AGKICULTUKAL ABD PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2896, 15 September 1909, Page 20

AGKICULTUKAL ABD PASTORAL NEWS.

The annual meeting of the Winter* Cooperative Dairy Factory Company was a pleasant gathering. It appears that suppliers were paid at the rate of Is o£d all iiionsj, and since th«p the directors bad paid a. bonus of Id per lb for butter-fat, absorbing £320 Is 9d. Mr J. R. Hamilton, •whe presided, after, congratulating shareholders on the success "of last season's operations, said he felt sure they could 1 all look forward to another equally successful year, and be perfectly sanguine of an increased supply of" milk. Most of the. present suppliers were adding t>o their herds, and in orobi .to meet requirement the companyhad decided to put in another vat. It remained for the shareholders to loyally support the company and its directors, and i if they did this success must follow their efforts The following were elected directors for the ensuing year: —Messrs J. R. Hamilton, \V. G. Coster, A. L. Gerrard, J. B. Porteous, T. S. Smith, John Smith, D. iNicholson, James Thomson, and T. Cosgrove. The report current in Invercargill that it •was intended to employ Chinese labouT at the Morton Mains Dairy Factory proves to be incorrect-. The fact is that the directors, finding it impossible to obtain anyone to clean out the wJbey ditch:—the job being «Jeemed too dirty —two Chinese'consented, as a favour, to undertake the work. Tbs balance sheet of the Drummond Cooperative Dairy Factory, Southland, shows that the profit on the season's work amounted to £96 17s 3d, which is slightly over 100 per cent, of the paid-up capital. „ During the year 1,233,8201b of milk were bought, making 125,4401b T*ebeese, The average test throughout the season was 4.1, it talking 9.71b milk to make lib cheese. The price paid fox the milk was Is per lb butter-fa* throughout the season. At the meeting of the Winton Co-opera-tive Dairy Factory on Friday evening, one of the suppliers Stated- that for the season just ended his 30 cows had averaged £11 lOe. Tenders have closed for" the erection of the Tokomaru Freezing Works building. The works are to be erected on the shoreof Tokomaru Bay, on a shelf of land about 30ft above high-water mark. They wilJ have two storage floors of 100 f- by 100 ft each. A six-roomed residence and 10 workeaen'e ppjigge will be «art oJE ikg f»\\jme.

The work is to be finished by October 20, 1910. Mr A S. Mitchell, of Wellington, is the engineer and architect. It is believed that the worfc will greatly help the development of the Waiapu County. SheepfarmeTS in the Wairarapa have already commenced to dock their lambs, and a settler in the vicinity of Masterton, who lias completed operations, has the very saisfaotory return of 130 per cent. At a meeting of the Oxford branch of the New Zealand Farmers' Union a resolution was passed declaring that serious injury is caused through the freezing works closing down in August, as it is found a large nunibeT of hoggets and wethers have not fattened satisfactorily until about the closing date oi immediately following, and it is thougiht the- factories should in the interests of the industry so arrange their works that a Thursday in each week or alternate Thursdays should be set askle for freezing purposes during the months of September and October, and 'thus enable farmers to get rid of all suitable freezing stock before the New Year. The secretary is to write to the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company asking it if the works would be opened on Thursdays for lots of 1000 sheep and over. The following was unanimously adopted as a remit to the provincial executive: — "That the New Zealand Farmers' Union investigate and discuss some means of improving the frozen meat export trade of New Zealand i with a view to prevent the continuance if the slump now existing in -the Home market." . . At. the annual meeting of the Mackenzie County A. and P. Association the . report stated that the net profit on the last show amounted to £80. Th© following officebearers were elected: — Patron, Mr T. Buxton, M.P. ; president, Mr E. Harper ; vicepresident, Mr B. Wright ; tn&asurer, Mr C. J. Talbot; auditor, Mr D. M'CadcHl ; Committee of Management— ite-sere ■W. Arden, E. Anderson, J. Bray, H. Brien,/J. E. Goodwin, W. J. Giddings, R. Irving, F. R. Gillingham, A. S. Smith, H. A. InnesJonee, J. Trobber, J. Davidson, W. Sutherland, Edga-r Jones, W. Wireford, W. IMxon, J. T. Witeon, 1. Battison, R. A. DSxon, J. Burnett, A. L. Dobson, C. W lsitt. W. Bray, and C. Rudd. A deputation from the Fairlie Racing Club waited on the society and suggested either tha.t it should itself lay down the track and lease the ground from the society for a nominal rent until the outlay was made up, or that th© society should lay down the course, the club guaranteeing to pay £20 a year for three years. It was decided to refer the matter to the Ground Committee for a jeport.