THE HEMP INDUSTRY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 977, 8 April 1911, Page 3

THE HEMP INDUSTRY.

GRADING RETURNS FOR FEBRUARY.

The total number of bales of hemp graded throughout the Dominion during the month of February was 8,897, as compared with 14,516 for the corresponding mouth of last year, a decrease of 5,619 bales. For the twelve months ended February 28, the number graded was 118,798 as compared with 99,123 for the previous twelve mouths, an increase of 19,675 bales. During the mouth 3486 bales of tow were dealt with as compared with 4,921 for the corresponding month of last year, a decrease of 1,435 bales. Worked out on a precentage basis the quantity of each grade of hemp dealt with during February was as follows: Superior, nil; fine, 6.91 ; good fair, 45.56; fair, 43 ; common, 3.25; rejected, 0.48; condemned, o.S. The number of bales dealt with at the different ports were as under:

HEMP. TOW Auckland ... 1329 657 P'oxtou- ... 3106 1006 Wellington ... 2951 1138 Blenheim ... 84 6 Picton ... 310 280 Dunedin ... 301 10 Bluff ... Bx 6 379

It will be seeu from the above figures that iu February a larger quantity of hemp was dealt with at Foxtou than at auy other port in the Dominion —34.46 of the total output passing through the local port. The number of bales in each grade were as follows ; fine, 125; good fair, 1624; fair, 1222; common, 114; rejected, 2i, The percentages work out: fine, 4.02; good fair, 52.28 ; fair, 39.33; common, 3.63; rejected, .67. The number of bales in the separate grades dealt with at each port were as follows : Fine : Auckland 38, Wellington 108, Blenheim 84, Picton 192, Dunedin 60, Bluff 8; good fair Auckland 454, Wellington 1602, Picton 109, Dunedin 157, Bluff 108 ; fair ; Auckland 678, Wellington 1178, Dunedin 84, Bluff 663, common : Auckland 78, Wellington 61, Bluff 37 ; rejected : Auckland 10, Wellington 2, Picton 9; condemned : Auckland 71. The different grades of tow were as follows : First-grade: Auckland 12, Foxtou 175, Wellington 193, Picton 98 ; second grade : Auckland 250, Foxton 533, Wellington 807, Picton 129, Dunedin 10, Bluff 28 ; third grade : Auckland 319, Foxton 295, Wellington 127, Blenheim 6, Picton 53, Bluff 309 ; condemned : Auckland 76, Wellington n, Bluff 42.