STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3443, 9 March 1920, Page 11

STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES.

Weoklv StMfc SslM- Monthly fcontliwsd). Burnside, Wednesdays tVoodlauds, 2nd XtacrsAshburton, Tuesdays d «7 Addington, Wednesdays <K"yndh*m, last Thar* Waiareka Railway Juno- . day tion, Tuesdava Balfour, 3rd Thursday Wallaoetown, Tuesdays Thornbury, Ist Friday Heriot, Thursdays Duntroon & Otantau, Fortnight!*. „. 2n(l / r . ia «jr ._ .. Clinton. Thursdays s££ , K to, l "? JHfi? Owaka, alternate Thurdays with Clinton C 5-1 last ib " rß ~ Balciutha, Fridaya" y Gore, Tuesdays Perlodlcslly as Ai'vsrOamaru, Tuesdays Used. Wallaoetown. Tuesdays Lumsden, ilossburn, Monthly. Orepuki, Mataura, Pnlmerston, Ist Monday Waikounltl, Ui»erSV'inton, let Thursday ton, Ngapara. and Duntroon, 2nd Friday Otago Central Sales. OTAGO. The weather has been most pleasant during the week, and if Otago lands have not received all the needful rains, still the showers at times have helped the turnips wonderfully, but hopes are expressed for more. The nights are cold, and frosts are in evidence. Inland some good showers have been experienced, but more, rain is required. Potatoes south of, say, Gore are looking well, and returns may prove fair per acre, but northwards to the Waitati one hears of nothing sensational, but it is early perhaps yet to say. -• BURNSIDE MARKET. The yarding of fat sheep at Burnside was a large one, comprised of all qualities. Included in the entry were a number of Central Otago trucked sheep of secondary quality, besides road travelled wOol-stained lots. Sales for the most part of the better quality sheep were made at the previous week's rates, prices towards the close of the sale being fully a shilling a head better for all classes, due" both to butchers' demand and graziers taking out lots and anxious to make up their trucks. In the store pens some fine-woolled wethers from the Central ■were sold at 23s to 25s 9d, small halfbreds 18s, old ■ ewes 10s to 15s. The yarding of fat lambs was fairly large, and the quality medium. Bidding was slow and prices easier, owing entirely to the usual export buyers being hampered by the ineffective clearances at the local works, together with the space limitations. Good lambs sold at 25s 6d, while light unfinished round 16s —a good, deal under previous prices. The yarding of fat cattle was small, and the quality only fair. Values _ firmed up about £1 a head on the previous week's prices, beef making to 45s 6d per 1001 b. The large entry of 350 store cattle forward Were mostly forward and fat cows and heifers for vhich bidding was fairly good at prices within range of export limits, but small sorts were dull of sale. Over 100 fat pigs were offered, which sold well at rather under the previous week's high prices, up to 10j>d to lid per lb being paid, with small sorts selling at unchanged rates. NORTH ISLAND STOCK VALUES. There has been little, if any, change in values of store stock, although "fats" are being moved off fairly well in the North Island. In the Auckland province, at the Westfield market, beef was rather firmer, up to 57s per 1001 b being paid, forward wethers 29s to 32s 6d, forward woolly lambs 17s to 20s 6d, shorn lis to 16s, good year and a-half steers £6, year and a-half Jersey heifers to £8 ss, good store cows to £7 10s. In Poverty Bay. two-tooth wethers 24s 6d, two-tooth ewes 27s 3d, well forward wethers 27s to 29s 3d. Cattle were easier, medium cross yearling steers to £4 10s, fair two-year-old dairy heifers to £7, fair two-three-year-old steers £9. In the Wairarapa business is practically confined to sales of rams and "fats." _ Feed has improved of late, and anticipations for winter feed are promising. In Hawke's Bay vendors have a difficulty in obtaining recent values for store stock; fair wethers 26s to 28s 9d, six and eight-tooth ewes 235, forward lambs 163 6d, small two-tooth wethers 15s 6d; herd averages from £l3 to £ls, with a top from £l9 10s to £27; in calf shorthorn year and year and a-half heifers to £l2. STOCK NOTES. The position in respect to stock in Otago, if not better, is at least no worse than it was a week ago. Export buyers of fat sheep have practically for the moment "pulled out." There is nothing in holding fats and seeing them losing condition. Lst the other fellow who has the feed to keep thorn till the works are able to handle the stock on hand.- That is the position, and reasonable enough from the buyer's point of view. Some lots were sent from Burnsido via Pukeuri to Smithfield. Besides there are a lot of local cattle which should be attended to. Beef is now, thank goodness, being slaughtered at the Burnside Freezing works. The position would seem to warrant some serious thinking by farmers &3 to .whether other freezing works might not bo established in Otago. Of course, the times are out_of joint, but there is nothing to be gained by Otago_ bred, fed, and fattened stock ending their days in another clime.

In -view of tho space shortage at the various Dominion freezing works the South Otago Freezing Company has sent out a circular to its clients asking their co-opera-tion in the crisis that has arisen. It is now very evident that tnere will be a serious ahortage of freezing space throughout New

Zealand, and unless great relief is received by way of shipments the South Otago freezing works will not be able to cope with the stock offering this season. The directors have doceided to offer space first to shareholders, who must book space so that the company may be able to arrange for their requirements if they can possibly do so. The directors wish their _ clients to understand that they are not taking any bookings from any but bona fide farmers, and that they will not accept bookftigs for any stock except that which is the genuine property of the applicant. This matter is a serious one as well as an urgent one, and the directors are relying on tire farmers' co-operation during a difficult period. All applications for space must be made at once on forms obtainable at the company's office. At the present rate of killing the works will be full early in April. The initial shipment of frozen mutton and lamb from Australia left Sydney last month for Sweden, the forerunner, we trust, of many others. A beginning has been made at Ilobart in the matter of an export trade in Tasmanian frozen meat. About 500 sheep and lambs and 20 head of cattle are being killed daily and placed in the chilling rooms at Hobart to await shipment. Machinery is being installed to deal With by-products. A meeting of members of the Southland Farmers' Union, afer considerable discussion, passed unanimously tht> following resolution:—"That this meeting urge on the Government the necessity of the Imperial Government clearing its meat from the New Zealand stores at the expiration of the commandeer on June 30." It was also decided to send a copy of this resolution to members of Parliament and urge them to push the matter in the House.

§ A committee has been set up with the idea of starting a branch of the Dominion Friesian Breeders' Association in the South Auckland district.

Giro .hundred and twenty thousand stud bulls, it is stated, will be introduced into Brazil by the Government during the next 10 years, a large sum of money having been set aside for that purpose. THE RABBIT PEST. The boom in rabbits seems to have gripped our cousins in the Commonwealth similarly to ourselves. The more rabbits that are killed, the more there seems to be. Owners of pastoral acres are looking after their "preserves," and in some case 3 receiving cash offers from rabbiters to let them in, or a percentage of the skins. The boom may, and doubtless will be, not unlike our dredging boom. "It is attributed by men in fchu trade," says a writer in the Sydney Morning Herald, "to two main factors—the cessation of the export of furs from Russia, and the increasing demand for furs from America. There is also a big demand from Britain. _ For many years Russia was the biggest' supplier of furs to America and Britain, but since the revolution this source of supplv has been almost entirely cut off. America and Britain, aa a result, have had to look elsewhere for furs, only to find that the world is not well supplied with furred animals in the face of the ever-growing _ demand. And this is where the Australian rabbit comes in. Another side to the boom remains, however, to be stated and appraised at its national significance. Wherever the " rabbits are numerous it is becoming impossible for landholders to get competent labour. 'How are we going to get labour if the rabbit boom keeps up?' This is the question that landowners in the thickly-infested districts are asking one another. A fair Wrapper will trap 500 rabbits a week, which at Is each would work out at £25. Some would trap many more. A schoolboy might go out after school and shoot 20 rabbits —worth 20s. How, then, are men to be kept on the farm' or station? The rabbit boom cannot fail to increase the cost of producing wheat and wool, meat and butter, because higher wages will have to be paid to get labour. And if the skins are going up to 2s 6d, as some men say, it will be much worse for the primary industries." THE SEASON IN AUSTRALIA. Monsoonal rains have _ further improved the seasonal outlook right through the north of the continent (says the Pastoral Review." East arid Central New South Wales have also received good falls since last writing, and, generally speaking, grass and herb.ige is making satisfactory growth, though the storms have been very patchy in their incidence. Unfortunately, Western New" South Wales and the adjacent territory in South Australia remain very dry. A few scattered storms have been recorded, but that country as a whole is still in the grip of the drought. There has been little rain in Victoria, except on the east coast, or in the south of South Australia during the monch. As a result pastures are going off, although there should be sufficient feed to carry stock until the autumn. Apart from the east coast, only light showers have been recorded over the main agricultural areas of tho south since last writing. The northern half of New South Wales {ind most of Queensland have, on the other hand, reoeived thunder storms that produced good rains in many districts, and which wore acceptable. The/weather for the most part has been cool and favoura.ble for the completion of harvesting operations. The principal work on farms at the moment is carting wheat to the rajlway receiving depots, scarifying fallow,' - and ploughing where the ground is sufficiently moist. A little more rain to freshen up summer fodder crops would doubtless be welcomed in the south, but a general downpour is not wanted just yet, except in those districts that are short of surface water for stock and domestic purposes. In respect to wool the position is ono of expectancy, which finds expression through two channels —viz., on the one hand the probable dividends to be derived from the prices now ruling in England, and, on the other, surmise as to what will happen after June 30 next. In regard to the former, there does not appear to be any definite opinion beyond that the prices, which are daily appearing, should mean a material surplus to divide between the Imperial Government and the Australian and New Zealand woolgrowers. Aa to what the extent of such may be is a matter of conjecture only, but it Is felt strongly on all sides that the time is overripe for the Prime Minister to press for some authoritative statement from the Imperial authorities as to the position. Not once, but may times, in the course of election addresses has he stated that woolgrowers are entitled to every fraction their product is) worth, and they now look to him to insist on some light bein# thrown on a contract that was entered on in the dark. As regards the marketing of the incoming clip, it is well known that the delegates sent by the various pastoralists' and farmers' associations in the different States

have framed a scheme, which was sub- 1 mitted by them to- the representatives of their selling brokers for their advice. As to what tho scheme actually is has not been officially disclosed, and the promoters wisely do not propose to make it publio until it is ready to submit to the woolgrowers for their approval., It is generally understood, however, that the present system of control disappears . entirely, there being no intention of a pool of a.ny sort, or any semblance thereof. [The scheme of wool control drawn up by a conference of wool-growers and wool brokers has been circularised among Australian wool-growers, who have the opportunity of expressing their views by means of a general ballot. If 75 per cent, of the growers are favourable, special legislation making it compulsory for all growers to come in will be asked for. —Ac Ed.]

The clearances of frozen meat to all oversea ports last month totalled 362..926 carcases mutton, 226,479 carcases lamb, and 6005 quarters beef. Some 319,000 carcases mutton, 212,000 carcases lamb, and 800 quarters beef .were shipped to Great Britain, and of the balance 54,000 carcases mutton and lamb, and 4680 quarters beef wwe consigned to Antwerp. From present appearances it looks as if the February clearances would be somewhere between 300..000 and 400,000 carcases mutton and lamb, but the freight outlook for the frozen meat trade for subsequent months is not particularly bright. ,For one thing- the Board of Trade has lately allotted space for 1,000,000 cases of apples and a further 2000 tons of rabbits, which will make a considerable hole in what tonnage is available. Then the inordinate delay in discharging frozen meat at Home, due to tho congestion, of shipping at British ports, must necessarily affect the position in Australia and Now Zealand. According to the cables large meat carriers axe being held up for two months or more before they can get a berth, and it is estimated that the efficiency of the refrigerated fleet has been reduoed by '33 per cent. In other words, steamers are only able to make two trips in the time they would have done three under normal conditions. Exact figures as to the "quantities of meat in cool store in Australia are not available. Probably there are a million carcases of mutton and lamb waiting shipment at the time of writing, so the prosoeet although not as bad as in New* Zealand, where 4,000,000 carcases are lying, is serious enough.