THE RAM FAIR.

Otago Witness, Issue 3030, 10 April 1912, Page 14

THE RAM FAIR.

The ram fair reminded one more of a wool sale than anything else, but in this case it was the auetioneer, not the buyer, who was in a hurry. The frantic haste of the auctioneers to sell their pens before the sand-giass ran out and the bell rang was in striking contrast to the leisurely manner in which the fat-cattle market' is sometimes conducted. There was no time for long-winded pedigrees or descriptions, the actual bidding taking up all the time available. And if the buyers were a little more accustomed to the system, and would only bid up more freely, the change would be a great improvement, and might be adopted'at the fat cattlemarket'with advantage. The association is nothing if not educative, and the stipulations which have been made in regard to the ram fair have been of great service to breeders of purebred sheep. The "tail end'' is, no doubt, distributed at various country sales, and will be made use of in the country somewhere; but they were, little in evidence at the ram fair, and anyone who had good sheep there got a good price for them in spite of the tune limit. Bidding came freely enough when the sheep were high class and met the approval of the buyers; but when the sale was going with a good swing it was a mistake to stop for lunch or anything else. The whole sale would have _ been completed in an hour. The stipuation in regard to registration had a good effect on the class of sheep entered for sale, and tne by-law has more than -justified its existence. * Next year it might be worth considering whether the sale of the BorderLcicesters and Ilomney iUarsh sheep cannot proceed simultaneously. There is-no apparent reason why they should not do so. and perhaps a little more time might be given to each pen with advantage. The fair all through was a decided improvement on previous years, and the association has now got into a very much better system of conducting it. The stock agents also conformed to the wishes of the association, with the result that a much more satisfactory sale resulted in every way. The arrangement by which the stock agents fixed the reserve eliminated that objectionable discrimination between the breeds which was in evidence last year, and in any case fixing a reserve of 20s was perfectly absurd. After railage and commission was deducted from 20s, there wa-s less left for the breeder than the price of fat sheep. Yet, considering the class of sheep admitted in previous years, 20s was more than they were worth. Now, all that ha 6 been changed. There was no haggling over pens that would not have made even decent wethers, and the sale was finished in half the usual time. The prices were better, taken all over the sheep were much better, and breeders of high-class sheep got a chance of selling them. It cannot be said, however, that there was very much discrimination used in purchasing. Anything which was big enough and fat enough, particularly in the Ilomney Marsh pens, realised as much as high-class rams. There was not a sufficient margin between mutton sheep and wool sheep. Breeders who sent high-class rams with a heavy, dense, even fleece deserved to get more for them than they got. Some of the Romney breeders are endeavouring to breed a merino fleece on their sheep, and they are spoiling them. In one or two cases, both in the Romney Marsh and Border Leicester breeds, the attention of the breed society's inspector is demanded, but generally the quality of the sheep as a whole was a great improve inent on past years. Last year it was suggested that the association should transfer the control of the ram fair to the associated stock agents, and had the old arrangement continued by which any thing at all could have been entered that would certainly have been the best thing to do. But the alterations made have met with the approval of breeders, and they now think it would be unwise for the- association to abandon the control of the sale.