OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

Otago Witness, Issue 3593, 23 January 1923, Page 13

OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

(From Oub Own Correspondent.) CONFLICTING INTERESTS. Weather conditions in Canterbury have undergone a drastic change in the past week, and it just depends whether the farmer is a grain grower or not as to whether the change is a welcome one. At the week-end there came rain from the sou’-oast, and it was fairly general throughout the province. There have been odd showers at intervals that have made the continuance of harvesting impracticable, and there is a fair amount of grain in stook throughout the province at the present time. For the man who has his eggs more or less in one basket and is growing sheep feed, the rain has been a source of joy. A wonderful growth is the result, and Canterbury has never looked so green in January as it does at the present time. Unfortunately there is a considerable amount of cron damaged already, and though the temperature was low when the weather first broke, the conditions now are inclined to ipugginess with no prospect of the weather taking up. There is a danger of grain sprouting. Many of the heavier oat crops have been damaged, especially on the better-class land. Tt ere are acres lying flat with little prospect of them lifting should there come a drying wind. The rain has been quite as varied as usual, and in some districts it was torrential. For instance, at Akaroa came down in 24 hours, and though the fall recorded at the Christchurch Observatory was only lin for the period since the rain set in, a few miles away the records show much heavier falls. The grain grower is anxious for t.he weather to take up, and a nor’-wester would be welcomed to dry the sheaves in stook. In some of the earlier districts of North Canterbury not only are there oats in stook, but a fair amount of wheat has been cut. WHEAT-THRASHING CHARGES. Thrashing mill owners in North Canterbury ha\ e decided to make a concession to wheat growers, and the charges for thrashing wh* at and barley are to be reduced by £d”a bushel. Last year’s rates were 6ld for wheat and barley in stcok. and 6id in stack, and for oats sfd and 5.;d. all less 10 per cent. Although the reduction is not a large one, it will be welcomed by growers. The prospect before the man with wheat for sale is not at all pleasing. Strenuous efforts are being made by the Farmers’ Unions throughout Canterbury to have the embargo upon the importation of Australian flour renewed. At the present time Australian flour is being offered at £ll 2s a ton f. o.b. Melbourne. To this has to be added £2 10s for duty, £1 17s 6d freight from Melbourne to Wellington, and 4s insurance and exchange. This makes the total £ls 13s 6d c.i.f. Wellington. Millers contend that, working on this basis, New Zealand flour will have to be sold at £l4 10s a ton f.o.b. South Island ports. What price can the miller pay the farmer in order to sell the product at £l4 10s? One authority contends that, taking manufacturing and other costs of previous years as a basis, the price will have to be not more than 4s 6d, If the price of wheat is too high it. will open the door to Australian flour One speaker at the recent conference at Ashburton, held to discuss prices, said that the Government should prohibit any flour being landed in New Zealand that was sold f.o.b. Australian ports at less than the ruling price in Australia. At present he said the price of flour in Australia for consumption there was about £l2 a ton, and not £ll 2s. New Zealand should not be made a dumping ground for Australian flour. TlIEr KIDNEY QUESTION. Sir George Clifford, chairman of directors of the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company, Ltd.,, recently criticised the regulation issued by the Meat Producers’ Board in regard to shipping- lambs with the kidneys intact. Sir George argued Unit it was essential that London buyers should be given what they

wanted, and they did not want lambs with the kidneys in. Apropos of the discussion, one Christchurch butcher who, prior to coming to New Zealand, had 25 years’ experience in the Old Country, in writing on the question states that when he bo'ught Argentine lambs with the kidneys remaining in the carcase, he found that the first part to go bad was the kidney, and in order to avoid tainting the loin the kidney was always removed as soon as a' consignment reached the shop. He thinks that if it is wrong to leave the kidney in the heavy weights it is equally wrong to leave tnem in the light weights, as the source of the trouble is thbre only in a lesser degree. STOCK PRICES BUOYANT. Excellent prices have been the order of the day at the. stock sales this week. There has been spirited competition for lamb among the export firms, and on Wednesday at Addington an offering of 6000 went off at from lOd to lOl.d a lb, and there has been strong private buying at these figures. Few lambs in the fat pens make under 30s these days: Mutton has been scarce in Canterbury of late, and 80 per cent, of what is being offered is ewe. Good wethers at this week’s Addington sale were worth a full 7d per lb. Ewes made to 6jd. There was a rise of from 2s to 3s over the yarding of this class. Beef again made better prices this week, selling at from 3Us to 33s for good class stuff. There is a regular boom in store sheep, especially for ewes. A useful line or six and eight-tooth ewes at Addington on Wednesday made 37s They were three-quarterbreds, and the bulk of them were four-year-olds. Another If MM] of 300 odd shep described as full and failing mouthed made 28s. About one-third were not sound. There were dozens of pens of ordinary farmers’ ewes sold at 30s and over. Store lambs in reasonable condition are worth 245, and wethers do not need to bo particularly forward to fetch 275. Bacon pigs show a tendency to improve, and from sgd to 6d js now the ruling rate. The high prices ruling for stores is the only thing a farmer has to cavil at so far, as stock prices are concerned at the present time. With regard to lambs the margin between fat and store prices is so slight that there is little chance of buyers coming out with a profit should there be a backward movement in values. BLUESKIN SHOW. The following are the winners of cups and trophies at the Blueskin A. and P. Society's show:—Mr Thomas Brown’s cup for most points in horses, cattle, etc., Peter Ireland, Goodwood (second time) ; Mr Crosbv Morris’s cup for most points in draught horses, Kenyon Bros., Merton (won outright) ; Mr H. Bland’s cup for 14-stone hack jumping, etc., R. Brunton, Tomahawk (won outright); Mr H. Bland’s trophy for best lady’s hack, J. C. Lloyd, Seacliff; Mr James Kenyon’s trophy for most points in cattle classes, Peter Ireland, Goodwood (won outright). The following are the results of the guessing competitions :—Live weight of two sheep (2831 b), R. Robertson (Waitati), 2831 b, 1; Miss Connor (Waitati) and J. H. Hammond (Evansdale), 25041 b (equal), 2. Live weight of two lambs (1551b)—A. M’Farlane (Waitati), 147 jib, 1; T. H. ‘Hammond (Evansdale), 16341 b, 2.