On the Land

New Zealand Tablet, 28 January 1915, Page 59

On the Land

GENERAL.

> Farmers have made splendid progress with their farm work since New Year (says the 'Southland Daily News), and the turnip crop, which at Christmas time promised to be a failure, is right now, and all over Southland looking well. f

Mr. Thomas Dowling, of Springfield, Methven, has established a record with a paddock of lambs this season that will be hard to beat (says the Ashburton Guardian) . The lambs, which were by Southdown rams out of Romney ewes, were dropped in the first week of September, and on January 4 (four months after birth) were railed to Islington. They were killed on the 11th, and the total (429) gave 16811 b of fat, or an average of 3.951 b. The net average of 69 of them was 54.151 b; another lot of 137 averaged 46.271 b, and another of 114 went 39.641 b.

The number of horses at the front with the British Force is about 120,000. These figures are startling, considering that the total horse population in agricultural England and Wales, taken at the last census in June, 1914, was 1,399,540, of which 791,320 were horses exclusively used for agricultural purposes, including mares for breeding. To have raised 120,000 head of horses usable in every branch of the service, reflects the greatest credit upon the horse-breeding industry of the country. As yet very few of the foreign and colonial-bought horses can be in the firing line, but as the wastage of war carries off with it enormous losses and demands the immediate filling of the ranks with substitutes, their chance will not be long in com-

mg. There were small to medium yardings in all departments at Burnside last week, consequently prices of fat sheep and fat cattle showed an improvement on last sale, whilst lambs brought late rates, and pigs were easier. The following are the quotations: —Fat Cattle.- —There was a medium yarding of 154 head. Prices on account of exporters were much firmer, ox beef selling as high as 44s per 1001 b. Best bullocks, £ls to £l7; extra, to £2l; medium, £l3 to £l4 10s; inferior, £ll to £l2: best cows and heifers, £ll to £l2; extra, £18; medium, £8 10s to £9 10s; inferior, £7 to £B. Fat Sheep.—A medium yarding of 1755, consisting of fair quality. Prices were firmer than those of previous week by about Is per head. Best wethers, 26s to 275; extra, to 32s 6d ; medium, 21s to 225; inferior, 19s to 20s; best ewes, 22s to 24s ; extra, to 27s 6d; medium, 17s to 18s; inferior, 14s to 16s. Fat Lambs. There was a small yarding of fair quality. Best lambs, 18s to 19s; extra, to 22s 3d; medium, 16s to 17s; inferior, 13s to 15s. Pigs.— was a small yarding. Prices for porkers and baconers were easier. Suckers, 5s to 10s; slips, 12s to 17s; stores, 19s to 245; porkers, 35s to 465; baconers, 52s to 695; choppers, to 85s. At Addington last week there were again fairly large entries of stock and a good attendance. Fat cattle sold at about late rates. Store sheep Avere in keen demand, and fat lambs and fat ewes were firmer. Fat Lambs. —Extra prime heavy lambs, to 25s Id; tegs, 20s 6cl to 23s 6d; average weights, 17s to 20s; light and unfinished, 15s to 16s 6d; prime wethers, 22s 6d to 26s Id; others, 17s 6d to 225. Fat 'Sheep.—Merino wethers, 17s 3d to 18s; prime ewes, 20s to 24 s lOd; others, 15s to 19s 6d : merino ewes, 14s lid ; hoggets, 17s 3d to 21s 9d. Fat Cattle.—Ordinary steers, £8 to £l2; extra good steers, to £2l ss; ordinary heifers, £7 10s to £9 10s; extra heifers, to £l2 ss; ordinary cows, £5 17s 6d to £7 ; extra good cows, to £l4 ss. Price of beef per 1001 b, 32s 6d to 42s 6d; extra, to 455. pigs. Choppers, 50s to 80s; light baconers, 46s to 52s ; heavy baconers, 54s to 65s ; extra heavy baconers, to 72s (price per lb, s|d) ; light porkers, 28s to 335, heavy porkers, 34s to 40s (price per lb, s|d to 5 4 d).

TIME WATER FOR CALVES.

Calves which are being fed from the bucket often benefit considerably by being given some lime water, a useful form of treatment for troubles like diarrhoea and indisgestion. The proportions may be of some such ratio as a quarter or one-third of lime water to the ration of milk. This prevents acidity and also the formation of the milk into unduly large and indigestible curds. Lime water is mad© by adding two ounces of slaked lime to, say, half a dozen pints of water. The mixture should be stirred briskly and then allowed to settle. The undissolved matter will go to the bottom of the vessel, and the lime water can then be poured off. The solution is then ready for use.

COLOR OF HORSES.

Inheritance of Color in Horses is the title of a pamphlet received from the Kentucky Experiment (Station by Mr. W. S. Anderson, who says: —‘This study gives the laws by which colors in horses are inherited. Grey color is dominant to bay, black, and chestnut; bay has the next greatest strength to that of grey, while chestnut is the weakest of all, or is recessive to all colors. Black behaves as a recessive to bay and grey just as bay behaves as a recessive to grey. Except in exceptional cases horse colors do not blend, but behave as unit characters. The recessive colors like chestnut and black may bo submerged for generations, and then reappear. When a.strong dominant like grey disappears it cannot again be obtained without going back to it. Sex has nothing to do with the transmission of color. That sex controls the color which in the particular mating possesses the dominant color. A wellbred sire cannot control the color of his offspring if he is bred to mares whose color is dominant to his. We consider the solution of color inheritance merely as the entering wedge in the scientific discovery of horse breeding. It will at least indicate the means and methods by which the laws governing the inheritance of more valuable qualities can be discovered.’

DUNEDIN WOOL SALES.

The second wool sale of the season was held in the Art Gallery Mall, Dunedin, on Tuesday of last week, 23,533 bales being offered, as compared with 15,869 at the first sale. The Dunedin Woolbrokcrs’ Association reports as follows; —The same buyers were operating who were in evidence at the December series, and competition throughout the day was fully maintained—the buying power remaining unsatisfied at the finish. The sharp rise which took place for crossbreds in the south at the recent sale came as a pleasant surprise to wool growers, and it was still more gratifying to find a further improvement in the market yesterday on that advance in values of strong wools of quite id per lb. Crossbred.—Market very strong, showing an increase of Id to 21,d on December sale, though the selection of crossbred clips generally showed much better condition. Demand was brisk throughout. Halfbreds. —Best wools unchanged, but shabbier sorts were weaker by id per lb, with a reduced demand. Merino showed an improvement on December rates of l>d to Id per lb, but heavy conditioned lines were still neglected, and generally prices for these were not acceptable _to growers. Pieces, necks, and super pieces showed an improvement of id to Id, but ordinary bellies and pieces did not, owing to heavier condition, meet with the keen competition experienced for the higher grades, values of which remain at about December parity. Locks. —Good demand, best lines showing an improvement of up to ■ id per lb; but heavy sorts were rather weaker.