THE NORTH ISLAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 3337, 27 February 1918, Page 12

THE NORTH ISLAND.

(Fbou Oub Own Coebespondbnt.) When I forwarded my last. week's notes the sun was shining high and brightly in the heavens, and little did jl dream that a deluge was so near. Such, however, proved to be the case, and practically the whole island was well saturated. In "Wellington 4.12 in of rain fell in 24 hours ending Saturdav morning, and in Auckland and Poverty Bay the storm was of ..exceptional violence. "Vary little damage, however, was done, nr:d the rain would do a lot of good. A SOLDIERS' SETTLEMENT. The Johnston Estate, near Palmerston North, which is open for settlement by rel.»f.nod soldiers, is rather high priced, and does not appeal to the average soldier. T!h» land is for selection in 30-acro sections, Mid tb« urico works oiit at about £BO an use, find', cansideving its prioe and quality, won id yield more trouble and anxiety than i satisfactory oath balance. This ia not jrket the average returned soldier wants, for ii would be a millstone round his neck ill f,ho time. One well-known farmer of raranai!:', who inspected the place on betalf of somo intending ex-soldier settlers, tor-siders that the best thing for the Vovernment to do would be to- cut the tea up into one-acre sections and g've it rfo Chinamen, as nobody else at £BO an .icro will ever make a living off it. We do not know what the Government pays per acre for the3o fancy farms, but when % oliawto of £3O-per acre is made it raises Iho question -whether the best bargain has taen made in the interests of the soldiers. Furthermore, it is contended that when a person pate a fancy valuation on his or her property the land should be taken combulsorily, and the price settled by arbitration. THE PRICE OF FERTILISERS. At a recent Farmdrs' Union social at fuakau the suggestion was made that the Government should put a maximum price upon artificial manures. This is a question )F national importance, and one that not ttily affects the farmer, but in a less degree every individual in the Dominion. Briefly put, the contention was that as beef, mutton, wool, cheese, and butter, practically all wo grow for export, had been commandeered on behalf of the Empire at a price below what the goods would bring if placed upon the open market, it was only reasonable to demand that the Government should assure the producers of a supply of fertilisers at a fair price. As pointed out by the Pukckohe Times, no one of intelligence will attempt to gainsay the logic . of Mr Frost, who brought the matter forward, or deny that he has made out a case upon which the farmers ought to take immediate action. The price of artificial manures has reached very nearly the prohibitory point, and the results \e«"1 be disas-

trous unless a remedy is found. It is of supreme importance that at this juncture l there should be no falling off of exports, ] not merely because they are an absolute I necessity to the' Motherland, but because it ■ is only by our excess of exports over imports that we can" pay our share of the cost of the war. There is, however, no doubt- whatever that there will be a very serious falling off unless there is a good supply of manure at a price at which farmers, can profitably apply it to their lands,_ and there can be no reason why the supplies in hand should not be commandeered by the Government, and the exploitation of the consumers, which has reached an almost intolerable pitch, be put an end to. For many years Mr G. M. Thomson, an 1 Otago M.P., was insistent in his efforts to get successive Governments to acquire one of the numerous phosphatic islands in the Pacific, and so assure the farmers of New Zealand of a constant supply of valuable manure at a low rate. As Otago people -well know, he devoted some years of his life to the project, and was a mine of valuable information on the subject, but could never galvanise the Government into taking action. There will probably be a session of Parliament in April, and steps should be taken by the Farmers' Union to bring the matter under the notice of the Government in the strongest possible manner. GISBORNE DISTRICT STOCK SALES. About 8000 sheep were yarded and disposed of at very satisfactory prices at the Tolaga Bay sale during the week. The demand for ewes compared favourably with previous '• sales, and the prices realised showed improvement. There were a number of Hawke's Bay buyers operating for a southern market, and this had the tendency to create competition and increase prices. The yarding- included the Kioro Company's annual entry of two-tooth ewes, which made 24s 9d. A good entry from Panikau Station came forward, and twotooths made 25s 9d. An entry from Mangahei of four-tooths and five-year-old ewes realised from 16s to 19s. Several other lots were offered on account of different vendors, and prices realised were satisfactory. There was only a fair demand for two-tooth Rornncy rams, and these brought from 3ggs to sgs. An entry of store cattlo failed to find purchasers. The Tiniro'to saleyard was opened by Mr J. W. Bright (chairman of the Gisborne Stockbrokers' Association), who congratulated the local settlers on obtaining such up-to-date arrangements. The yarding offered totalled 17,000 head of Ewes were not much in demand two-tooths (small) bringing 14s 7d to 23s 6d, while a good line of 522 two-tooths realised 29s Id (top price). Store ewes brought from 8s 2d to 12s. The > annual sale under the auspices of tho Gisborne Farmers' Co-operative Company was held at Kairoro yards. The following was the range of prices:—Fat ewes, 25s 9d to 29s 6d ; fat lambs, 15s sd; four, six, and eight tooth ewes, 20s 6d; five-year ewes. 21s lOd; six-year ewes, 17s 6d; four-year and five-year ewes, 17s 9d; small two-tooth wethers, 16s* Id. OPENING UP NEW COUNTRY. The Whirln.aki and Retaruke block, comprising 40,000 acres, mostly virgin bush country, with papa formation, has just been

visited by the Commissioner of Crown Lands. When the bush is cleared the land makes excellent grazing country, taking at least two sheen to the acre. The Government eventually propose to spend from £3O,OCX) to £35,000 in reading, the block, and the Public Works Departmenthave the work in'hand of making horse tracks until sufficient labour is available to widen the roads to the usual width. The block lies between Raetihi and the strip of land reserved for the Wanganui River Trust Domain Board, on the bank of the' river. There are already 22 settlers on the block, whose areas vary from 300 acres to 15,000 acres. At the north end of the block at Wade’s landing a lot of small homesteads have been erected on five to 10 acre blocks, and the settlers live -close together, and work their bigger sections from there. This is being done as a makeshift till the roads are made. COW-TESTING. The following are the results of the J. T. Toll Cow-testing Association for the January period: FIVE BEST HERDS.

The average association cow gave 7251 b milk, 4.1 test, 29.701 b fat. The best cow gave 13351 b milk, 4.2 test, 56.071 b fat. ■ The worst cow gave 3751 b milk, 3.3 tost, 12.371 b fat. NEED FOR SHOWING EWES. A question of some interest to sheepmen was raised by Mr J. Kirkpatrick, of Blenheim, at the Masterton Show. He said it struck him that in the North Island breeders made a greater point of showing rams than of showing ewes, and also that northern breeders went in less for showing ewes than South Island breeders-did. Mr Kirkpatrick did not say so, but it could easily bo gathered that he was strongly of j the opinion that the importance of showing : ewes should not bo overlooked. MASTERTON SHOW. CHAMPIONSHIP AWARDS. MASTERTON February 19. The annual show of the Masterton A. and P. Association was opened to-day in fine but dull weather, and with a largo attendance of breeders and exhibitors. The following championship awards were made. Lincoln ram, estate of the late Mr D. M‘Gregor; ewe, Bland Rayner; Romney Marsh (ram and ewe), W. Perry; Southdown ram, W. Howard Booth; ewe, J. Knight (JTeilding); Shropshire (ram and ewe), Sir James Wilson (Bulls); Shorthorn bull, Dalziell Bros.; cow, W. Howard Booth; Hereford (bull and cow), Ernest ' Short (Feilding); Polled Angus (bull and

' cow), Burling Bros.; Ayrshire bull, John Aitchison; cow, K. B. Morgan; Jersey ■bull, E. Eagle; cow, W. H. Booth; Friesian bull, Brettwood Farmers' Company. The sheep dog trial was won by C. S. Hay, and the maiden jumping competition by R. N. Mprison's entry. The challenge jumping "competition was annexed by H. Hassa'U's Micky Free, with J. J. Bryce's Twilight second.

Cows. Milk. Test. Fat. lb. lb. 36 777 4.5. .. 35.12 64 854 4.0 34.75 12 696 4.8 83.39 32 792 • .. 4.2 33.00 29 804 4.0 32.29 FIVE WORST HERDS. Cows. Milk. Tost. Fat. lb. lb. 35 510 4.1 21.40 30 587 3.9 22.60 51 622 4.1 25.51 46 651 4.0 26.06 19 725 3.6 26,29