Viewed in the Aggregate

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 276, 11 February 1928, Page 25

Viewed in the Aggregate

FARMER AND THE DROUGHT

No Need For Pessimism

TO-DAY vyith the country labouring under a protracted spell of dry weather many are prone to view with alarm the prospects of the man on the land. This view requires little rebuttal. Compared with the previous season, the position of the average farmer at the end of the 1927-28 season should register a considerable improvement.

It must be admitted that the dairyman is passing through a troublous period, and that falling returns are travelling hand in hand with a shortage of feed, but even to-day, his aggregate returns for the season should be well in advance of those for the corresponding period of last year. Returns furnished by the Auckland Farmers’ Freezing Coy. show that, while there has been a big decrease in the amount butter and cheese sent into Auckland grade stores during the month of January, compared with the corresponding period of last year, returns for the season to date are still

no reason to believe that values will drop to last year’s levels before the bulk of this season’s produce is disposed of. The position of the sheepmaA should leave little room for complaint. Wool values have registered a steady upward movement since the season opened in November, and all indications point to a strong demand for this product being maintained for some time to come. Prices of lamb have held at a most satisfactory level, and even should the market fall back slightly before the season closes, most of the available