STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES

Otago Witness, Issue 2690, 4 October 1905, Page 7

STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES

By D&ovbb.

Weekly Stock Sales : Fortnightly : Burnside, Wednesdays Invercargill, Tuesday! Ashburton, Tuesdays WtmthhiAddington,Wed*e3days (^'"gL-i** Fortnightly: Winton, and WaiBalclutba, Fridays kouaiti. ; Gore, Tuesdays Periodically Oaxiaru, Tuesdays Heriot, Kelso, and Kyebura.

About 200 cattle were yarded at Burnsidelast week, and prices were no more than on a par with the previous week's rates. Best bullocks sold at £10 to £11; medium to good, £7 10s to £9; good heifers, £6 10 to £7 10s; inferior or light, £3 10s to £5 10s. Butchers are well supplied 1 by previous purchases, and if the quantities yarded keep to the same level we may expect a fall in prices. In the meantime there can be no export trade done, and the market is Tuled solely by the local supply and demand. ; About 1900 sheep were yarded, 'and prices were a little' better than those of the previous week. Best wethers, 26s to 27s od; ' good, 23s to 24s 6d; medium, 19s to 22s $. ewes, 20s to 225. Heavy yardings will lower prices, as at present rates export ' trade- is out of the question. „ x TJie ,cattle market at Addington was dull, and,, prices lowei than at Burnside: I notice among the sales a line from the Taieri, comprising 28 steers, at £8 t £12 7s 6d, and four heifers at £9. Probably better could' have been done at Burnside, and tte railage saved. Fat sheep sold on* a par " with Eurnside rates. The supply of store, sheep was small. Principal sales were: — 139 hoggets at 17s 6d, 69 at 17s 4d, 29 at 17s 2d, 37- at 14s, and 72 culls at }lsand 32 wethers at 20s 9d. Speaking of tho prospects in Australii .generally the- Pastoralists' Review of Sep-. tomber 15 says: — The season continues generally favourable, though in the north of New South .' Wales, and still more in Queensland,' anxiety >"s being felt as to the rain noj coming in time for the crops. The wcol remains in good condition ; lamb export; has begun favourably; the_ butter export shows every prospect of a big increase. It should never be forgotten that over so large a continent as Australia there must be many dry places even when the most favourable general' reports arc ishiied. But, taken as a■nhole, there is much to ba thankful for. The frozen l^eat export trade in AusIjj|dia has shown much more vigour during the past month. Most of the ■ southern works* have commenced operations on the new season's lambs, and although no large shipments have been, made, yet they arc increasing in size almost weekly, and next month should see everything- in full swing. A very fair amount of business is being transacted in sheep for export; the high prices nowruling are no doubt' tempting stock owners to sell freely ; the frozen beef season-, however, has almost finished. Since this was written the cables inform, us that good rains have relieved all anxiety in inosi; districts, and Australia is in for a good season, the effect of which musfe bo felt in aIT New Zealand" exports. This is an expei-ience wo have not been accustomed to of late years. The Imperial Cold -Storage Company, ov South Africa, are having a different experience to what they lutd during- the South African war, when their monopoly resultec?in very fat dividends. This is how thin<«i «tand now, and is on a par with genera-i bufciiNws in South Africa at present : The report of the Ininerial Cold St^-'

ag© and Supply Company for the year ended 31st March last, presented to the meeting of shareholders held at Johannesburg on August 25, states that the trading operations resulted in a profit, after deducting interest- on debenture stock, of j £55,043, but the necessity of making provision for extraordinary expenditure, amounting to £120,801, has resulted in a, net loss of £65,758. The balance at debit is thus raised from £29,296 to £95,05*.

Here are a few pointers gathered from ,*' Strippings " in the Pastoralists' Review, and I' commend them" to' dairymen as sound »nd useful and worth acting upon:— ' ' 1.-Rear the .calves of. rich and copious milkers (but not on skim-milk), 2rGet to know the oost of production of Jnilk. - - 3. There' exists a strong need for pure, fcypieal- dairy sires. 4. Improvement in the education of milkgrowers is the key to advancement in dairying. 5. Milk-testing forms the only accurate Kind safe basis. ' 6. The development of "the milking capacity in cows is the question of the day. 7. The milking habit is an ■, artificial deYelopment of function which has -by no tneans reached its zenith. 8. The value of keeping, records" of qualify .itthd .quantity of milk produced -by Indi-jtidual-cowsis almost inestimable. " 9. The careful "and v intelligent Dane secures as .much' milk from one cow as.the average Australian' or New Zealand dairyfarmer gets from two. - •„'"<; This last statement (No. 9) is quite within. *he f ,;mark,, and' should cause readers" to "what is to he the result in -the- long . arun to the New Zealand- " dairy farmer. There" are a very, very few careful farmers •who have acted on these suggestions, at ieasfc to some extent,"but the average dairy farmer las- given snch matters no attention, and the state of our dairy, herds is a menace fto the prosperity of dairy-farming in New : .Zealand. ' Mr Epnsella- and' Mr Cuddie have called attention to the matter again and again, but we are still on the downgrade, and much of the depression we hear ©E~~in some of the best dairying districts Sa 'caused- not by the high price of land ■ bo much as by the fact that the cows to make .such, land profitable are wanting. ''I am deeply impressed with the continued depreciation of our cattle, 'in the dairying districts more- particularly, and have... .for . years in these motes called attention to what was. going, on in this respect. Let me just ask my leaders to read the. latest- remarks by Mr Kinsella. on this point, and to immediately take action on the lines advised 1 to remedy the evil. No time is to be lost. No tig prices will ever make good the serious loss • staring us .in the- face, if w© don't mend our ways in this" matter. "The fararaers of New Zealand," said Mr J. A. Kinsella, the Chief Dairy Commissioner, to a r Pest representative, , "are losing J3I,OOu',GCK) a year thr-ough not weeding out th«sr unprofitable" dairy -stock.'' Mr" Bella went on .to, say. that it .was astonishing, how many cows' were hot worth keeping, and he strongly advocated i\\e> adoption of /the 'Canadian and- Danish system of.'testingie'rds to ascertain wfiiek animals should (be- Killed off.- 'Both Canada 'and Denmark! have, numerous testing associations, and their establishment-shag been productive of splendid results. I In the -latter ' country, about 300 associations "have been formed. The suppliers in a district band together '.and pay a tax of Is for, each cow in their ierds. The Government provides an ex'.pert^ whose' salary is paid out of the contribution made by tlfe owners of the cattle, and if he finds that any cows are not giving at least 2001b of butter-fat per annum 'they .are slaughtered. Mr Kinsella' has . iound great reluctance on- the part of dairy =' farmers in New' Zealand to part wiih their „ poor. cows. "Be says 1 we are going to have£a\ wonderfully -prosperous dairy season, but ?he is rather afraid that the high prices xvill have the effect of making the farmers -,niore indifferent than ever to the necessity *■-</ r improvin{f -"ihe qualily of their, herds. '- ' "- - ; T -/-f v ' •- .-