CANTERBURY BUDGET.

Otago Witness, Issue 4033, 30 June 1931, Page 18

CANTERBURY BUDGET.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) ADDINGTON MARKET. CHRISTCHURCH, June 27. Not for many months has the market at Addington been conducted under such miserable conditions as those that ruled on Wednesday last. Throughout the day there was a keen driving wind from the south-west, accompanied most of the time ■by "heavy rain, and auctioneers and buyers wasted no time in disposing of their business. The rain itself will do quite a lot of good in the country, as it will help to soften land that had become almost too hard to work because of the continued dryness of the-autumn and early winter months. It will also put a definite check to fattening, as growth will be brought to its usual winter standstill. Despite a slight easing in the schedule —amounting to l-8d on first-grade lambs and on seconds —the sale for fat lambs was a steady one, and the bulk of the offering of 2600 was cleared at very satisfactory figures. There were again some outstanding lines penned, but among the second-grade sorts there was a doigger proportion than usual of lightly-finished lambs and others that were little better than stores. Exporters were again very heavy purchasers at the. lower schedule, and in most cases they 'stuck to their limits, -which ranged from 6d for firstgrade lambs down to 4 7-8 d for seconds. A good many lambs were bought on a basis of just over sd. Anything at all well finished made from about 16s upward, but out of the whole offering there were not a great many that exceeded that figure. A lot of farmers took the opportunity of getting rid of some of their old ewes this week, and they filled a fair number of the fat sheep pens. The sale here also was conducted on a lower basis by the exporters, who brought their limits back a little, to 23-8 d for first quality erve mutton down to 1 7-8 d for heavy sheep and seconds. Wethers, which have been in comparatively short supply this season, showed a slight hardening, the best of them selling at the export limit of 4d for firsts down to 2LI for overweights. The sale was quite a good one throughout, with the exporters and butchers buying freely. The offering totalled 6600 head, a bigger number than is usual at this stage of the season. The highest price of the sale was 25s Id, which was paid for three wethers out of a line of nine sold on account of Mr A. Cowie (Hawarden). Another pen of three made 245, and three more 225. One of the outstanding lines penned was that sent forward by Messrs Scott Bros. (Windwhistle). There were 180 in it, and they made from 16s 4d to 19s lOd, the second top figure. From about Us upward was the value of a killable sort of ewe, but there were a great many that did not reach this figure, some of the plain sheep selling at as low a£ 5s to 7s.

So far there are few signs of any returning strength in the beef market. As a rule it is fairly brisk and capable of absorbing fairly large supplies at this time of the year, b.ut up to the present it has been anything but that, and with the tendency of prices to weaken on the slightest provocation graziers have not had a particularly satisfactory season. Wednesday’s yarding of 425 head was too much for- the demand, and - over -an irregular Sale prices slipped back a shade, secondary'beef • again suffering the inost. The first three races met With quite a fair demarid, and there were some Cattle that brought over 30s a 1001 b. After that, however, dullness set in, and the balance of the yarding sold draggingly; On an average the best of the beef made up to 29s a 1001 b, and good grade from about--255. A big proportion of the yarding' which consisted of lightly-finished beef, made under 20s. ' FARM ACCOUNTING. During the last 12 months or so a good deal of prominence has been given to the desirability of putting farming on a more businesslike basis by the introduction of simple, yet effective, methods of. farm costing. Tire Canterbury Chamber of Commerce and the Lincoln College authorities have given a strong lead in the matter, and, judging by the wide interest that has been aroused, their efforts have by no means been wasted. Possibly that interest to some extent may have been inspired by the exigencies of the times, wljen most farmers are trying vainly to make 'income and expenditure meet. If it can be translated into practical application then adversity will have taught one valuable lesson. A new suggestion has been put forward in a bulletin issued by the Chamber of Commerce this week. Brigfly, it is that fanners, to have their costing ..done as cheaply and as advantageously as possible,

should group together and keep their accounts with the one accountant. This obviously will ensure that a fanner’s records will be kept thoroughly up to date, but in addition it will bring him into contact with a professional business man whose advice and suggestions should be of the utmost value. In support of its suggestion, the bulletin points out that certain unexplained difficulties will arise even with the most complete instructions, and many farmers who are unaccustomed to account work will have difficulty in making a start. Several banks, stock and station agents, and others have agreed to assist the farmer i n making his first entry; but even then farmers who are out working all- day will be, at some stage or other, unable to keep their account up to date. Accordingly the co-operation of public accountants in this matter is advisable.

If sufficient applications to join an association from any one district are-for-warded to the Canterbury Agricultural College at Lincoln the college will'undertake to provide the necessary assistance to set up a committee of subscribers to form an association. MEAT EXPORT SEASON. Within the next 'week or so the meat export season in Canterbury will have closed. The southern works at Timaru and Oamaru closed this week, and the North Canterbury Sheep Farmers’ Cooperative Company, Ltd., which has its works at Kaiapoi, closed at midday to-day. Three of the big works are to close on July 4. These are the New Zealand Refrigerating Company,, Ltd., at Islington, the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company, Ltd., at Belfast, and Thomae Borthwick and Sons, Ltd., also at Belfast. The Belfast and Islington Works are closing a fortnight ahead of the date on which they ceased last season. The recent break in the weather and the consequent check it will have on fattening have hastened the companies’ decision to close so early. Though no figures are obtainable, it is confidently estimated that so far as the export of lambs is concerned ■ the past season will be a record one. Mutton export, on the other hand, is expected to show a decline, owing to the poor demand in the early part of the season.

DAIRYING RETURNS. ’ A striking illustration of what the drop in dairy produce values has meant to dairy farmers during the past season is provided by the figures showing the advances made by the Cambridge Co-opera-tive Dairy Company, Ltd., and published in. an exchange. Up to date the company has naid out £178,000 as compared ‘with £280,000 for the same period last year, a drop of £102,000. And this despite an increase of 5 per cent, in the supply from producers. At the end of last week the company advanced to suppliers for butter-fat supplied during Mav the total sum of £5860, on the basis of 8d a lb Joutter-fat for chebee and lOd for butter. For May last year the cheque was £B2OO, on a basis of Is 3d for cheese and lid for butter. The season in North Canterbury is not yet at an end, and no definite figures showing the payout are available. One of the big factories in Christchurch has estimated, however, that its advances total approximately £lOO a day less than they did a vear ago. At the present time the North Canterbury producer is receiving Is a lb for his butter-fat, the highest price in the Dominion. WINTER SHOW. Already 48 firms have applied for and have been granted space for their exhibits at the forthcoming Winter Show in August. Manufacturers have appreciated: the reduction in the price- of space, for working exhibits, and 11 of the 48 firms have expressed their intention of making this class of display, which should be one of the features of the show. With constant applications being received for selling stalls and sideshow space, it is anticipated that the whole of the available space will be allocated before opening day. The Christchurch City Council has offered to supply free electric power for working exhibits at the show where these are not over three horse power. Entries for the competitive sections have also started to roll in, some of them coming from the North Island.

AGENTS AND FARMERS.

Complaints about the attitude of stock and station agents towards some farmers were voiced at a meeting of the MidCanterbury Executive of the Farmers’ Union this week, and led to action being taken to set up a committee to deal with

any cases of injustice. Both sides of the cases were ventilated fairly freely. One speaker pointed out that the stock and station agents had done wonderful work for the, farmer,-but conditions were now greatly altered, and there was no reSson why a man should be “pushed over the edge.” They knew of farmers who were not being treated as they should be. A warning was issued against the practice of farmers assigning their interests in other estates and also in their life insurance policies, thereby endangering the safeguard set up for the protection of their wives and children.

IMPORT OF BARLEY. Expressing the opinion that the use of imported barley was not likely to be disadvantageous to local producers, the Minister of Agriculture (Hon. A. J. Murdoch), in a letter to the North Canterbury branch of the Farmers’ Uniqp, pointed out that the use of imported barley was practically confined to districts Where barley growing was not undertaken. The Minister also outlined the work that was being carried out in connection with the investigations into smut. The experiments carried out by the Plant Research Station, in conjunction with the Canterbury Seed Co., Ltd., had shown that barley smut was a disease that could be readily controlled either by pickling or hot 'water treatment, and in consequence the importations could not be feared on this count. Smut, he added, was stilt common in New Zealand-grown seed barley, so that the prohibition of this grain would not act as a safeguard in respect of New Zealand barley crops. Those present at the meeting at which this communication, was read considered the Minister’s attitude on the question unsatisfactory and the statements misleading.