Farming Column

Hokitika Guardian, 23 December 1933, Page 8

Farming Column

FARMERS’ NEWS AND NOTES

The Farmers’ Union recently suffered a severe loss in the death of Mr G. W. Leadley, of Elgin, Ashburton, one of its foundation members in Canterbury. The late Mr Leadley was born in Yorkshire in 1856, and arrived in New Zealand in 1863. He settled in the Ashburton district in 1877 where he remained until his death. He was the first Provincial President of Canterbury, was Dominion Vice-President for 15 years, and on the retirement of Sir James Wilson was made Dominion President before Mr Poison M.P. took over the reigns of office. For his services in the cause of agriculture he was made a Life Member of the Union.

v- * * * For the year ended March 31 last, £1,865,762 was obtained from petrol tax, snd this revenue was allocated thus :—Consolidated Fund £1,105,182 ; Alain Highways Hoard £644,126; bor-

oughs of 6000 and over £99,489; commission to Customs Department for collection £16,965. The Farmers’ Union considers that if the petrol tax were slightly increased enough revenue would be obtained to free our farmers from paying road rates.

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The Farmers’ Union takes the view that national labour and capital should be applied to our natural resources in directions where the result will be an asset to the community and a source industrial strength, not weakness. If a

secondary industry cannot stand on its own feet with tariff, then, since obviously you cannot get something out of nothing, some section of the community, the consumers as a whole, are being taxed to support it. Such an industry is not a national asset; it is a running drain on our economic strength in a period when it is essential to husband our resources to the utmost. We should aim to establish such industries as can pay their way, those that are natural to our circumstances, and exchange the surplus product's of such industries for those products of mass industrial production that we need, and which cannot be produced here on a self supporting basis. Our secondary industries have not shown the initiative that cur farmers have done; while our farmers searched and catered for world markets, our manufacturers have kept their eyes fastened on our smail markets only. To assist them in catering for these, they have cried out for and have obtained more and more protection, with the result that their industries have grown up as hot-house plants. Our manufacturers have failed to put a single line on to the export basis. **.-**

Last season, 576,224 bales of wool

aggregating £4,327,692 were sold ih the Dominion. The average price for Nortu Island wool was £6 6s 9d * a bale or 4.21 d. a lb. whereas South Island wool averaged 6.36 d a lb. or £8 IBs 6d a b-de.

*# # * Some doubt exists 'among farmers regarding refund of duty on inotorspirits. Farmers are entitled to obtain refunds of duty on motor spirits useu for any purpose other than as fuel for motor vehicles which are required to be licensed in terms of the Motor-Veh-icles Act. Owners of milking mnchchines, shearing machines, (stationary engines (used for pumping water, cutting chaff etc.), agricultural tractors (not used on roads for hauling purposes), launches, lighting and heating plants are entitled'' to a refund. Farmers who use petrol in burning ragwort are also entitled to a refund.

Farmers naturally resent! any attempt to place restrictions on their industry ; yet an examination of our daily life reveals the fact that we arc hedged in by regulations framed for the benefit of the whole community. Several years ago criticism was levelled ot the Government for placing the Noxious Weeds Act among the laws of the country, yet farmers are continually asking that this legislation should he more strictly enforced in order to keep the spread of noxious weeds within control. When any legislation affecting the farming community is proposed, be it ever so necessary and sound in principle, it generally has to stand up to a shower of adverse criticism. Legisation is necessary in many eases to compel the careless and easygoing farmer to keep up with the times. At the present time farmers are confronted with a Stock Improvement Scheme, and a Wool linprovemlent Scheme, both of which are meeting with a mixed reception. It would be futile to make any attempt to improve the quality of our stock unless the attempt is a national one, and every farmer “does Ins bit”.

The New Zealand Counties’ Association and the New Zealand -Municipal Association are again endeavouring to get the Government to accept the same 'liability for rates on its country and town properties as a private mortgagee. Until about eight or nine years ago the Crown accepted liability for unpaid rates on its properties, but an Appeal Court case with Waitomo County Council decided that a mortgagee of leased lands was not responsible for rates, and another Appeal Court case with Inglewood Borough Council decided that the Crown was not responsible for any rates other than special rates struck before the Crown acquired the property. Moreover,.in the definition of “rateable- property” in Section 2, Rating Act 1925 there is the fo! 16wing' exemption from rates “Lands .vested iri His Majesty, of which there is not an owner or occupier”. At the present time it is very difficult to obtain rates

from settlers on CroWh • properties, so that the finances of several County Councils are being severely strained to keep going. In addition, some County Councils have borrowed from the State Advances Department for special works in their districts and have their special rates accordingly. Owing to many of their ratepayers—-including Crown tenants—not paying their share of these rates, it is impossible for County Councils to make their annual repayments to the Department. Consequently threats of action in one or two Countries are “in the air”, which seem unreasonable when the Crown or its occupiers are an&ungst (-he negligent culprits.

** * * Our farmers have paid our cities for their secondary industry products, not only import instead of export prices, but import prices increased by a high scale of protection duties. With few exceptions every time a farmer has purchased a manufactured article he has paid either a bonus over world parity to a local manufacturer, or has contributed to the public revenues through th e customs. This system that has obtained of exchanging farm products at export values for manufactured gbods at import prices plus tariff (charges has put the exchange parity of farm produce and manufactured good s quite out of line with world exchange parities. There are few countries .in the world where manufactured goods cost as much in farm produce as in New Zealand.

GUERNSEYS’ PRODUCTION

GRADING UP HERDS

Australian reports provide evidence of the value of the Guernsey breed of cattle in grading up crossbred herd s and increasing production. Mr .J, Proctor, who is working an irrigated block at Werribee South, Victoria, has achieved success in this direction. He mated • tie. pedigree bull Werribee Favourite. bred by Mr A. I>e Noury, by Yarraview-Saxon ex Werribee Princess PaffcdiU, with his crossbred cows, and lie sired the second; highest junior two-year-old in the local herd test, which ■at the age of one year and six months produced 3401 b. butter-fat in 273 days. She has calved again, and -is giving 401 b. milk with a 4.4 test drtly. Four other • juniors in the same herd, the calving ages of which ranged from 20 months to two years, gave over 3001 b. butter-fat.

The dam of this bull was a fine dairy qow, as in 1930 she officially produced 10,0751 b: milk, with an average test of 5.0 and 5011 b. butter-fat. In last year’s Government herd test she yielded 3881 b. butter-fat, after an attack of niamniitis, which deprived her of one quarter. Two of her daughters recently completed their lactations in- that test, one, Werribee Princess Pansy, at the age of five years produced 433.311 b. but-ter-fat, with a 5.4 average tes: ; and the other, Werribee Princess Pat, registered 3341 b. butter-fat, with an average test of 5.7 .as a senior two-year-old. Mr Proctor only feeds his cattle, in the bails for a few months of the year, while Mr Le Noury regularly supplies his with a little bran. Both rely principally on good pasture, with the addition of silage in the winter.

BRITISH INDUSTRY.

EFFECT OF MILK SCHEME

At a meeting of the Norfolk (England) branch of the Farmers’ Union, it was estimated by one of the speakers that in Norfolk, 2000 gallons of milk a day are being fed to pigs. This was mentioned in criticism of the milk marketing scheme. “We are told it was either the scheme or chaos,” said this speaker. “Now we have bo;h,’’ Mr C. T. Goire, who represents Norfolk on the council of the National Fanners’ Union, said the farmers, on the .advice of the Government, had increased production, and now factories could not take the pigs because foreign vimports were being increased. British pigs were waiting on the farms and growing too fat for the factories. The fall in the price of imported bacon in the past two days, averaging about 6c; per cwt., brings the total fall in the past three weeks to about 14s. that .is, from 88s to 745. Some who were previously blaming the quota, because it caused a rise in price, -and now blaming it because it has faked to prevent this drop. It is true, write s th e Daily Telegraph correspondent, that the quota is intended to prevent these rather sharp fluctations. Why is .it failing to do so? The answer is that it i s too early to judge the quota. The English bacon scheme has only been operating for a fortnight, and to -dovetail in contracted home supplies with the necessary balance .of imports must require a short period of experience before the! most optimistic could expect it to work like clockwork.

A. FOBWAJRD POLICY. No policy is better calculated to speed the parting of the slump than the building schemes announced by the Government. Such projects as the Wellington railway station and the Dunedin Post Office absorb skilled labour, circulating wage, money, and fitimu. latirig business. For the worker, be he employed in building, or clerking, or anything else, no other breakfast can supply so much energy, so economically a.s can Ted Diamond Oatletg, small, rolled oats, richest in flavouj- and food value, ,