Farming in Britain.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIIC, Issue 14274, 13 August 1910, Page 4 (Supplement)

Farming in Britain.

The beading. 'ls the British Farmer Content:- So; but He has Good Cause to Be," .summarises a vevy interesting article which iir James S. Macdonalil contributes on the prosperity of British agriculture to "Fry's Magazine" of June.

He declares that the urea test progress in stock-breeding has been made m the direction „f pedigree and in early maturity. Pictures are. given of a Shire stallion, sold for ;t,700 guineas; of a Lincoln Longwool rai)',, .sold for 1,400 guineas. A flock of Lincoln sheep was sold for £40,00!) to an Argentine buyer thrco years ago. The largest dairy herd in England is owned" l.v Lord TJayleigh in Essex, with over a thousand cows. The. highest yield obtained from a single cow duYiii"- 10', months w iIS 1,1,74 callous. T!:c"hoad cowman is friven £3 if the herd under lus charge averages O.'O ..allons in (he year. 11,. gets fcl K) s if Tl, roaches 700 gallons. £(i 2s Gd if 7f>o gallons, and £lO if 300 gallons. After passin- in survey the progress of the last"ten years, the writer says:— . "When all is said and done the reader may ask is agriculture prosperous.-' On tho whole"! think we have little, reason to comnlain. The hist ten years have been a distinct, improvement on the previous decade. Mixed farming has recovered by .reason of the better prices for pram, which has run up to well over 40s lor wheat, and close "upon that figure for barley, while oats have, sold at a commensurate figure The potato has not- quite recovered from the staggering effects of the boom of five or six years ago. .At present 50s is about, the average market value. Hav and straw have been somewhat of a T'" "P"" the pocket, but with old clove,; at .Co and old meadow I UIV about -os. it ,s eyident that the motor has not entirely Mmi.rcssed this S our<;e of revenue. The hop farmer has nut had a happy- tunc. The cattle 7,,-ecder and feeder have done well of late, and beef oversliadowns mutton. The -beep farmer had glorious years two "c*

ip'ee eo'ar"' he ",PP Ic'tch. million has I di-a, on evd lip;,-. jndc--d, so cheap, ■■:::•■ -. 1:..,, -car, thai ll:o hi;-.;...;- - : bpe;> buy end freeze Jiei e limn < import. Pigs are very much golrl. end no more profitable source of income- has the farmer had." After alt the lalk about Ihe motor wiping out the horse, it is of interestto read that ."heavy horses cannot be p'-odticrd in sußieiout number-; in meet harne-s and hunter horsi-s arc in un"Tho dairy farmer has boon prosperous, throughout. A la-s'e breeder and milk seller the other da>" d-vhired that the last- four years were the best he had ever had. Chef-p- made he,- 1 , jigpros in If"!!), allbomd, Tea d.-onend wcako-ed as the sea-;,;-,, advanced: -and where butter of ilie rigid class was i urned out. cows were never dearer to buy. and that is m-ohably the best indication of the coiKliiiou of dairr farming."