AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2744, 17 October 1906, Page 20

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Mr Kidd, ot Albuiy, who returned to Timaru last week from a trip to the Old Country, says that he travelled through different parts of England,. Ireland, and Scotland, and was surprised to see the ebundance of twitch, Californian thistle, yarrow; "and ragwort which grows in the paddocks. Ho is inclined to think it is from tljis eource- we have received the most of our weeds, through their being exported in grass sectl v The position of the New Zealand meat trade in Glasgow, Mr Kidd says, is as follows: — "The supplies all go there through the London agency. Thereis always a short supply of Canterbury lamb, and dealers are obliged to fill in tho gap with Australian stuff, which is sold ' as Canterbury. ' They don't get any New Zealand sheep, but the London people send a few old ewes. If a direct shipment of 100,T)60 1-mbs went there in March they could easily be sold. Glasgow has a good harbour, and cheaper rates than London ; and their cold storage rates are only 10s per ton pee month, while tho»o in London are 20s 9d."

A South Canterbury farmer who has just returned from a trip to Scotland, where he has been olesely watching the meat markets, gives an example (says the Christchurch Press) of how buyers are duped, and New. Zealand is made to suffer. The farmer in question said: — "I wished to procure in Glasgow a piece of our Canterbury lamb, and in company with my niece I went into one of the shops and asked for some. Tho shopman put a lamb on the counter, the' look of which aroused my suspicion that it was not Canterbury, and I asked to be shown the brand, whereupon he remarked that he had made a mistake, as it was an Argentine carcase. I told him he no doubt made thoee mistakes pretty often; then he put a lamb on the counter branded 'Canterbury.' The Argentine he had offered mo was about the size of a hare, and had it been possible he would have sold it to me as 'Prime Canterbury,' but on being cornered he had to acknowledge that he had ' made a mistake.' "

"There was a time," said a speaker at • Farmers'. Union meeting in Canterbury, heid to discuss the Land Bill, "when the owners of the estates directly aimed at ia North Canterbuiy were looked upon as the saviours of the country. This w*s when the financial position was nearing zero, and wages were lower than they had* ever been before. Sir George .Grey, as Governor, advertised the lands north of the Waipara in the Australasian papers, for sale at 10s an acre, and the taking up of these brought thousands of 'pounds in ready cash that gave an impetns io road-making and bridgebuilding. Christchurch had not a decent road and only one light timber bridge over the Avon. Those men stocked the country with sheep, fenced the runs, fought & weary war with sheep diseases, losses by fire and storms, and were the coneervers of estates on which, under the primary conditions, the small holders could not have existed. These men in the days of yoro were made welcome in the city ; but now their names are execrated as ' landmarks' and so forth."

Accordins' to the Cb'ef Veterinarian the cause of the death of a cow*which recently died at Inoiewood was eating ragwort. Mr Gilruth said that sheep could safely be placed on raarwort lands when fattening, but they must first be put on for an hour or two daily.

The small-bird nuisance is reported to be very prevalent in the Roxburgh district.

Th** season has been excect'onallv favourable for lambina- in the Canterbury distr ; ct, and the percentages are very hii?h. The ooen winter provided an abundance of feed. The lonsr stretch of dry weather is now having effect on the pastures, and the farni'" 1 8 are becoming anxious.

The first new potatoes of the season (writes th© Timaru correspondent of the ChrJstfihurch Press) were brought into town on' Saturday, having b«*en grown on a farm • few miles south of Timaru.