H.B. STOCK SALES

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 202, 11 September 1937, Page 17

H.B. STOCK SALES

Review Of the Past Week's Markets BEEF AT PEAK PRICES The outstanding event in this week's stock markets was the offering of the big yarcling of store cattle at Waipukurau which inspired confidence for the coming season. In the sale of hoth fat cattle and sheep, butchers experienced another black day when they were called' upon to greatly extend their limits on the- somewbat phenomenal advance that took place the previons week at Stortford Lodge. Much of the selling in all sections approached levels that were dangerously high in which a good deal of optimism was rectnired in order to foresee turn-over margins. At Waipukurau on Tuesday the H.B. Farmers' Co-op. Association certainly got together a wide range of store cattle, which. consisted largely of steers, on behalf of their various clients. (Considerable speculating took place as to kow the market wonld go. The arena was paelced, and the audience ineluded . a large nnmber of buyers from the Wairarapa, the Manawatu, Feilding, Wanganui and Hawera districts, whieh was evidence of the shortage of cattle in the outside districts. Except fdr a few lines, the offering was in light condition, some of which were rightly deseribed when ' the auctioneer said that ' * scenery was all they had had to live on for the last few months." A surprising feature of" the selling was that practieally the whole of the offering was bought locally. This indicated that Hawke 's Bay, which had undoubtedly been saved by the wonderful rain, was once again a buying market. With the exodus which took place during the winter months, when farmers had no alternative, the district has been left very short of cattle. Already numerous inqniries are being made for cattle up to 100 head or more and stock agents and others interested are likely to have a busy timo supplying the. demands.

• Tuesday 7s market certainly exceeded expectations and was deseribed by all interested, nxcept those out to buy, as being "a great sale."' The difference between the prices that farmers had to unload their cattle at a short time ago and those which they had to pay on Tuesday is a wide margin and just how it is going to be made up remains to be seen. The greatest value will come in the work done by the cattle in keeping country clean and not in any turnover that might be made. Tuesday 's values could not be taken as being the peak, and the prospects are for a rising tendency rather than towards an eader market. The offering ineluded some very well-bred lines and refieeted the attention that many cattlemen are giving to breeding, which, after all, constitutes a good foundation, besides being a valuable selling factor, The three-year steers offered on account of Mrs. S. A. Limgus and Mr. Alec. Judd of Wanstead, were young cattle worth going a long way to get and when topped off should ldll out fine quality beef. Tho two-year lines were not in such good order as those a year older and generally lacked size and condition. Well grown yearlings promise to sell themselves, judging from the good line from" Oakburn Station whieh were eagerly songht after. Yearlings in general make very dear buying compared. with two-year-olds which are much nearer to doing something with, no matter what the proposition might be, The phenomenal market for fat cattle demonstrates just how acute the shortage of prime cattle is in Hawke's Bay. The position was saved on Wednesday by the draft of 63 head of female cattle on account of Hair Bros., Paritu Station, Gisborne. Without it, butchers would have been in a quandry as there was little else for them to select from. The amazing value of 40/- per lOOlbs. for female beef is sensational. Probably the most astonishing offering of the day. was a Jersey cow which realised £9 10/-, equalling a figure that the best heavy prime station-bred cows brought a short time ago. Butchers had no alternative but to buy or to be left which would mean closing their shops. To keep open has cost butchers this winter a great deal of expensive trading out of which they cannot hope to make anything for themselves at the present retail pTices. In the giving of service to the publie without reward the butchers are certainly giving their full quota. • Hastings remains one of the cheapest towns in New Zealand for meat while its fat stock market, with the exception of Addington, has been among the highest in the Dominion. Mr. George Stevens' three-year-old Shorthorn cross steer which quite overshadowed anything seen in the yards for many years was a sample of clioiee home-raised beef in England. The steer was as fat as a table on top and, liaving 1 been hand-raised, had thrived from n calf. This is the crOssing of beef wbicli has of late been scooping all the lead ing awards at show in Great Britain It is a strange coincidence that West field 's heaviest bulloclt offered for rnuuy years was also offered on Wednesda\ and also realised £23 10/- but it was :• good deal heavier Ihan Mr. Stevens stenr. 1 Sfcorn shec|) yatti-n^s f'ell a/ivay 1 • j 1 weok. there bo'ni" ikhic filTered at Wai pukurau. On Wetlnosdav tho foiv peus oi; hoggcts made bootn prices. Tlio best woolly wether .hog^ets made the re-

mai'kable tigure oi' 29/-, the remainder were grass propositions only and made very dear buying. , The values made by ewes with lambs at foot were encouraging for vendors at future saies-. The 20/- mark was reached for well-developed sturdy lambs while the ewes were sound mouthed and should clip quite well, and better than many will. Fattening ewes, in making- 20/-, were influenced by the price of wool, but when compared with some of the other store pens they were not dear. Outside requirements quickly livened up the fat sheep selling which was marked by a quiet opening. Some of the best pens were for Johnsonville, which prevented local butchers from getting any relief, although the yarding was larger than that of the previous week. The first shorn wethers of the season were offered but were not of the heavy type and would not go better than 56lbs to make 30/-. Westfield has been in first with spring lamb but it will not be surprising if a Crissoge farmer does not open the eason here on Wednesday next or the following week when he expects to pen an entry that will do him credit. Arrangements have been made to commeneo next Wednesday's sale an hour earlier to enable those interested to be able to attend the Springboks versus Hawke's Bay match at Napier. Only a small sale is anticipated and those wanting to see football will havo no trouble in being in time for the eurtain-raiser. The decision to commence the selling of fat cattle at "Waipukurau half-au-hour earlier, and the sheep at noon, will we welcomed by all concerned. For a long time past valuable half-an-hour in the mornings has been lost", those most seriouly affected having been many of the buyers who can ill-afford ■to waste time so early-in the day.