GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1004, 20 December 1910, Page 8

GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

In the Wairarapa generally the paddocks hear a fairly fresh appearance, though in some quarters rain is needed.,' A memorial alluding to the necessity of adequately supporting agricultural research has been presented to the Prime Minister of England. ; • - The gelding trade in England seems to be at the height of its' prosperity -now. At one of the October sales 146 guineaswas • paid for. a three-year-old gelding.. There .'is no doubt that the heavy • horse is" a splendid investment for the "farmer just now, remarks the "Farmer and' Stockbreeder." , -A -new barley, called "Odorbrneheri" is being watched in the United States. This is a variety • which' originated on the-Wisconsin Experiment Station farm, and which, is being, extensively grown and sold by the members of- the Wisconsin Experiment Association. .Reports received, from 922 members of this association for the '.year 190!), ,-who were . growing this barley..in- different :parts of the .State, show an average yield for four years of 32.8 bushels per acre; this was 4.7 bushelsabove the average-yield of the best varieties compared with-it. Mr." .T. TV'. Harding, the well-known Waipukurau breeder, contemplates -. A trip to England next year. New Zealand will nrobably Income richer by some valuable importations as a result' of Itr. Harding's visit. The Clelionger herd of Hereford cattle, owned by Mr. H: H. Kidler,; one of the. oldest. Jiiiglish. breeders, who bought nis foundation stock in -1860, was dispersed ' at the end of October. . A' travelling correspondent of The jjo.min'ion* states that on- the farm of air. Hare, in tho Kaipnroro district, there are the finest silver birch trees lie lias ever seen in -New Zealand, "'l'liey seem," ho says, "to. suit the soil and locality well. Mr. Hara is very proud of-them, and well he .should be, as 1 have never seen such fine specimens since 1 left the' Old Country." Pigs are still a source of great nrofit to the breeder, says the "Farmer and.Stock-, breeder" (London). Not only do they sell like the proverbial "hot cakes" as young stores,' but the butcher has to put up aseljd, substantial sum before he can buy' ripe-porkers.; ■ ' COMMERCIAL ITEMS. INVESTMENT SHARES. , Brokers do' riot expect; to do' much businea,, this'.week, and in ".any case, the -Exdov,n' ' or -the..holidays i y -iS t< ; rnoon - A sale ..of Bank of New Zealand shares at £10 13s. 6d. was tlie only transaction in investment shares recorded yesterday. The n.uotations were as .under:— f*§ BBjeHt.v .Seller* :. .. .. £ s. d j fjational. 8ank',:..;.:...?...;..'" 516 0 . 517 6 Bank of N.S.; Wales -... 4515' 0 Bank N.Z. 1013 0 10 15 0 Equitable Building S 12 6 — •Well.MJas (£10) 19 0 0 13 10 0 H*. 4 5 0 N.Zt. Shipping — 11 5 n Woollen (ord.) 3 15 0 • — Well. Woollen (pref.) 2 14 6 — Taupiri Coal 1 0 0-.. - 1 0 9 Westport-Stoekton- —' 0 7 0 Jjeyland-O'-Brien .- -1. 6'6 — Manning'and Co. ............ 4'76 : — Miramar, Ltd — -jK2 3 N.Z. Con. Dental ...!!!"!.!! 12 6 — N.Z. Paper Mills 133 _ Sharland's . 1 1 9 —. .Bharland-'s - Preference li-1, 9 ■'■ -J. 'Tario"Baifut« lotara: .t«arls.''o : - Ward and Co. ;.. .. •i • - 5-5 • 6 Whitcombe and Tombs... — 6 7 0 SOUECES OP MEAT SUPPLY.

„The' admitted scarcity of. meat on the Continent of iurope inußt lead to the exploitation of new sources of supply. It laweU. to bear in mind that the meats m& jt wanted- are beef 'and pork.. Mutton and. lamb are not consumed-to any extent on tho; Continent of Europe,' consequently the demand for such meat must be re* stricted. • The countries- -exporting beef, veal and porlc hay© a.chance now. But it .15 the nevj soutcca r .of supply, that must be taiien into account.' For instance,. France is looking to; Madagascar.*to. furnish- a considerable "Quantitvu.of/beef;. There are at present about ; 4,0*00,000 cattle in Madagascar, but, with scientific farming and careful breeding, the number .could 'be. increased, and the quality improved. There arcfreezing works on the-island,, so. that little is.required to, foster the export'trade. Furthermore, the French hare another sourcQ of supply in Algeria, and...with the extreme protectionist view?' that prevail, theSe new . sources of supply are certain to be developed.. .

• Germany,.' Spain,, .Italy," and .Belgium, with -their. African possessions and territories, may be trusted. to. follow'the ex.amp'ie of Franco. The countries likely to immediately benefit through- the ' meat famine , are some, of the' South American .Republics.- Paraguay offers a" vast arid lucrative field for cattle-raising, and the industries• • connocted' with it, and tho special correspondent of tho "British Trade Journal" writes very optimistically of the prospects. Foreign capitalists have not -been idle in the matter. A -French company possesses a' large cstancia, or cattle farm, in' Northern Paraguay. This establishment consists of about 18C0 srjuare miles, or.'nearly the extent-of Lancashire. The large stations in Australia are not to be compared with the virgin lands of Paraguay, where prolonged droughts are unknown, and where four or five times- as Pinny cattle can be carried to tho souare mile, and rivers, perfectly navigable to the', sea-, are' within, easy reach.- This .FrenolT estancia ,is divided ; into - seventeen different farms,, all in communication by telephone. It carries at present. about 150,000-head of cattle out of which 25,000 to, 30,000 .new calves arc branded every year,, .and. an output of 20,C00 head per annum-are sold to the 'F-aladero or-saltinc-down establishment of. r>, .capitalist...in Jlohte Video. It. is ; quite obvious that new and hitherto .neglected-,areas will be exploited for. meat supplies,, and'it will not be"ma.ny years before supplies' aro equal to the. demand.-

THE COTTON TRADE. The cotton spinners and manufacturers of Lancashire .experienced an : unprofitable time during'the twelve months ended November 30 last. This unfortunate, result gives, emphasis to the contention of some cotton, experts that in this, branch .of in-dustry,-Great Britain -is threatened. with the, loss of tho. supremacy so long'enjoyed by its. manufacturers. The Council, of tho Cotton Trade Reform Association, after conducting'an investigation as to the condition, of the..trade, has issued,a report in which it.touches, upon this aspect. It. is showu that, .whereas in 1846 there were in the United Kingdom 17,0C0.CC0 spindles, the rest of the world possessing 10.000.0C0. tho positions have, been so far reversed that Groat Britain has now only 56,000X00 and other countries 1iaye77,000,000. Tho figures are not challenged; indeed; judging by statistics prepared by the International Federation of Cotton Spinners' and manufacturers' Associations, they are rather an .under-stateraent of the care, for at the end of August tho organisation lastmentioned gave the total of British spinning spindles as 63,397,446, and thcee of tlis remainder of the world as 79,987,328. The high range of prices maintained for raw/cotton had told against manufacturers, and in this conncction it is significant tint whilst the exports from America for the twelve months to the ond of August last were 6,330,276 bales, valued at - £95,852,770. the quantity wa6 2,235,066 bales less, but the value was £8,<89,215 greater , than for the cotton year 19C8-1909. Tho condition of things in Lancashire has been embarrassing to spinners for some time past. If. is plated that during-the year ended August 31,- twenty-six limits in Great Britain gave up cotton spuming altogether. These owned 688,705 spmdlcs. In addition, tho completion of-several, nevv..mills was postponed indefinitely.. :It is /to be hoped. fli'ere f ore, ; that the improvement noted during the last three mouths will be main--1 «ained- :

' THE BUTTER MARKET. The dullness of trado in Tooley Street in. the week preceding Christmas is unusual. "Tho market is lifeless with a downward tendency" is the description cabled, and tnis will not be pleasant reading for those factories thai, have contracted to ship butter on open consignmcnt. Choicest' New Zealand butter is quoted at 106s. to 108s., while a, year ago 1 the prico was 110s. to 112?., and. the market displayed an upward • tendency.. The dealers who paid and Hid. per lb', stand to lose money on present prices, but there is always the chance of recovery later in -the season—about February or March. Tho dullness of the market is due to the fact that supplies are heavy. The Commonwealth has done exceptionally well this season. Up. to about a. fortnight ago the exports totalled 15,238 tons as against 11,012 tons in the previous season, and there were no indications that tho export business had nassed its zenith. On tho contrary, supplies were coming forward in undiminished volume, and there was intense activity on the part of shippers.

Customs Tevcriuc collected at the port Wellington yesterday.. amounted to £1932 12s.' 7d. PALMERSTOtf MAKKET REPORT. Harry Palmer reports an exceptionally busy day on Saturday, this heing the usual rush before Christmas. Tbe Tcport states: —"\Ve offered some Iso pigs, principally weaners, and with the exception of a boar and a- Bow, which were unsaleable, every head was sold at fair average pricec. In every instance quality counts. There was a good demand for. good porkers. Although we strongly advise to the contrary, vendors make the mistake of bringing in their poultry on the last week, with the result that, in some instances', thece is practically a glut. This can be readily understood when it is known that close on 1000 head of . fowls, ducks, geese, and turkeys*, went through our hands under the. hammer on Saturday. There is a keen demand -for. turkeys, which this year are scarcer than ever. Good fat cockered always find ready buyers. Most of the ducks brought-in-had neither size nor condition; good quality birds realised good prices. The prices for hens were on a par with the usual, prices that obtain at this time of the year. Plenty of. good vegetables are coming, forward, and flr.d ready sale. New potatoes are improving in size, and are firm, at'the prices ouoted. We held our first consignment of local :prown fruits, which found ready buyers. Wo quote:—Pigs: Weaners, small. 4s. 3d., 55., 65., 7s. 6d.; irood. fis.. 9s. 6d.. 10s.: slips, lis., 12s. 6d., 13s. 6d.. 155.; stores, J6s., 18s., 2Ps.; porkers, £1. £1 25., £1 3s. fid., £t <s. 6d, Poultry*. Turkey gobblers. 12'. ,155., 17s. each; hen turkeys, fis. 6d.. 7s. 6d. 'each; cockerels, gnod. ss. Gd.; mixed. 2s. 6d. to 6d.; hens, ?s. *d. to "*, fid.: ducks, good. *s. to $».; mixed, 2s. 6dto ?«.; gpc«e, pnod, 3s. 6d. to 4s.} mixed, 2*.'6(1. to .33-: hnns and broods. 4r. to 7s. 6d.; "vonntr ducklings. Is. fid. to 2s.' na'r. Ne*.v T>otato»»s, 12s. cwt.j rhuborK 3s. to ss. ncifdos.: g-3en neas. &?'. ocr/ae'*: cpbb.-y*", 2s. sd. to 3s. 6d<; Carrots, 6s. C 0... <$. M.; broad be n ns. 2s. plums, 4s;; peaches, 7s. 6d.; cucumbers, ,3s. . , FROZEN MEAT.". fly Tclesraph-lYeis Association—Copyright London, December 18, Tho Frozen Meat Trade Association's Smittificld market quotations for the un-

dcrmentioried' classes of frozen - meat.' aro based on actual sales of 110b less than ouo hundred carcasses: ,'of mutton . or . larah, and twenty-five quarters 'of beef of fair, average quality. The quotation? aro not for selected li*ne3, but for parcels fairly, representative of the bulk of tho shipments now on tho market. The prices which follow arc on an average a farthing per !b. more than the value ex ship, this difference representing an averagu cost in expensos, handling, conveyance, and selling the meat:— Dcc.lo. Dec. 17. Mutton— d. d. Canterbury, light 43 — Canterbury, medium 4J — Canterbury, heavy — — Southland 4$ — North Island, best 4i — . North Island, ordinary... 4 — Australian, light 3J Australian, heavv o 3 River Plate, light 1% River' Plate, heavy oi 31 Lamb— . Canterbury, liglit % — — Canterbury, medium — — Canterbury, heavy — — .Southland — — ; North Island, selected... — North Island, ordinary... — Australian, best 5 7-16 5 7-16 Australian, fair — — Australian, inferior — — River 'Plate — — 1 BeefNew Zealand, ox fores... 313-16 • 313-16 i New Zealand, ox hinds... 3jj 33 Australian, ox fores 2j 2V Australian, ox hinds ... 3fc 3]» , River Plate, ox fores ... 23 23 River Plate, ox hinds *... 3J 3J Rabbits, dull. Best Sydney, ox store, 165.; extra. New "Zealands, 17s. 6d. WHEAT AND FLOUR. By Telegraph—Pross Association-Copyright London, December 18. i The total quantity of wheat afloat for the United Kingdom is "2,165,000 quarters, and for tho 'Continent/ 1,855,000. Atlantic shipments, .12,000 quarters; Pacific. 40,CC0. The total shipments .to. Europe for tho week woro 1,085,000 ov.arterc, including Argentina',. 102,000; Russian, 490,C00; Danubian, 135,000; India,-46,000, Australasia, 9COO HIGH COMMISSIONER'S CABLE. The Commerce-arid Tourists "Division of the Department .of Agriculture, Commerce, and Tourists has : received ' the following cablegram from the High Commissioner, dated London, December 17, 1910. (Quotatations, unless , otherwise . specified, aro. average market prices :on spot):— Mutton.—There hag been no alteration in the market since last week,'vis.. Canterbury 4£d;. North Island 33d, per lb. • Lamb.—The market is weakening, with a sign of a decline; buyers arc not inclined to make forward purchases of lamb at present prices! Australian 5Jd. per lb. Beef.—The market is dull; stocks pf New Zealand on hand are light, and supplies of River Plate are heavy. New Zealand hinds 3Jd., . fores 23d. per lb. Butter!— The market is dull; buyers aro holding back, expecting _nric.es to go lower on account, of'a Holders aro anxious;, .'choicest New Zealand 106s per cwt., Australian' 100s.:jArgentine 1025., Dani ish 1165., Siberian 101s per cwt. I Clieese.—The marked is quiet, but holders I arc firm; white 565. per cwt., coloured 575. I ' Hemp.—The market is dull, with a downI ward tendency. New Zealand good fair on

spot per ton £21 10s., New Zealand fair grade £20 Manila fair current £19 10s., January-March shipment—New Zealand good fair £21, fair grade £20 55.. Manila fair current £19 lCs. The output from Manila for the week was 23,000 bales. Wool.—Tho market is a shade weaker; Bradford tops as follows, viz.:—36's low rrossbreds, Is. Hd.; 40's low crossbred*?, Is. 2Jd.: 44\s medium cro«sbreds, Is. 3Jd.; 50's halfbreds, Is. 7Jd.; 56Y» nuarter-breds, Is. 10Jd.; 60's merincs. 2s. 2d. Eggs—The. ppot market is strong for newlaid, but thero is less demand for cold stored. Russian, 7,«. 6d. to Ifs. 3d. per 120; Italian, 14s. Gd. to 16s. 6d.; Danish, 19s. to 20s. 6d. Poultry.—There is a general and active demand. Cold stored: American chickens, 5(1. to lOd. per lb.; Russian, 'Bd. to 9d.; turkeys. 7d. to Bd.; ducklings, 6d. to 7«d. Cocksfoot Seed.—Buyers are not keen to do business, but holders are firm.