On the Land

New Zealand Tablet, 5 November 1914, Page 59

On the Land

' • : —• ! I " GENERAL. 1 //V ZZi § rrvu The poultryman should realise that he is"• constantly threatened with .loss from the various poultry ailments; that these may be largely warded off by proper methods of. breeding and management, that ‘ an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,’ and then act upon this knowledge to the end that his flocks may be kept - healthful and profitable. . * - - ' / -The following . dates have been fixed for the New Zealand -wool sales for the 1914-15 season : —November ;|2, Christchurch ;TBth, Wellington; 21st Napier;«26th/ Auckland ;y December :: 2,; Timaru ; 7th, Christchurch ; ITth, Wellington 6th, Napier; 23rd, Dunedin; January 6, Timaru ; T lth, Christchurch"; 15th, Invercargill; 20th, Dunedin;' 26th, Wellington; 29th Napier; Feb . ruary 3, Auckland; ' Bth, Christchurch; 12th, ‘ Inver/? Cargill; 16th, Dunedin; 19th, Timaru; 23rd, Napier 26th, Wellington» . . - • - v“ - ' w ' // . |, The Christchurch Press says: Potato growers have; now come to the conclusion that the market is past all hope of recovery, and in consequence have been feeding - them to; stock for the! past week of two. . - It -' is - hot an easy matter to find out correctly the amount potatoes : unsold . thx'ougliput, the "various districts, but it can be safely said, that hundreds of tons remain in pits towards the Stoney- Gully and Southbridge to Little Rakaia dis- ‘ trict. In several cases farmers holding the crop of 10 acres upward only sold a few tons-at first, preferring to pit than take the price offered, I ■ South Canterbury farmers (says the ‘ Timaru Herald) are very anxiously waiting for. rain by reason - , of the absence of which there' has been' practically no spring so far. , Cereal crops are almost at, a standstill for want of s moisture; there is no growth in the grass, which is particularly wanted now for the lambs and their mothers, and the country does- not j>ear anything ' like the . pleasing aspect which it usually has at this time of year. ? Generally speaking, the lambing percentages are high, but if rain does not soon come there will’ be a heavy mortality among the flocks. ! The following is the Burnside. f stock report:—Fat : Cattle.//! yarded. 1 In consequent of the small yarding competition Was . keen, and an advance of from : 10s to 15s per head on previous week’s rates. Quotations: Best? bullocks, -?£l4' to. £l6 10s; extra, to £2l 15s; medium to good, £ll to £l3;’ best cows and heifers, £9 10s to £l3; extra, to £ls 2s 6d / others, £6 10s . to £8 15s. . Fat /Sheep.—-1778 penned. .? The sale opened with prices : about Is to Is’ 3d in,advance of previous week’s-rates / but as it progressed values ’ receded ; somewhat, and at • the - close of the sale. prices were on a par with last . week’s quotations. Best wethers brought from 27s fid t0,30s fid; ' extra, to 40s / medium to good, 2'4s 9d to ; 255. fid; best ewes, 26s to 31s; others, 21s to 255; best : shorn "wethers/ to 245. fid; best ewes (extra), . to 265. Fat Lambs'.t—Oiily ? 78 were /pen as compared with 83 G of-„ the ' previous week. J 3 rices showed an advance of about Is fid per head. . Pigs.---Ninetystores and ' 60 fats-/ -were penned.' The yarding of both fats? and stores' was. in excess:of the requirements,, and prices showed a drop of from 5s to 7s fid and 3s and 4s respectively. : / - /'? At the Addington live stock market last week there; were rather ’larger entries, qf all .closes of stock? and there was a good, attendance. .Fat cattle were •; somewhat ; easier, and there was a drop in fat lambs in consequence of. a very large entry/There was no change in store sheep, and. fat sheep were firm. Fat Lambs.—Prime lambs, 16s fid to 21s; lighter, 10s to 16s. Fat Sheep.— Prime woolly? wethers, 24s fid to 30s 9d; others, '2ls to 245; prime shorn wethers, 22s fid to? 26s 9d ; others, 19s fid to 225; woolly merino wethers, 23s 3d; shorn merino . wethers,/ 16s 9d ./ prime woolly ewes, y.22s , fid to - 325; / others, ? 21s 9d? to ? 235; prime shorn ewes, .2 Is fid to 265; others, 11s lOd to 21s; woolly hoggets, '2os?.9d ; to-24s fid. •-i ■ J 'r- » -V ■£!--'»?. ’ni-rr&er-Fat Cattle. Extra ; good ; steers, .; to £l7 *ss; ; 'ordinary steers/ £8 to £ll ; extra good heifers, to £l2 15s /?: ordinary heifers, £6 to ;/ £9 10s; extra good cows, to £l2 ss; : ordinary cows, £5 10s to £9. Price of beef per

1001 b, 34s to 445. Pigs.-—Choppers, 55s to 80s: extra heavy baconers, to 755; heavy baconers,' 60s to 70s: ordinary baconers, 50s to 57a 6d— r price per pound SJB-; heaVy porkers, 42s to '#.l r i lighter porkers, 36s to 40s—price per pound, best stores, 30s" to 33s 6d; medium stores, 23s to 295; small stores, 17s to 225; weaners 8s to 15s. ■ . . - ■ om £M ■ * —-—— -7- —-——’ .’■ - •;•*•_:■?.:?•.-fV>4 -_*. '' HEATED HAYSTACKS. '-I fs, As ig usual every hay time, therei are hot ricks about, some- just warm enough to give the necessary conditions of sweating that are conducive to good fodder; others heated to a point of giving anxiety and? the necessity ■of cutting ; and . others,, again, * that have actually, fired. > : J-' ■■. ••■ ■ -/■••- . > / , We cannot help thinking that when the latter? - . state sof affairs,-prevails, farmers are -to blame either _ for the want of better judgment, or on account of a r parsimonious spirit as regards labor and expense,"they are .prompted, even in, the best of weather, to put hay? •together * in- the stack-before it is really dry or has had J time to become properly made. ' • - . / Setter take , the risk, we say, of having poor hay; than encounter the. danger of getting it destroyed . by fire. •' ; £/'■*&:■ /' ; k:S{i /“/.V-lt •- • . ■- / THE PARMER AS A BUSINESS MAN. ?/| •Do hot despise V your occupation as a farmer, no- - matter what is said or written (says the Ontario; Farmers’ Advocate). Farming is the biggest job in' the world to-day,’ and has some of the best men in the 5 world working towards its advancement. It has become! a common saying that the farmer is not enough of a business man to successfully compete - in these strenuous times, and some say that it is because of his lack of business acumen that he is not given more favors in a r financial way by moneyed corporations. Be that as it may we venture to say that if a good many of the ; advisers-—business men in ‘ Big Business ’ were obliged to earn every dollar they make by the sweat of their brow and by live-and-let-live business ~principles, the - farmers’ lot would be easier to-day; and. he would have more cause to be looked upon by other professions as A, business . We said at the outset that l agriculture is-a big man’s job, and so it is. With weeds and weather to contend against, scarcely any good-farm labor available, and. every other industry taking all possible advantage of the inability of the man who must work long hours with his hands ? six days • a week, how can. ho find time to develop as he would Tike, the financial and , social side of life, which give polish: and . insight into the ways of the world. Many of our financiers have hot had as much ability as lies latent in many busy tillers of : the' soil, but/they simply grasped the /opportunity laid bare before their eyesj and once they got a little money they had the whip-hand and more cam© at their bidding. They were Big; enough ?to amass great. fortunes, but"many could never have been ful farmers. -The farmer’s! job is the; biggest 'job in: % this country, -and he who masters it '. achieves'success as great as, and ■ far more deserving ■than that of tjho millionaire who ; has manipulated, other people’s money to enrich 'himself . - • ~ * - ~ • ■ •«. • - > ■■■ ... —.-- U , 4-r- DISTRIBUTION mSP FOOD PRODUCTS. >£ , . As an example of the eagerness with which all questions of the distribution of food products is being I taken up (says the Journal of Agriculture) , the following is instanced : It /s notified that : there is another' competitor for trading fin 1 food products i from ' the coun-i tries bordering on the Pacific. f?- Russia is/ ! it. is ; said, I preparing to take advantage of the line of ’ steamships; fitted with refrigeration-chambers, ; that will sail -from!, .Vladivostok- The note goes on to describe the railway/ cars that will make the long journey through Russia .in Europe and Asia. /These cars will distribute' their* freights in" Siberian cities. They are to reload . with meat and butter, and to finally ; deliver their food products’ to ships at Vladivostok —it is assumed, to Europe via Panama. It is not suggested that there h!eed be immediate-apprehension op the part of New Zealand in respect of this announced competition. . .