Commercial.

Evening Star, Issue 3160, 5 April 1873, Page 2

Commercial.

The amount of revenue received at the Cus tom-house on goods cleared for consumption this day, was L 457 17s lOd. Wheat continues in good sale, at -Is fid to 4s Bd. There have been large transactions at 4s 7d to 4s 74d. Some few lots of indifferent have found buyers at 4s 3(1 to 4s (id. There is no fowl wheat offering. For flour the demand is steady for trade lots of five to teu tons, ihe value is unchanged, quotations being Lll 10s for sacks and Ll2 for bags. Tn oats the markev is unsettled. Several purchases have been made at 2s fid to 2s 7d, and a few small parcels have been quitted as high as 2s 8d to 2s 1 hero is no demand except for local wants, and the present high rates entirely exclude shipping to the northern ports, or to Melbourne. In the Oamaru district the supply will only he sufficient for the local requirement; and in order to prevent shipment, extreme rates are quoted Oatmeal has no fixed price. The lowest quoted value is Lls, and some of the millers refuse to sell under Llfi. Barley is selling at (is (id to 7s. It is difficult to secure, any, as the greater part has been bought up. Pearl barley lias advanced to 'L3O. Bran is likely to continue at L 4, so long as oats rule high. Pollard, L 5. Potatoes are not over supplied. _ Derwents arc scarcely ripe, and other kinds will not sell. Buyers cm be found at L2 15s to L 3, Hay, Lo; stiaw, L2; chaff, L 3 ss. v . .. A. Mercer reports for the week ending April 5 Fresh butter, in hj and 11b prints, best quality, Is 2d per lb ; second quality, Is to Is Id ; fresh butter, in lumps, lOd to lid; powdered and salt butter, Is per lb. The supply of fresh butter has fallen off to some extent, which is the cause of the advance in the price ; salt butter in keg—for good samples, lOd to lid is asked. There is a good demand for cheese, and really good samples are scarce ; an advance in the price has taken place ; for good quality, Od to lOd per lb. Side and rolled bacon, i)d to lOd per lb. Colonial hams, Is to Is Id per lb, and in good demand (but scarce); English hams are sought after, hut none in the market, biggs are very scarce, and selling at Is Od per dozen. NEW ZEALAND HEMP AT HOME,

The following extract from a letter by Mr C. Thorne, of London, to Mr Bird, secretary of the Canterbury Flax Association, is a further proof how zealously the former is working for the Colony “ I cannot undertake to proceed with further experiments, as I have already attained the goal I set out to reach, viz., to show that phorminm, when properly prepared, could be adapted to the manufacturer's uses. Ihe next step remains to be taken by the colonists. Let them commence and continue to send fibre that shall induce manufacturers to believe they will receive regular supplies of some class of article adapted to their requirements; and now they have been shown it can be utilised, they will gradually he induced to purchase it, but unless they can be assured of continued supplies they will not give it a trial. I have some fibre _in Kirkaldy widely I hear has been made into a fine yarn. Ihe yarn my manager brought back is being woven by hand loom at North lopham, in Norfolk. The yarn having been hand-spun is not fine, but it makes a good strong cloth. This yarn will not work quite so smoothly as ■well made machine-spun yarn. A second attempt I have made, through the kindness of friends in Ireland, to get yarn spun from my tow, has resulted in the production of over 2cwt of wet spun yarn, but this is only fit for a weft yarn, being too weak for the warp. I have a very nice piece of cloth (napkins) woven for me in France, the warp having been formed of ordinary linnm, the weft of phorminm fibre. For the coarser material, no doubt seems expressed as to the usefulness of phonnium ; hut for fine class goods, there seems to be much division of opinion—some of my friends being ‘quite certain it will do,’ and others say ‘it will never come into use.’ My impression is, that eventually manufacturers will ask for it. I have just sent samples to the Kensington Museum, Royal Botanic Society, Royal Gardens (Kew), and the Society of Arts, and herewith enclose copies of my letters which accompanied the samples, which may perhaps interest your colonists. Mr Forbes read an essay on New Zealand at the Literary Club, Arbroath, on 17tli inst., and excited interest and astonishment by the exhibition of his samples of rope, string, and cloths, all made from the phorminm fibre. He has asked me to let these samples lie deposited in the Museum at Arbroath, and he thinks they will he the moans of more fully proving to the manufacturers the fact that phorminm is capable of being turned to good account. Annexed is the list of samples I have sent to the various institutions before named, Ido not see how it is possible for me t<> give any further proof of the valuable uses to which tliis New Zealand product can be adapted, Mr Forbes still thinks New Zeaaland is the place where it ought to be manufactured. When I talk to people here about this, they say ‘The colonists ought to take the matter up.’” The following is the list referred to : Coarse and fine leaves grown in New Zealand ; fibre extracted from similar leaves; fibre dressed by natives ; rope made from fibre prepared in England ; two pieces of cloth from do ; two pieces of cloth—7s per cent. Riga (lax, 2o per cent, phorminm ; canvas from fibre prepared in England ; coarse sheeting from do ; sacking or wool pack do ; light sacking do ; brown twill do ; Scotch twilled sheeting'; coarse linen ; damask towelling: all made from the native dressed flax.