GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1211, 21 August 1911, Page 8

GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Speaking at the Feilding A. and P. Association meeting' on Saturday, ilr._ E. Short said lie thought it a pity the Government could not see its_way to include in the Stallions Registration Hill the inspection of thoroughbreds. At the present time, owing to the half-mile dashes aiul the three-quarter-mile flutters, thero was not' a good upstanding thoroughbred in the Dominion. Jf they had three-mile races, and made, the horses carry 12 or 11 stone, Ihey would get some good horses. Discussing the recent Agricultural Conference at the meeting of the Feilding A. and P. Association on Saturday night, the President (Jlr. E. Short) said it was a great pity there was no governing body for the associations. At the present time the conference met and passed resolutions, and left no one to see them carried into effect. There should be an executive head to enforce the ruling of the conference. on lines similar to those which governed Rugby football in the Dominion. A general discussion took place, members supporting the suggestion of the president, but, iu view of the fact that the conference had itself set up an executive, no stops were taken to further the proposal, the hope being felt that the conference executive would move ahead. A movement is on foot to form a cowtesting association in the Kahotu district. Jlr. Singleton, Government, expert, lias addressed meetings at Kahotu, Oaonui, and Pungarehn on the question, and it is proposed that theso three companies should co-operato. It is considered thai SOOO cows will bo necessary Iwfore a start can be made. Already, says the "Taranaki Xews," some 1500 cows havo been guaranteed. A report from Otago states that local butchers ?,re finding a difficulty in securing the quality of cattle they desire. A well-known Dunedin firm of 1)U tellers is at present securing its supplies from Hawke's Bay, 21 cattle luring been landed from the Jfonowai on Wednesday to its order. The shipments from the north havo been coming to hand for some time past, and arrangements havo been mado for the arrival of 20 animals weekly till Christmas. The head of tho firm in question says he ran buy the beasts at a cheaper rate in Hawke's Bay than in Otago, and that they are of better quality than the locally-bred sleek.

Of six different varieties of _ maize planted on an experimental plot in New South Wales, Yellow Dent came out on top from the standpoint, of yield, with the others in tho following order:—lied Hogan, Funk's Yellow Dent, Early Seeming, Jlarlbury Prolific, and Cocker's Prolific.

A sample of Canadian hustle is apparent from the following paragraph -.—On July 6 fire destroyed the grandstands of Hie Canadian Industrial Exhibition Association at Winnipeg. While the fito was still raging a meeting of the Exhibition Board and the City Council was held, and plan; for the ' reconstruction of the grandstands ill time for the exhibition were completed. The active work of rebuilding started, with all tho resources of the city of Winnipeg bent to the task. In order to give as innch timo as possible tho opening of the approaching exhibition was set back one day.

The voice of the calf is now to be heard throughout the land, evidencing that the farmer's holiday is.about at an end. and that the arduous toil of another milking reason (and the consct|tiout, monthly cheques) is about to bepin. The calf is now a very valuable side-line, says a Taranaki writer, and with prices as they are at. present it is certain that the "slaughter of the innocent?," which was so much in vogue a few years ago will not bo in evides.ee this year.

The valuo of the thoroughbred sire cannot bo over-emphasised, according to a Canadian dairyman. It is, ha urges, a penny-wiso-paund-foolish policy to try to get a cheap bull. No ono can do as much harm to the dairvman as the scrub or grailo sire. "If I had to play a mean trick on ono of my worst enemies," says tho dairyman in question, "I would give him a present of a scrub bull."

The following picturesque reasoning of a Canadian dairyman seems to applyequally here-.—The dairy cow is a machine,' aiul wo use this machine to convert the" feed grown upon our farms into a saleablo product. Money can not be madb out of any machine, unless it is run to its capacity. Think of a man owning 'a grist mill and running it to one-third of its capacity! Ho must run it at full capacity to get largest returns. Arid wo have to" run this machine, the cow, on the dairy farm to its full capacity to make any profit. , COMMERCIAL ITEMS. INVESTMENT SHARES. A sale of Wellington Gas new issue at £2 15*. was tho only transaction recorded on Saturday. The buying and sellinir quotations were as under:— Tluyera Sellers. £ e. d. £ s. d. 11a nk of X.S. Wales A3 5 0 — Union Hank — 66 5 0 National Mortgaec 3 10 0 — ,V 7,. and liivev Plate ... 2 1 0 — Wellington Deoosit — 0 8 3 Christchurch Gas- 9 12 6 9 16 0 Well, (las (.£7 IDs.) 15 0 D Well. Clas (new issue)... 2 12 f> 2 17 6 Standard Insurance t 11 9 — Christ church Meat, — 16 2 6 TTnion SLeain - — 2 2 3. Well. Steam Ferry — 0 13 0 Woll. Woollen (ord.) — 4 0 0 Well. Woollen (prof.) - 3 16 Tannin Coal — 12 0 I.eyla mi-O'Brien I 8 3 — Manning aud Co — 4 5 0 New Zealand llritg 2 10 6 — Sharland's ordinary — 15 0 Taranaki Petroleum — o 16 6 Ward niul Co — 5 10 Well. Opera House — 7 5 0 GERMAN BANKIKG. The adherence of the German nconle to a system of cash payments, instead of adopting the method of settlimr indebtedness by means of chorines, is responsible for great pressure on the financial reSJurecs of the country at curtain periods of the year. With the genius that the German nation possesses for organisation, it seems strange to foreigners that tliey should' not have modernised their customs in the direction of facilitating payments, at least in respcet to commercial transactions. Tho volume of 'business in Germany is now so large that an enormous amount of notes aro required to perform functions which in other countries nre managed by means of cheques. It is a singular thing, too. that

iii ficrmany all mou-ctarj' settlement of wliiitsuevcr description—Slock Exchange accounts. pperulalkc iHilorcnee.-j. payment of interest on mortgages, commercial transaction?—all arc paid on the day of the calendar mouth. The ru?U for exchange medium to satisfy the requirements of the numerous debtors m:;y be easily imaeiusd, and at. stated periods the ?train on the Keich.cbauk became almost insuDDortablc. At last the directors of that institution decided to impose on brokers' loans and other advances an additional interest charge, the result of which has yet to be ascertained. The first effect wap to reduce the loan-: and to increase the discounts, so that it does not seem as if much relief had been attained. The Stack Exehmse. however, i:s considering the advisability of fixin? ?ettliuL' (lays in the middle of the month, which if definitely arranged will undoubtedly lessen the strain atl the end of the month.

AMERICAN WOOL DUTIES. It is hard to say what will be the ultimate fate of the American V. r ool Bill; the President has cxercisc4 his veto, and the compromise measure passed by the Senate and House is in consequence thrown out. It.is tolerably certain, judsinc from the temper of Couerres?. and the measure which has been vetoed by President Taft, that a, reduction on the existing duties will eventually be the result. The reduction may not amount to much, but whatever it is it will be welcomed by the wool growers of Australasia. The existing duties are specific, and converted into ad valoruin they are as under:—

Existing duty. , P.e. Raw wool 44.31 Noils, waste, shoddies, etc 38.96 Combed wool or tops 1C5.19 Yarns made wholly or in part of wool 82.38 Cloths, knit fabrics, and alt manufactures of wool 97.11 Blankets and flannels when valued at less than 50 cents per pound — When valued at more than 50 cents per pound 95.57 Women's and children's dress goods and similar roods 102.85 Ready-made clothing and articles of

v.carin" apparel 81.31 Braids, ritibonj, insertions, laces, embroideries. nettings, and like articles wholly or in part mado of wool 87.06 Axminstor Aiihos.von, nioiiuctto and chcoilc carpets 62.09 Saxony, Wilton, and velvet carpets ... 70.14 Brussels carpets 76.29 Velvet tapestry carpets, printed on the warp or otherwise 62.46 Tapestry Brussels carpets printed on the warp or otherwise 64.41 Treble ingrain, three-ply and all chain Venetian carpets 64.34 Wool, Dutch and .two-ply ingrain carpets 62.50 Oriental rugs 60.57 Druggets and bockings, printed or coloured 66.28 Carpets not otherwise provided for, of wool, flax or cotton 49.93 NOTES. The gross profits of the Nippon lYnsen Kaisha for the half-year ended March 31 amounted to £414,648. out of which there was paid .£135,305 on account of depreciation of the company's licet and property, £44,232 to tho insurance fund, and £59,797 to tho ships' structural repair fund, leaving a balance of £262,745, including £87,424 brought forward. The directors proposed that. £8765 be added to the reserve fund, raising it to £313.062, and £48.703 to the reserve for the annual reduction of subsidies. bringing it un to £158.234; also that £6203 be allowed as directors' and auditors' fees. Oat of the remainder the directors recommended a dividend at the rato of 10 per cent, per annum, leaving £86.911 to bo carried forward.'

•Messrs. Oammell, Laird and Co. have installed for armour-nlate purposes a slab mould which will produce the largest, ingot ever made. The mould weighs 110 tons, and the ingot will weigh 120 tons. This is an improvement which will be of considcrablo value in the manufacture of armour. This firm have also turned out a series of largo castings for an BKfl-ton hydraulic press. The total weight of six pieces dispatched by one train was close upon 200 tons.

The salient fcaturo of the propelling machinery of the new White Star liner Olympic, which sailed on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York on July 14, is that she has two wing screws driven' by a pair of reciprocating engines and a central screw driven, by an exhaust turbine which takes its steam from tliem. This arrangemVnt has already been tested in the Laurentic, of the same line, and that vessel is understood to have realised an economy in fuel of 14 per cent, as compared with her sister, the Megantic.

Tea-seed oil is the name apDlicd to an oil expressed from the seed of the Camellia sasannua. This is not ths tea tree (Camel!;::, tlioa). nor cau its leaves be used. It grows principally in llonan, but is found wherever tho wood-oil tree grows. Tim seeds are gathered in October and tho extracted oil usually reaches the market in Hankow about the middle of winter. It is used by the Chinese as a cooking oil, and costs in the market from 7.40d015. to .07dols. gold per picill' of 1135 pounds.

The natives of China, pays an American Consul at Foochow, use larcc bells of their own moke in many of their tontples and monastries. All through Japan an-d China the tone of tile monastery and temple bells is very soft and smooth, due to the superior finality of the material used in their manufacture and to the abscnce of iron clapper?, the resn.lt brir.? a marvellous softness and mellowness of tone. The bells Are never swung, beine always sus; tu-ncJed in a fixed frame, and the sound is nrodured by striking them on the outer edge with a wooden mallet. This makes the Fftft tones'which aro so delightfully melodious.

The match factory at Taiyuanfu in China is now reported to be workinc very successfully, this bc'iic shown by the fact that it recently closed a contract with a Tientsin firm to supply about £3050 worth of matches. CUSTOMS. Tho Customs revenue collected at the nprt of Wellington on' Saturday totalled £1433 os. 7d., the amount for the week beinff £11.592 lis. 9d. The returns lor each of the past eirtlit weeks, compared with the figures for the corref-pondius periods of last year, show as under:— 1911. 1910. £ £ July 1 9.C9S 17.434 .Tulv 8 21.«4 10.250 July 15 27.889 22.232 .Tulv 22 13M 9.080 .Tulv- 29 2U« 23.352 Aug. 5 U,sfß 18.282 Ails. 12 25,137 23.055 Aug. 19 11,592 . 10:161 • 141,434 133,856 The beer duty for the week amounted to £193 Its., as against £213 os. 6d. for the corrcspondins week of last year. LONDON METAL-MARKETS. Bj Teleirach- Press Association— Corrriehl (Rcc. Autt. 20, 5 p.m.) London, Auiriist 19. The incorporated meat importers are unable to Rive reliable Quotations owinsr to the Et-rike. w6rld's WHEAT CROPS. By Tclccraph—Press Associatioa-Copyrisbt (Rcc. Aug. 20, 5.5 p.m..) London, Aueust 19. Donibusch estimates that the world's wheat crop is '.60.343,000 quarters. Europe and the United States show declines of 8 million and 5 million Quarters respectively, and Canada. Argentina, asd India iucrcascs of <1, 51, and U million quarters respectively. TARANAKI PETROLEUM COMPANY. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) New Plymouth, Ausust 19. The directors of the Taranaki Petroleum C-omptny have received a cablegram from Mr. Carter, chairman, who is r.ow in London, that negotiations for the early completion of tlic cale are proccedinc satisfactorily. TURPENTINE. The Vacuum Oil Company Proprietary, Ltd., reports:—'The only chance in the prices during the past week has been in conncctiou with turncntine substitutes. We can now quote as under:—.Soceny Mineral Turps: Is. 3d. per callon in cases, f.o.b. Wellington, 30 days' terms; Is. 2'd. per (tallon, in cases, f.o.b. Wellinirton. terry= spot cash. Spccial Deodorised Socony Mineral Turps: ?.s. ner gallon, in cases, f.o.b. Wellington. 30 days' terms: Is. Hid. per callon, in eases, f.o.b. WcUinzton. terms spot cash. You will thus see that there has been a reduction of one penny ner sallon in the price of socony mineral turns, and 4d. per Kallon in the price of special deodorised socouy mineral turps. HIDE AND SICIX SALES. Messrs. Dalsety and Co., Ltd.. Palmerston North, reporL—At our usual monthly sale on Friday v.e oll'ered a very heavy catalogue, which met a (rood rale before a full atloiulauce of buyers. Wool.—Our offerin'; consisted principally of crutchinus. wliich sold very readily, although (juality was not up to usual standard. Host lots, s}d. to S2tl.; medium, sd. t051d.; inferior and sMdv. 4ld. to <:id.: crossbred, 6Jd., 7d. to 7Sd.; dead. CJd. 7d. to Till.; locks and pieces, 3Jd. to W.. Sheepskins.—Prices were maintained with a weaker tendency. Crossbred, 6!d. to 63d.; half-wools. 5.1 d. to 61d.: shorts. 43d.; woolly liunhs. 6id.: shorn lambs, 6d.; (lead liorBets. 51d.; dead and damajicd, 51d.; damaged and inferior. <d. to 4id.; seedy, 43d.; pelts, 3d. to 33d.: butchers' Rrecn and salted, at each <s. 7d., 4s. 9d., ss. to ss. 3d. Hides.—Prices were slightly easier than last sale. Ox, best lots, 6Jd. to 6'ul.; medium, 6,* d.: cows, best lots, 65d. to 6}d.; medium and rough. 5)d.,5id. to 53d.: cut. 4<d ; slippy, : heifers and steers. 6id.: yearlings. 51(1. to 6id.: cut-,'5d.; horse, at each 55.. 6s. 9d.. 7s. 6d. to IC-3 Calfskins.—Bcr.t line?, 9d.; medium. 6d.; lifrht. 63d.; rut and fJippy, 4!d. to sd. Sundries.—Tall-ov;. in tins, 235.: inferior, 175.; cowlips, Is, 4Jd. doz. Uorscbair, Is. 6d. to is. 6jd.

LIVE STOCK AND PRODUCE. Mca-srs. Dalgct.v and Company. Limited {Palmers-ton North), report:—At our Feiltfinjr sale on Friday a fair yarding of sheep and cattle came to' hand, which sold as below:—Mixed age ewes in lamb. ss. £d. to Bs. 6d.; cull empty ewe?, 4s. Id.: empty ewes. 9s. Id.; light, fat and forward ewes, lis. 3d.: s.m. ewes in lamb, to lis.; ewes and lambs, lis. 9d.; medium wether hoped:, to 12.*.' An extra good line of wellgrown good-conditioned wether hogget 3 eold on account of ft. L. Gibson. Bonny Glen, realised l<3s. 7d. Cattle.—Empty cows, £2 10s., .€3 to £3 35.; backward dairy cows, to £5 10s.; springing cows, to £7 12s. 6d.; empty heifers, to £3; forward cows, to £4.

Messrs. A. 11. Atkinson and Co., Ltd., Feilding, report- on Friday'.® market: Keen demand for poultry, which sold at top prices, the quantity forward nothing like meeting demand. Forward stores and light porkers sold well; for indift'erent stores and slips there was little demand. The firm offered a large number of vehicles, agricultural implements, etc., the greater part being sold under the hammer or immediately after. Potatoes, horses, carrots, etc., made about last week's rates. Wo emote.:— Light porkers. Zls. 6d. to 243.; stores. Ifis. 6d., 165., 175.. 19s. to 20s. 6d.; slips. <s.. 6s. 6d., 7s. 6d., lis. to 125.; sew:, 20s. to 265. 6d.; poultry (at per paiA cockerels. 3s. 3d., 3s. 6d., 3s. 9d. to 45.; hens, 3s. 3d., 3s. 6d., 3s. 9d.. 4s. to 4s. 3d.: ducks, 4s. 3d.. 4s. 6(1., to 4s. 9d.; turkey frobhlers, 255.; hens, 10s. 6d. to 12s. 6d. Table potatoes. 7s. to IPs. sack; seed, 10s. to onions, 7s. cwt. Stunner apples. ss. half case; oranges. 45.; pumpkins. 3s. half sack; horse caxrots, 3s. sack. Wheat, 4s. 6d, bushel; oats. 35.; Rssd, to 4s. 3d.; barley, 3s. 6d. to 3s. 9d.; straw chaff, £3; prime oaten, ££. Fann drills, etc., from 345. to £15; harness, £5; saddles, £3 to £4.

CANTERBURY PRODUCE MARKETS. (Br Telegraph.—Press Association.) Oamaru, Aueust 19. * The wheat market has suffered a decline in sympathy with the Home market. At the beginning of the week 3s. 7d. net was given at country stations, but to-day several tines changed hands at 3s. sid. net. The greater portion of a. tolerably large amount of business was. however, done at 3s. 6d. net, or its equivalent at country stations. Altogether, between IO.OCO and 12,000 sacks chanced hands in the country, besides merchants' sales for transport elsewhere. The market closcd with an easier feeling, and some decrree of uncertainty as to the future. There has been very little doiuff in potatoes, 'which are auoted at from £2 lCs. to £2 12s. 6d. at country stations.

MINING NEWS. WELLINGTON SHAKE MABKET. Talisman came in for some attention on Saturday, and sold up to 525.. otherwiso tho market was Quiet. The transactions recorded were as under:— Saxon, 2s. 3d. (first call); 2s. 33d. (second call). Tairua Mines, Is. lid. (seoond call). Talisman, 51s. 6d., 51s. 9d.. 525. (second call). W-aihi, 61s. 3d. (second call). Waihi Grand Junction, 265. 9d. (second call). The buying and selling quotations were as under-.— . Buyers. Sellers. £ fi. d. £ S/d. Con. Goldficlds — 019 6 Kuranui Caledonian 0 13 — May Queen 0 2 3 0 2 4 Maoriland — 0 0 55 N.Z. Crown 0 2 6 — New Sylvia 0 2 9 0 2 10 Old Ilaiiralii 0 18 — Saxon 0 2 3' 024 Tairua. Mines 0 11 0 13 Talisman 2 11 3 2 12 9 Waihi i 0 9 3 1 9 Waihi Grand Junction ... 1 6 6 17 0 Waitangi 0 3 1 0 3 3 Waihi-Paeroa 0 12 6 0 15 0 Worlisop Dredge 2 8 0 — The course of sales during tho past week was as under:— Kuraiiui-Caieaoman, is. qd. Maoriland, 6d. aid. New Sylvia. 35., 2s. lid., 2s. lid., 2s. 9Jd. Saxon ,2s. 5d., 2s. sd„ 2s. 51d„ 2s. 33d. Tairua Mines Is. Id., Is. 2d.. Is. 2d.. Is. lid. Talisman, 51s. 9d„ 51s. 6d„ 51s. 6d.. 51s. 9d., 525. Waihi, 605., 60s. 9(1., 61s. 3d., 61s. 3d. Waihi Grand Junction, 275. 6d., 275. 4td., 265. 9d. Tho ■ Wellington Stock Exchange received the following telegram on Saturday from the Worksop Dredging Co.:—"150 ounces for 123 hours." Tho Murray Creek Goldminintr Company; Limited, was listed on tho Wellington Stock Exchaogo on Saturday.

STOCK EXCHANGE. (Br Telegraph-Proa; Association.) Auckland, August 19. Tho following business was done on the Stcclt Exchango this morning:— May Queen. 2s. 3d. Saxon. 2s. 3d., 2s. <d. Victoria, Is. Crown, 2s. 7d. Bonanza, lid. Grand Junction, £1 6s. 9d. Tellurides (paid), lid. Tairua Mines, Is. id. Northern Coal, Us. 9d. Auckland Gas (new), £4 2=. 6d. Northern Steam (ord.), £1 4s. 6d. Occidental, lid.

Chrlstchurch, Aueust 19. Sales reported on the Stock. Eschanc© of Canterbury Wellington Woollen, £4. Talisman Consolidated, £2 12s. DREDGING RETURNS. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) Dunedln, Aujrust 19. Returns repoTted:-Waikaka United Nq. 1, 160z.: No. 2, 14oz. lCdwt.; Rising Sun, 2Eoz. 18awt.; (iolden Sun. 19oz. sd\vt.; Trafal?ar, lloz. 14dwt.; Worksop, 15Coz. MIXING. Weston. local director of the \\ aitanpi Consolidated, Ltd., is in receipt of the followine telegram from Mr. Stansficld, supervisor of the mine:—"Adams, manner, wires low level reached hanging wall of slide no water yet." The slide referred to is the Moanatairi slide, which traverses the crosscut at ripht ancles. It is expected that when the slide is penetrated the water will gradually drain away from the upper level in the mine. It will be remembered that excellent nrosnects were being obtained in a winze that was being sunk on the reef n.t that level, but further sinking had to be abandoned on account of the amount of water makin<*. The slide has been met with within 20ft. of the point estimated by Mr. Stansfield. DREDGING RETURNS. (By Teleirapb.—Press Association.) , „ . . nuncdin, August 20. The follow in g dredging returns are to hand:—Otago, 530z.; Golden Bed. 330z. 11 dwt.; Sandy Pornt, 250z. 16dvrt.i Central Charlton, 9oz. 17dwt.