The Oamaru Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 1879.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1131, 3 December 1879, Page 2

The Oamaru Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 1879.

A meeting of the Committee of the Oamant Jockey Cinb was held last evening, when there were present—Messrs. .T. W • Humphrey (President, in the chair), Paterson. Greenfield, M. Grant, I>«ncan, Moss, Shaldcrsr. Hardy, and Lttmadeji (Hon. Secretary). The minutes of the previous meeting wece read ami confirmed. It was resolved that poison he !at»l on the course for dogs. The tenders for the various privileges i» connection with the forthcoming meeting wertr opened, and seeing that none were satisfactory, it was decided to submit them to auction on the 14th December. Canvassers were appointed for the town and country. Mr. Greenfield, asf one of the I,round Committee, said he would he prepared to bring np a report as to the state of the course at the next meeting of the Committee, which will lie held on Saturday evening next. It was* decided to alter the conditions of tiie Maiden I'late. and make it read " For horses that have never won an advertised flat race of L 10." A vote of thanks was accorded to the chair, and the meeting terminated. We wotthl remind our readers that the service of song, "Jessica's First Prayer/' will be civen in Wesley Church this evening. It should attract a large attendance, for the music is good and the story interesting. Tiie Philli.irnioiiic Society's practice will be held this everting in the \ o'.unteor Ha!!, at S o'clock. The Committee of the Oamani Cricket Club have accepted the challenges of the Waimate Chtb, the I'liri-tcSiiirch College C'tnb. and the Invtrcargill Club, the dates for the matches being fixed as follow : Waimate, fith instant: Christchurch College. I3th instant ; Invercargill, 20th intt.uit. The following members have been chosen to represent the Oamani Club in the match against Waimate:—Mess's. E. Booth, G. I lot-ton, Cresgh, de Lautour, G. Fenwick, Finch, Grigg, R'ce, Sumpter, Snow, and Walls. Emergencies : Messrs. Bull, C'oatcs, and Lintott. The match will commence punctually at 11 o'clock on Saturday. It is requested that any member of the team who anable to play will at once make tiie fact known to the Secretary witlmut delay. j We h«.r that the engine of the train that, ! when near Btneakin. ran into a quantity of debris brought down from the hill 3 by the late rains, was upaet, and that the driver stuck to his post, notwithstanding the extreme danger of pursuing such a course, in order tiiat he might do what was n«.ee-s»ar} to relieve the engine and prevent lurthe/ 1 damage. The quarterty communion service in con j nection with Sit. Paul's Presbyterian Church will be held on Sunday next. A preparatory service will he held on Thursday next, at 7.30 p.m. It is scarcely necessary to remind our roadera that the Horticultural Society*Show will take place in the Volunteer Hall on Saturday next. The favorable weather has had its effect on the flower gardens, an effect which will no donbt be seen in the excellence of the exhibits. We hear from the Hon. Secretary that the display of roses and pot plants will l>e tetter, larger, and more varied than usual, and that a large number of intending competitors have entered their names for the prize that the Hector of the Grammar School offers to his scholars. As there is no guarantee that Thursday will not be the last «i»y for makin - entries, it would be well for intending exhibitors not to allow that day to pass without doing so. Additional information concerning the event may be gleaned in our advertising columns. Our Dnntroon correspondent writes :—"I hive not written to you lately for the simple reason that there h.%3 teen nothing to write about. The only matter of inUrest of late occurrence u the meeting of the School Committee, which took place on Monduj l«t, when some feeling was shown by the various members anent the way in which the Committee had lie*!' treated in their late endeavors to raise a fund for the purpose of giving the school children priz*» at the end of the year. For this purjioac ecveral gentlemen had devoted much time, and hail gone to some considarable expense, to get up an entertainment, and on the night of the entertainment (not before) they were informed by the autocrat of the school that he did not approve of either the entertainment or its object, viz., prize?. This all came before the School Committee at their meeting on Monday night, and elicited a pretty strong expression of feeling- The writer not being a member of the School Committee can only give the information from heresay. At all events, the School Committtee should not i»e thwarted either by schoolmasters or other otiiciaLi in their laudable endeavors to raise funds for school purposes. Seeing the very nmall amount the Kducation Board have had to [>ay for fencing, repairing. Ac., I believe the Duntroon School Committee have during the last year placed to the credit of the School I*tind over L2O raided by their various entertainments. Yesterday Mr. Stewart, on tehalf of the jj : ~sed victuallers of Otago presented a petition to the House objecting to an increase of duty on spirits beyond 13s per galloa, and praying that hotel property jhoirtd be exempt from the property tax. We that we should follow suit.

The Tariff Committee arc busy revising the tariff. The own correspondent of the Otago Daily Time 3 at Wellington wires to that paper as follows :—" The petition presented last night against Messrs. Hall, Moorliou«c, Rolleston, and others i 3 reported to bo likely to lead to a curious land scandal."* The petition referred to is relative to tin- maladministration of the waste lands of t!i» provincial district of Canterbury, commonly called gridironing. An American paper indulges in the follow-. j t ,rr pleasantry Somebody wrote the editor of a villa-''- paper to ask how he would break an ■>:<. Tin: editor replied as follows Ii oufv oik- ox, a L'ood way woidd be to hoist fiim. by means of a long chain attached to j his tail, to the top of a pole 10ft. from the | ground, then hoist him by a rope tied to his horns to another pole. Then descend on his back a 0-ton pile-driver, and if that don break him, let him start a country news-' paper, and trust people for subscriptions. One of the two Trill do it sure." The Melbourne Argus of the 24th November aaya:—"The stud merino sheep purchased by Mr. . M'Culloch, afc the annual sale of the Erdldoune stud, on the Wth October, were shipped on board the b.h. Northumberland on Saturday' morning. These sheep were purchased by Mr. M'C'ulloch for the Duke of Manchester, who intends starting a pure merino flock in England. The sheep purchased consist of 11 pure ewes, 20 months old, and one ram two anil a half years old. Fearing that Eome accident might happen to the ram, Sir Samuel Wilson added to the shipment another fine stud ram as a present to the Duke. This is the first shipment of the kind that has been made from Australia to the- Old Country, and the result will be watched with much interest by all Australians. Many of our ocst stud flocks are indebted to shipments of pure merinos from the flocks kept by George 111., and now, after nearly half a century, the English flocks are being refreshed by the introduction of pure merinos from Australia," India, says an exchange, is admirably adapted for production of the finest qualities of both soft and hard wheat. Site possesses greater climatic advantages than either Russia or America for the growth of finer quality grain. The greater bulk of the Knasian supply is spring wheat, the climate being too cold for the production of -winter. In the same way, most of the larger wheatgrowing districts in America cannot raise the soft white variety, and what England receives from the United States comes solely from California and Oregon. In the London market the superior quality of Indian wheat brings from -lis to 4Ss per quarter of 4!)G pounds, while grade No. 1 brings from 41s (kl to 43s (id, and grade No. 2 from 39s Cd to Us, as against 44a and 45s for C'alifornian rtnd Oregon, and 47s and 4Ss for Australian. When it is considered that but a comparatively small portion of India's territory is devoted to wheat culture, we must apprehend very strong competition by arid by, when the people of that country awake to the fact that Kurot.c's necessity is their opportunity. An eminent British authority i recently asserts " that with a little exertion on the part of the Indian Government tn encourage the more extensive and more careful culture of wheat, and with due precaution in the preparation of the givin for shipment, India will be able to compete on favorable terms with any other country in the European markets." Ujiless there is gross exaggeration in the estimates of the Paris Bulletin des Halles, the French purchase; of foreign wheat for the harvest year will (i»y:i r>n American paper) be on a scale without precedent during any year of peace. An estimated deficiency of some 00,000,000 bushels, to be iunplicd almost exclusively by this country, involves an almost incredible advance on the 4.n00,000 bushels exported to France in 1577-S, even assuming that as much more was seat by way of Kiiglan.t. During the last fiscal year the exports of wheat and wii. at flour from the United States reached a total equivalent to 100.000,000 bushels. About three-fourths of thai quantity found its way to Great Hr'tain and her colonial possessions. For tin- runvnt fiscal year our wheat exports cannot to reach 200,000,000 bushels, with a proportionate increaseonother descriptions of breadatufls. I'or the last fiscal v,ir our exports of cereals were over 25 per cent, greater in value than the exports of cotton. For the year ending v/itli next .Tune the excess will be at least 50 per cent., and wheat alone, which very nearly equalled cotton last year, will fairly take its place as king. Haying been asked for information as to the lowest prices afc which corn and live stock can be profitably landed in English ports, Mr. Drummond, Secretary of Legation at Washington, supplies particulars through the newspapers. During the first half of the present year the average price of red winter wheat per quarter landed afc Liverpool has been as folloy/s Landed from New York, 41s 3d ; landed from Philadelphia, 39s Sd ; landed from Baltimore, 425; landed from Jloston, 40s 4d. Wheat from Philadelphia is landed cheapest because freights thence ore cheaper, and they are cheaper because there is greater competition there. From information which lias reached him, Mr, Prmnniond is led to believe that nnder certain conditions wheat can be delivered afc Liverpool from I'hiladephia, with a margin for profit, for 35s a quarter. It is not probable that this will happen, but it is a remote possibility, although it; would not be a lasting one. As to cattle : Prime beef can be put on board at New York at from 4Ad to 5d per lb, and common quality at :U to Jid per lb; at Philadelphia and Boston, at per ]b for best qualities. The freight varies ; it averages L 3 10s per head from New York, Philadelphia, and Boston ; while it reaches L 4 os per head from Baltimore. Thns American meat, killed, is sold in London at GA per lb at a profit, and it is said that even if sold at 5J it would givw ft small profit. The traders in America are delighted at the prices they get, and would do a still larger trade if they could at even less profit. The restrictions imposed through fear of disease prevent the natural increase, although the shipments continually grow. There is practically no limit to the exportation. In 1577 there were 30 million head in the States, and next year's return will probably show 35 million head. Last year only SG,OOO head were landed in the United Kingdom, but this year this number will show an increase. Oxen are raised in Colorado fit for market at 1f, 3 Sd per head, and it is claimed on a large scale it can bo done for 12s 6d per head ' What can English graziers do against this?