NOTES FOR FARMERS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5733, 28 November 1896, Page 7

NOTES FOR FARMERS.

-AAt the meeting of shareholders of the ! Colonial Consignment and Distributing Company, in London, on Sept. 29, the balance-sheet submitted showed earnings ' of -£-31.334 ls 3d, from which were deducted depreciation, proportion of preliminary ex- . ponses and debenture interest, amounting , to .£17,889 15s Gd, leaving a net profit of .£13,444 Gs. Dividends at 0 per cent on cumulative preference shares, paid Feb. 1 and August 1, absorbed -£3745 16s Sd, leaving a divisible profit of -29698 9s 4d. Out of this sum the directors recommended the payment of a dividend of 4 per cent, free of income tax, on the ordinary shares, absorbing .69000 and leading £6Qk 9s 4d to be carried, forward. The report pointed out that this being the first year of the company's business, sufficient time had hardly elapsed to enable shippers from the Axiatralasian colonies to fully appreciate the benefits of the organisation offered by the company. Continuous efforts were being made to open new channels for the better distribution of frozen meat in the different parts of the United Kingdom and abroad, aud during the year upwards of -£6000 had been spent in conducting and extending the company's provincial departments. The Chairman, Mr E. Montague Nelson, explained that the reason for tlie small profit made was that though the number of consignors had increased, the quantity of meat sold was less, mainly owing to Mesßrs Nelson Bros, having made smaller shipments than in the previous two years. The question of distribution was receiving the first attention. The company had over five thousand customers, most of them independent of Smithfield Market, which showed that they were doing what nobody else connected with the frozen meat trade had attempted to do. They had travellers throughout the whole of Great Britain, and received orders from them regularly, besides a great many by post irom customers. The profit made was less than a halfpenny pei* sheep sold. He held very strongly that ifc was best to make use of existing organisations, rather than open their own shops for the sale of meat, &a. There wero large importers of meat, mainly from North and South America, and two of them, at any rate, had 500 shops each. This company had 5000 shops and 5000 shopkeepers working for themselves, not employed by the company, and he maintained that this system was far better than the company's attempting to set up shops for itself. They had also stalls at Smithfield, and could sell them on equal terms with anybody. The report and balancesheet were adopted, and the retiring directors and auditors re-elected. The Australasian oi Nov. 7 says : — The prospects of the crops in both South Australia and Victoria are generally of a gloomy character. The distribution of the better or worse yields in Victoria will probably be different from last year, but although it is still early to fovni definite estimates, it is doubtful whether the yield will be any better than last yeai*. If an average of five bushels were realised, the total yield would amount to about 7,500,000 bushels, which would barely be sufficient to supply the requirements of the oolony for seed and food for the next twelve months. If the average were four bushels, the yield would be about 6,000,000 bushels, and if the average were six bushels the yiold would be about 9,000,000 bushels. If the outturn is less than five bushels per acre, then it will probably be necessary to import. The cost of importing Californian wheat, in the present state of the outside markets, woidd probably be about 6s 3d to 6s 4d. A farmer, residing about 150 mile 3 north from Adelaide, writes to the Chronicle -. — " We have not averaged more than seed for three years, and farmers generally are oiit of heart and cash, or anything that can be converted into cash, and are much concerned t keep their stock alive, wondering where seed wheat is to come from, and how to keep the wolf from the door until next harvest. Most of us aro overstocked, and the conservation of fodder, such as straw and wheat, chaff, &c, is altogether inadequate. The climate, land, and rainfall are all good enough, if we only had sense sufficient to work with and assist nature, that is, judging the probabilities of the future with the experiences of the past. When we get three, four, and five good seasons in succession, we act as if we were never to see another drought, and now it is the otlier extreme. How we are to raise the seed for next year is the question — by begging, borrowing, or stealing — for certainly we cannot pay for it. As most of the land is leased, moneylenders won't look at it, even if it is improved with stone buildings, fences, wells of good water, &c, amounting in some cases to as much as .£1 per aero." The average prices of some of the leading descriptions of grain at Mark Lane on Oct. 1, of the last four years, is computed by the Mark Lane Express to be as follows : —English wheat— lß93, 275 ; 1894, 20s ; 1895, 235; 1896, 255. Australian and Californian wheat— lß93, 295 ; 1894, 235 ; 1895, 255 ; 1596, 30s. English barley— lß93, 28s; 1594, 235 ; 1895, 245 ; 1896, 255. English oats— lß93, 18s ; 1894, 165 ; 1895, 14s ; 1896, 14s. American oats— lß93, 17s ; 1894, 18s ; 1895, 14s ; 1596, 135. Top price flour— lß93, 28s ; 1894, 255 ; 1895, 255 ; 1896, 28s. The American Agncxdtunst states that about 32,000 farms in Ohio changed hands last year, for a total of 46,000,000 dollars. The prices ranged from eight dollars to sevonty-seven dollars per acre, the average ' being about thirty dollars per acre. The average size of the farms was about fortyeight acres. Ifc is reported that Dr Wynne, who took '. up the tick investigations at Hughenden ' during Dr Hunt's absence, has discovered ' a simple method by which cattle can safely ] withstand tick infestation. The suggested ■ offer of a big reward for a system of pre- ' vention or treatment is bringing forward ! ; some very extraordinary proposals. Dosing ' the cattle with spiced ale, rubbing the spine with asetic aoid, and the giving of ■ certain draughts to ordinary run cattle, * are among the suggestions. * Professor Koch, the eminent bacteriologist of Berlin, is visiting Cape Colony in . order to make enquiries in regard to the ' rinderpest in South Africa. The mission , is undertaken at the request of the Cape * Government. ' The management of Dookie (Victoria) c Agricultural College is being assailed very s strongly. One paper says :— " The patrons * of Dookie Agricultural College have met . and quaffed champagne and patted each J other on the back, but Mr Kennedy, 4 M.L.A., had the courage to suggest that a model farm that contained first-class land ? and only ran 300 sheep on 800 acres, and t closed the year with a. loss of .£3OOO, was s not worth copying, and that any farmer who managed his farm on these lines would t soon be insolvent. Of course there was a * protest. Oue of the speakers said agri- j: cultural colleges 'were not to show t balance-sheets, but to give education.' ? Education in what ? Spending .£3OOO per * annum more than we earn, and running t 300 sheep on 800 acres! Not a very i desirable education for . young Vie- \ torians!" i