AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS

Otago Witness, Issue 2923, 23 March 1910, Page 21

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS

The cable indicating that importers were asking 130 s per cwt for butter by the Corinthic. which was to be landed in London on the 14th inst., would be--good-news to those factories in the North Island who had consigned. Presuming that the butter was sold at that price, it is estimated that the advance meant a gain of £27,000 on the shipment, which comprised 46,524 boxes, or 23,2020 wt, v as compared with the price in March last year. The butter from the Corinthic was shipped as follows: —Auckland. 16,809 boxes: New Plymouth. 11.405 boxes; Patea. 3650 boxes; Wellington, 11.121 boxes; Lyttelton, 3539 boxes. Sales of farming property on the Poverty Bay flats at Whataupoko, on the outskirts of Gisborne, have been effected during tho last week or two at £35, £36, £4O, and £4l per acre. Interviewed in Ashburton, Mr E. H. Boyle, manager of the Eltham Co-operative Dairy Factory ■ Company, stated that- the question of the'breed of cattle had a most important bearing on the success of dairyfarming, and'a number of farmers who have not done so well as they should have done could trace their non-success to failure to cull their herds and to keep the right breed of cattle. The Jersey-shorthorn cross was the most popular in the district, while the purebred Ayrshires also came in for much favour. Personally, he favoured the Jersey-shorthorn cross, because they were cattle that milked welj. were easily kept, and, were invariablv the highest testers. In reply to a further . Question, Mr Boyle said that suppliers' herds ranged from 12 to 120 cows each, and "the total number of cows milked was apnroximately 7500. The land in the Eltham district varied considerably, much of it being able to support at the rate of one. cow per acre, but the greater part successfully depastured cattle the whole year round at the rate of 2=jacres ner cow. In . the: spring of the year a ijood all-round dairy herd commanded • a value of at least £7 10s per cow on a selling basis. . " . A svndioate or "association" is being formed in Masterton to take uo land under the provisions of the Land Settlement Finance Act. which came into operation on January 1. The local naper says it is the intgntion of the association to purchase the fine estate of M'Gregor Bros.,- at Manaia, consisting of 900 acres of splendid land. Already this season (says the-New Zealand: .Herald) .outside: countries have purchased'■■■ A-wsMand butter to' the value of £470i000-."a?n.d- it.s4s confidently expected that the total -will ;be. carried 'beyond £500,000 before the close of the season. To this must be added a sum of £300,000 as represwit.iinsr the value at current rates of the 50,000 cwt 6£ butter which is considered to be. a niode.rate estimate of the annual local consumption and exports to other parts of New Zealand. The arrival in London of a cargo of about

1000 carcases of pigs from Ru6sia a short time ago (says the Live Stock Journal of February 4) led to developments. Nearly 200 of them wore consigned to a cold storage in Bermondsey, and owing to a breach- of the public health regulations most of them were rejected. One hundred and sixty-nine were without their "heads in the natural state of attachment," which rendered it impossible to properly inspect the sub-maxillary and tonsillar glands. It i 6 expected that the new freezing works at Tokomaru Bay, on the East Coast, will be sufficiently completed to allow of freezing operations bcina begun in November next. The contract price for building the works is £40,000. The company is also making a harbour for the lighters which it will employ to carry the sheep out to the liners in the bay. A depth of 16ft at high water and 10ft at low water is to be obtained at the wharves, which will be sheltered by breakwaters running out 640 ft into the sea. Eventually it is" hoped to extend the breakwater another 600 ft to where a depth of 60ft is obtainable, and the largest ocean-going vessels will then bo able to come alongside. In the past it has been exceedingly difficult for farmers to drive their sheep down to Gisbornc and get them to the works in a Jafc state. Several employees at the Fairfield Freezing Works, Canterbury, have invented a machine for branding meat for export purposes. Under the present system meat is branded with ink, and this method has several objections, inasmuch as the brand, can be removed and replaced, thus opening the door to fraud: while many people contend that ink is injurious when consumed in. ever so small a quantity. The new invention, which is not, yet perfected, automatically heats the brand, which when applied to the carcase sears .a neat and, intelligible imprint, which it is impossible to efface; and in addition to this it does notdisfigure the carcase, as the ink brand frequently does when the meat thaws. It is understood that the inventors are taking steps to protect their machine, which when brought to a stage of perfection will no doubt come into general use at freezing works.