THE FARM

Waikato Times, Volume 89, Issue 13851, 31 August 1918, Page 8

THE FARM

AGRICULTURAL EVENTS .FOR WEEK ENDING SEP. 7. MONDAY. Cambridge Spring Cattle Sale TUESDAY. Ohaupo Stock Sales Hikutaia Stock Sale WEDNESDAY. Hamilton Di.iry Cow Sales Ngatoa Stock Sale Otorohanga Stock Sale Oparau Stock Sale •Matamata Stock Sale Cambridge Spring Horse Sale THURSDAY. Hamilton Stock Sales Matamata Stock Sale Cambridge Spring Horse Sale FRIDAY. Kauroa Stock Sales Waihou Stock Sale Ngaruawahia Stock Sale.

I East Coast Cropping— As the spring draws nearer and the land dries up, it is evident that there is going to he an unusual amount of land sown in oats in the Povery Bay district. A good deal of ploughing is taking place, and sowing is on fast. Many paddocks which have been used for grazing are being turned over, ready for the crop. Export of Lambs— There is an opinion prevalent among a large number of Wairarapa farmers that considerable difficulty will be experienced in getting away lambs during the coining season. In order to meet this farmers are turning up much larger areas of land than usual this year with the object of putting it down in root crops. Certainly the outlook for shipping is not bright, and farmers are wise in making the preparations they have. Tasmanian Stock Return— The Government Statistician, dealing with the reported scarcity of stock : n Tasmania, has supplied figures which •show that in March last there were 1.332,725 sheep, 37t>,(>17 lambs, «>1,97G cattle (exclusive of calves), and 54,(570 pigs. In every instance there is an increase as compared with the previous year. The claim that there is a shortage of beef is held to be a fact, because there has been a regular export of cattle to the mainland for some months. Sheep for Japan— It was recently reported that a shipment of sheep had been made from South America to Japan, and it is now recorded that the third' shipment of Shropshires has been made from Sydney to the same country. The latter shipment consisted of 300 stud ewes from New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmanian breeders. As there is only a small area of land in Japan itself for sheep raising, it is probable that an effort will be made to develop the industry in Korea. Going "Dry." Following the lead of the Melbourne ' Royal Agricultural Society, and at the Request of the war-time prohibition business men's committer the council of the Perth Royal Agricultural Society, on July 11 decided to go "dry" at this year's show. The Rochester Agricultural and Pastoral Society recently resolved, by 17 votes to 10, to follow the example of the Royal Agricultural Society by forbidding the sale of intoxicating drinks at the next show or the free distribution of samples of wines. A committee of churches and temperance bodies lias offered to give the society £2O in heu of booth receipts. Stud Sheep for U.S.A.

Acting under instructions from Mi William Perry, of 'Penrose," Masterton, Messrs Murray, Roberts and Co. Ltd., have shipped to San Francisco tor the Department of Agriculture, Olympia State, one Corriedale ram from the stud of Mr C. H. Elisor; one Romney Marsh ram from Mr William Perry's "Penrose" stud; and 2& Romney Marsh ewes from Mr Alfred Matthews' stud. The consignment is a very high-class lot, and experts consider same to be the best line of sheep that have left New Zealand for America.

Stock Prices at Home.. As showing the high prices ruling tor stock and produce in the Old Country, the Hon. D. Buddo has received a letter from a friend in Avrshire, a dairy farmer, staing milk and cheese is in great demand. Milk off tie farm is quoted at is 0d a gallon, cheese i .P*^™' 1 - for s P ri "g m ake ,ten weeks old pigs £5 14s, good milk cows up to £/0, and good draught horses fit tor town work from £BO to £2OO The scarcity in horses is due to extra

ploughing and tree carting, many of the best animals having gone to France, where their life was very short. Local tribunals are verv numeious, such as food production committees, food control committees, soldiers and sailor?' pension committees, and so on. The authorities are calling up 30,000 more young men from the farms from 19 to 23, and if thev do not relieve some lower-grade men from the Army they will he left very short, j handed for harvest.

Treatment of Gadflies— A novel but very effective method or protecting lambs from gadflies has been in use for some time at the Texas Experiment Station, the authorities of winch now recommend its use. It consists of using the salt trough to applv Pine tar to the lambs to kkep the gadflics away from the nasal cavities The trough is the usual one used in the States for the purpose, and is generally about /,in by Gin by .'ift. In front oj "us a board 3iin wide is placed » " n g the length of the trough and about 3in from the ground. This board is covered with a strip of sheepskin with the wool side out, and this sheepskin is smeared with p j ne tar every evening just before bringing the lambs into the pasture. Both the lambs and older sheep smear their noses with the tar, and this has been found to be very effective in preventing the gadflies from depositing eggs in the nasal cavities, where, as a rule, most mischief is done by this pest. Look at Her Teeth—

In buying a row, says a writer in a dairying paper, the teeth should not escape examination if an intelligent purchase is to he. made, if id,. 1• > * -11 ■ fire poor or lacking, age has made perfect mastication impossible. The teeth must lie sound as an indication of soundness and strength of constitution "i" "cfliciency" in the soldier. So, too, the cow Unit is to eat well and last well must have sound teeth. The jnris"i' Icelll of cattle are directed upward, shovel-shaped and loose in their sockets. Many a beginner in dairying M ; IS 1 11 "fooled" by this natural condilion into imagining all sorts of trouble as the cause. The teeth are loose and projecting thai they may nol [■•""'■ rate the hard palate of the upper jaw which serves the purpose of an upper set of incisors. If the cow is •luite old the broad part of the incisor teeth will he found much worn or wholly worn off, so that mere rounded slut's of the necks of the teeth remain. A cow in that condition s raivl> a profitable investment unless sl|r is ; ' purebred, and famous producer of tine calves.

MONEY IN MILK. Sumo interesting figures were quoted I'.v Mr A. Uuchtinan, at a meeting of Manawatu milk suppliers, convened by him to consider the question of returns liom various milk products. After explaining that it would ho necessary to have one large, company, he said ho considered that every farmer could increase his returns by 50 per cent if matters were managed in a proper manner. He quoted figures prepared mi the authority, of Professor van Sl.vek. Professor van Puhlow, .Messrs Harrington and Well, and Mr Decker, the latter of whom was the greatest authority in the world on cheese-mak-ing. In ]()() pounds of milk (of a 3.8 per cent tost) 20 pounds wore used for cheese-making, in which were 7.1i1b of solids. In the remaining £() p ( » r ( . cn t they wore—3.B pounds of sugar, .28 of whey fat, and fi pounds of albumen The choose (10 4-10lh) at l()£d per pound was worth 9s, the whov fat at Is 4d per pound sd, and the sugar at Is 9d per pound 7s Bd, a total of 17s Id for lOOlh of milk. On a hasis of 3.8 per cent of fat this worked out at 4s s£d per pound. In lOOlh of milk used for butter making, 4| pounds of butter at Is 5d per pound would be (is 4£d, the casein from the butter-milk 6£d, the sugar from butter-milk Is 3£d, casein from the skim milk 2s (id, sugar from skim milk (is 10fd, a total'of 17s "id. On the basis of a 3.8 tost of but-ter-fat this would moan 4s 7£d per lb. The commercial casein included the albumen and ash in the milk, in the same way, as skimmed dried milk included sugar of milk, albumen and ash. Allowing 25 per cent for the cost of manufacture, interest, and depreciation on plant and machinery, and the expenses of marketing, this would leave 3s per pound for butter-fat. He considered that 25 per cent was ample to allow for expenses. In the anxiety that appears to lie manifest at the present time to get every penny out of the treatment of milk in one form or another, the fact appears to be lost sight of that the dairy herds of the country cannot be kept up if the calves are not fed. In all the discussions that have so far been reported, no mention is made of the calf, and the pig is like, wise left out of calculations". Even under present conditions, when there is so much skim milk and whey available. tlie calf, as has so often l)een pointed out, is not being properly fed. The calf of the future is apparently in for a worse time.

TYPE IN DAIRY CATTLE. Long and familiar observation of various breeds of dairy cattle has confirmed the belief that excellent dairy properties are found in connection with heads and countenances of almost every sort, says a writer in the Live Stock Journal. A preference, however, would seem to be reasonably due to nicely moulded heads of feminine type for the cow and of masculine type for the bull, and we must take it as a general law that where the tendency to develop what are termed the secondary sexual characters is strong, it is so iii both sexes. For this reason the true match for a cow of dstinctly feminine form and character is a bull of strongly marked masculine character.

The tiuly masculine-looking bull becomes the sire of heifers of refined feminine type, and the truly femininelooking cow the dam of 'bulls distinguished by masculine grandeur. There are, of course, exceptions. Wo must make allowances for ill-assorted couples, whose offspring are sometimes exceedingly disappointing. When a coarse, gaunt, rough-looking cow is m.ited with a bull of strong male character, it is not unlikely that her son may grow up a bull altogether lacking the sex assertion of his sire. He nwy have size, yet a head more like that of an ox, or like that of his dam, than that of a bull; a neck wanting the massive crest of the arch; long and oxlike horns, and a frame generally on the lines of the form of the ox, not of the bull.

In different families of Shorthorns, and also of many other breeds, the hereditary tendency to produce milk differs considerably. In some the milking power seems to be lost. Probably it [s not irrecoverable, but when it'has been long neglected restoration is usually a work of long time, unless hastened by the introduction of strains of blood in which the milking power

is great. To work up from bad milkers only, especially if the deficiency or milk has been iong a characteristic 'of the breed, is a slow, yet by no means a hopeless, process. The restoration of milking powers, once great, after only a short interval )t neglect and consequent loss is comparatively easy, and may be even quickly effected. Indeed, under conditions favourable to the production of milk rather than to the growth of beef we often see without any special and conducive effort on the breeder's part instances of reversion to the great •airy properties of a family in which the production of milk had been lessened either by neglect or bv special efforts to increase, at all costs, the production of beef. It is impossible to lay down anv positive rule as to the government of o ours m Shorthorns, because the laws winch govern them scen , to elude exact discovery. Reversion and atavism 'we a good deal to do with it. A few Kenernl principles are acknowledged, •'Kh as, !(„• instance, that the offspring of a red animal and white animal should be roan, and that a white »"«naU-i|l not produce a red, nor a ml animal a white. Particular facts hm,.ever, present exceptions to these VVHI-ostlHihshed general propositions I here have been examples of two red . l '"'nalsand also „f two whites produe groans. With regard to the alliance ' \ llt( ' ;, " fl «»». generally the colour ol their otfspnng will be, , lot M „,.,„,. suppose, a diluted roan, a roan paler of the roan parent.bu puie'wint" 0l "" ,te '" da * k *«> » r