SWINDLING IN THE LIVE STOCK EXPORT TRADE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1485, 17 February 1887, Page 3

SWINDLING IN THE LIVE STOCK EXPORT TRADE.

The other day we noticed m at' Ausr?iian country paper, m the lettei of a correspondent, a statement that th. writer was of opinion that a mistak was boing made m the purchase a high figures nl Ayrshire cattle imported from New Zealand, as he found that iia large number of instances, so far from the imported cows proving more profitable for dairy purposes than Australian-bred cattle, they wen very indifferent milkers, and indeed yielded less milk than the common run of cows of the district from which he wrote. Knowing something of the qualities of the genuine Ayrshire, we read this wi'h great surprise, and indeed were wholly at a loss to account for so curious an experience, until m the last issue of the Canterbury limes we lighted upon the explanation. This is, it appears, that the animals complained of are not Ayrshires at all, but have been foisted upon the Australian market by dishonest dealers m stock — may. we not call them "stock-sharpers ?' —as the genuine article. The same eort of thing appears to be going on also m respect to horse stock, and the whole matter is of such direct interest to all breeders —nay, indirectly of such ' universal interest for the colonists ol Ntfw Zealand— that we are tempted to reproduce our contemporary's remarks m full. This, then, is what the Times sa y S : — " A most unsatisfactory p>int m connection with the trade m live stock from New Zealand to Australia is the great number of complaints that have been, and are still being, made m Australia, that the stock, particularly Ayrshire cattle and Clydesdale mares, turn out very unsatisfactorily, considering the high-class pedigrees which were attached to them at the time of their sale m Melbourne or Sydney by the importers. For a long-time we deemed the complaints to be the idle grumblings of discontented purchasers, who had not found their own ideal standard of type or quality to be realised m their New Zealand bred animals on closer acquaintance with them. During the last few months the allegations that the pedigrees of a large proportion of the stock imported into Australia have been fraudulent, and concocted only to impart fictitious values to very ordinary animals, have been so persistent and direct that we have taken an opportunity of enquiring what foundation there is for such serious imputations. We were aware that a number of very good Clydesdale mares, shipped to Melbourne from Otago some six or eight months ago, were advertised, for sale m the Australian papers as having been stinted to a sire who is the champion Clydesdale of New Zealand. The whole surroundings of the business appeared most genuine. A Dunedin firm of auctioneers, well known and of the highest standing, were advertised as being the consignors of the horses — though it afterwards transpired that they acted only as shipping agents m the matter — and equally respectable salesmen disposed of the consignment m Melbourne. It is some satisfaction »hat the owner of the entire alluded to heard of the misrepresentations that were being made m time to give them public exposure before the sale. Several New Zealand bred draught entires have gone to Sydney and Melbourne, whose pedigrees also are regarded with the gravest doubt ; and the consequence is that the name of New Zealand has fallen m the esteem of the ordinary breeder m Australia. The breeder of what may be designated " select " stock has nothing to fear, dealing, as he does, direct with men whose probity is beyond suspicion, and who would not imperil the reputation of their studs by any transaction to which the slightest doubt could be attached. With cattle, and especially Ayrshire cows, the evil practices have assumed far larger dimensions. We hear of a large mob of reputed Ayrshires being landed m Melbourne some time back, and advertised as being bred by one of the most celebrated breeders of that variety, when m fact not one of the animals had ever set hoof upon his estate, or could even claim relationship" with his stock, although printed extended pedigrees, including the most beautiful of his lines of breeding, were circulated among intending buyers. In Sydney the same thing has happened frequently, and it is from thence and Queensland that the most recent and strongest complaints proceed. The demand during the last year or two for well-bred cows to form the foundation of herds m New South Wales and Queensland to replace those broken up by the long drought, seems to have afforded the unprincipled dealer an opportunity, of which he has availed himself to the full, of palming off upon the less experienced among the herdmaslers of those colonies a quantity of cattle sometimes not even of ordinary quality, under the representation that they were well and purely bred. No greater wrong than this can be perpetrated upon the honest, stockbreeder, be he buyer or seller. Those m Australia who know who is who m New Zealand are few and far between, and the reputation of this colony as a whole is made to suffer for the acts of a few unprincipled individuals. It is a matter of vital importance to our breeders of live stock, that such impostures should be rendered impossible or nearly so ; and the detection of any such fraud should be followed by the severe punishment of the evil-doer, even if the proceedings should be attended by considerable expense and trouble. We have it on the authority of the representatives of Queensland — a practically unstocked colony — at the recent Stock Conference m Sydney, that it is to New Zealand they look for new strnins of blood for old herds, and for animals of undoubted purity of breeding to form the nucleus of new herds ; and our stnek- breeders cannot hope to maintain their standing as a source of supply of this character, so long as they allow the nefarious proceedings which we Have named to go unchecked." The Times has rendered a service to the farmers and breeders of the colony by drawing attention to the mischief which is going on — for mischief it is — and it is certainly desirable that active steps should bz taken to counteract «t. It is suggested (and the suggestion is a good one) that the subject is one which may well engage the attention of the various Agricultural and Pastoral Associations, with a view to joint action for the protection of the interests of the Colony j and it should

also, we think, be brought under the notice of the Government. This might be done very easily just at this moment, seeing that the Colonial Secretary, to whose branch of the administratoin the question belongs, is now m this I?lai>ri on business connected with the Stock Department.