 8.1, 11.1, and 12 6 degrees butter fat at intervals since. November, half the 11.1 sample giving 10.6 afa Lincoln College when turning eour. Im November she averaged 541b milk a clay; but when tho feed failed the quantity fell to 4-Oib at the beginning- of January. Mr Renric.'s cows are- well kept, crushed oats forming part of their ration, which, their owner believes, keeps them in condition and impioves the test. The fatal accident to Mr F. A. Joseph =hockted his many friends among:,t the stock breeders, farmers, and showgoer<= of Canterbury. He was too unobtrusive, to push himself into notice, but he was known as an honest and careful critic, possessing a sound, knowledge of farming. I take this opportunity of expressing my personal sorrow at his untimely death and sympthy with those who are. so suddenly bereaved. The late Mr Charles Bills was also well known here, particularly amongst poultry and acclimatisation people, to whom his great fund of knowledge of these subjects was always open.