NEWS OF THE DAY

Taranaki Daily News, 26 July 1934, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

Fifty per cent, of the pigs sent to mea

works in New Zealand were found unsuitable for export, Mr. E. Hale told the farmers present at his demonstration at Westown, New Plymouh, yesterday. The Rugby match between the repre-

sentatives of the Inglewood primary schools group and the New Plymouth schools group will be played on Saturday at 1 p.m. on Sanders Park, New Plymouth. The fixture was originally set down for the racecourse, but that ground is not available.

Farmers in Waikato who had adopted improved methods of pig-rearing, said Mr. E. Hale at New Plymouth yesterday, had found that they could add Id per lb. to their butter-fat cheque by feeding whey and other foods to their pigs. Where skim milk was available 2d per lb. of butter-fat had been added to the season’s revenue. The “hook award” came before the

“hoof award” every time, said Mr. E. Hale to farmers at New Plymouth yesterday when discussing swine husbandry. Awards at agricultural shows were made on the hoof, and they were’ frequently reversed when the carcases were judged on the hook. The buyer made the award then, and his judgment was the one that counted.

“Recording has shown one fact in the life of the young pig,” said Mr. E. Hale at his demonstration at Mr. A. R. Gudopp’s farm, New Plymouth, yesterday. “It is that whatever may be its weight at eight weeks of age the weight will be two and a-half times that amount at 16 weeks.” The moral of the story was that the pigs that were heaviest at eight weeks were the more likely to be profitable as they grew up. A small black kitten with a patch of white at the throat and a wild look in his yellow-green eyes is Buddy, Miss Jean Batten’s mascot, which arrived with her at the aerodrome yesterday. A very privileged person and probably* the world’s most feted cat at the present time. Buddy has preserved his natural spontaneity in spite of everything. During the speeches of welcome he occupied himself in biting the fur collar of Miss Batten’s flying suit and jn playing with hpr gloves.

As an incentive to suppliers to improve the quality of their raw material Mr. D. Sutton moved at the annual meeting of the Okato Dairy Company that 50 per cent, of the money accumulated by way of penalties on second grade milk should be distributed as prizes to suppliers who supplied the best quality milk throughout the year. The suggestion, however, did not find favour, as it was considered that the penalty now imposed for second grade should provide sufficient incentive. The Auckland express leaving New Plymouth last night included a 10-berths sleeper instead of the usual 20-berths sleeper. A reporter was informed that the change had been made with the object of reducing haulage costs. The sleeping accommodation, which was an improvement on the old Main Trunk type of carriage, was now installed in a combination car, one-half of which was fitted as a first-class “smoker.” Under the new arrangement the department saved the necessity of running a secondclass car. In addition to its teir sleeping berths, the train now had room for 68 second-class passengers and 26 firstclass.

The handicap placed on the pig industry by the high cost of wheat and wheat products was referred to by a questioner at Mr. E. Hale’s demonstration in swine husbandry at New Plymouth yesterday. Mr. Hale was asked whether at present prices of wheat it paid a farmer to feed pigs on grain or pollard. He replied that the difficulty vjas recognised, and it did not make it any more acceptable to know that it was not the wheat-grower’s high price but the charges incidental to milling and transport that kept the price so high. The question of quality of meal also applied. At present the farmer could accept only what the merchant sold him, and the merchant had to accept what came from the mill. One lot of imported pollard' had proved on analysis not to be worth the sack it was contained in so far as feeding pigs was concerned.

“What famous man came from Gloucester?” asked the Rev. F. A. Parry in the course of his address to the combined Sunday schools’ rally in the Theatre Royal, Hamilton, recently. The speaker was referring to Robert Raikes, the founder of the Sunday schools movement, and much amusement was caused when a small voice replied, “Hammond, the cricketer.”

Hie farmers along any main road are accustomed to men tramps'constantly paying them visits, but a farmer near Ramarama was astonished lately by a visit from two women tramps. They were in the early twenties. They said there was no work in Auckland, and they hoped to work their way to Hamilton, where they had heard that things were better. One of them was wearing high-heeled shoes, had worn the heels of her stockings through and begged the loan of some wool and a needle to make good the damage. They were thankful for a cup of tea in addition. An extension of dairying in the Waiapu Valley is foreshadowed by a decision on the part of the Native Department to erect 21 new milking sheds on subdivisions of native land in that area, states the Poverty Bay Herald. Some of the new sheds will replace existing structures, which have become obsolete, but a good proportion will be on new subdivisions, which are coming into intensive production. The farms will all be manned by natives, and the produce will be directed through the Ngatiporou factory When a Fijian builds a dwelling, scarcely does he resort to nails, but, in his own ingenious way, lashes his structure together with rope, which he has made himself. This interesting fact was told by the Rev. A. H. Scrivin, Methodist Church foreign mission secretary, in an address recently. He added that, while the foundations might remain useful for many years, the roof, being constructed of vegetation, had to be replaced at intervals with the wall, otherwise there was a big chance of cockroaches, beetles, snakes and other native pests depreciating the ingenuity of the Fijian,

During an illustrated lecture on tra

vels in Spain to members of the Welling.

ton Centre Local Bodies’ Officers’ Guild, Councillor L. McKenzie remarked that the New Zealand motorist very often, raised his voice in protest against taxation for roading purposes, but to his mind they got gpod value for the money. “A trip through Europe anywhere off the main roads is a nightmare,” he said, “for what roads there are go back to the ancient past and some have not yet really begun to be roads. For a young country New Zealand has the best roads in the world.” Sydney has now a police choir. Newspaper reports state that on June 28 the Police Choral Society gave its first public performance. A large attendance in-

eluded the Commissioner of Police (Mr. Childs). Considering the difficulty of gathering members for regular practice, the performance was considered to be of considerable merit. The programme opened with a sacred group. The spirituelle, “Deep River,” with Constable C. Rushton as soloist, revealed a nice balance. “Lead Kindly Light,” and “Jesu, Lover of My Soul” were well sung. A new arrangement of “The Lost Chord,” with Constable R. May as soloist, was nicely troeted. There were also some rollicking sea songs. “The new ’destroyers Eclipse and Esk, called after British warships which served in the Maori Wars, 1863-65, have recently been laid down, and the branch is uniting with the other branches in New Zealand to present to these new ships commemoration plates,” states the annual report of the Wellington branch of the Navy League. “These plates will shortly be completed and put on view before being dispatched to England, where Sir James Grose, on behalf of the New Zealand branches, will present them.” Reference is alsr made in the

report to the compliment the Admiralty

has paid New Zealand by naming one of the new sloops H.M.S. Wellington. This warship is to replace the sloop Laburnum, and is due in New Zealand waters early next year. A sea leopard 12ft long, and apparently ailing, came ashore at Waikuku Beach, near Kaiapoi, north of Christchurch, recently. It aroused great curiosity as it struggled awkwardly near the fringe of the sandhills, and while it resented clqse

inspection, showing its displeasure with throaty roars and gaping mouth ,it refused to be driven into the water again. Eventually it made for the water of its own volition and disappeared among the breakers. The sea leopard’s natural

haunts are in the Antarctic waters, and it is only rarely that one is seen in waters as far north as Waikuku. However, experts state that when a sea mammal comes ashore, as in this is proof that it .is ill. Judging by the scars on its sides and the decay of its teeth, the animal in question was a veteran of many a sea adventure. If he can put 150 men to work on the Kingston-Queenstown highway, which in terms of the Government’s recent announcement is to be completed, Mr. T.

M. Ball, district engineer of the Public Works Department, says he anticipates that the new road will be opened for traffic within 15 to 18 months. Although only 11 miles of the road remain to be formed, there is still considerable work to be done before it is put in proper order, and Mr. Ball expects that 150 men at least will be required to push on the work expeditiously. The completion of the road would, like many other works of its kind at the present time, be 'an unemployment job, and he thought that the labour would be for the most part provided by married men. As to the cost of the work on this road, Mr. Ball said that the original estimate had been £30,000, but he was not in a position to say whether that figure would be tho final outlay required. The heavy burden entailed on sup-

pliers by the levy to the Dairy Board, which in the case of their company amounted to about £1 a day, was stressed by Mr. D. Sutton at the annual meeting of the Okato Co-op. Dairy Company yesterday when he asked whether the directors could take any steps to obviate that as the suppliers did not receive an adequate return. Mr. Hickford said the directors had made an effort to eliminate the Dairy Board, but without success. In further discussion it was stated that the levy had been increased by 50 per cent, this season with the object of providing a fund for advertising. One redeeming feature of that was that the British importers had agreed to contribute a sum equal to that provided by the levy in New Zealand up to a certain sum, the amount also to be utilised for advertising, which it was consid-

ered would prove beneficial. A director said the money that the company paid would be sufficient to enable the company to employ a man on publicity. On Wednesday next, August 1, Messrs. Newton King Ltd. are conducting a sale on behalf of Mr. A. L. Herbert, at the farm, Waitoitoi, commencing at 12 noon sharp. The offering includes a good herd of the vendor’s own breeding, 11 pedigree Jersey cows, a number of wellbred young stock, a good line of mixedaged ewes running with S.D. rams, a line of ewe hoggets, two farm horses, breeding sows, and a large range of farm implements, etc. For particulars see the sale advertisement appearing in this issue.

Many rare bargains are to be obtained at Scanlan’s sale. All efforts this week are being concentrated on reducing stock to facilitate the taking of stock. All winter goods are being ruthlessly slaughtered and many really good lines of apparel can be picked up for a song.*