FARM AND DAIRY.

Taranaki Daily News, 21 November 1916, Page 7

FARM AND DAIRY.

NEWS AND NOTES. "Buyers were simply falling over themselves to get in bids," stated a well-known settler to an Age reporter on Wednesday, when referring tc the Mastorton cattle fair. "It i-; no wonder," be said, "because the farmers simplv cannot eat the feed down. In met, look where you will, you can hardly see tile sheep for grass." A large sale of sheep has just been reported, Mr. Charles Hanson, proprietor of the 'Waiouru sheep station (70,000 acres), having disposed of his flock at a price approximately £30,000 cash. Mr. Hanson was a member of the Ist New Zealand South African Contingent under Brigadier-General Robin (then Major). 'He represented New Zealand at the late Queen Victoria's funeral, and was a member of King George's 'then Prince of Wales) Body Guard°on his -Majesty's visit to New Zealand Mr. 'Hanson is now enlisting as a -private. It is a compliment to fanners of this coast that the late Canterbury Metropolitan Show the judges in ilolsteins, Shorthorns and Jerseys were all chosen from this district—Messrs W. James, R. Bremer and R. J. Linn, hi his comments after the judging at Christeliuivli, Mr. James said, inter alia, that he had the belief that the Ilolstein was the best utility cow, both for dairying and beef. Some-of the southern breeders, he said, had decided to give up wheat and go in for Ilolsteins, especially at the present price of butter-fat. While very pleased with the quality in Canterbury, he indicated that there was still a good bit of leeway to make up as compared with northern exhibits, especially in bulls. But the cows were especially good, and the yearlings were a very strong class, although four or five of them were so far out of condition as to be almost unfit to bring to a show. Mr. James expressed the conviction that the Holstein was the coming cow for New Zealand.—Star. Harvesters' wages were considered by a meeting of the Marlborough Farmers' Union recently. According to a report in the Farmers' Union Advocate, the meeting decided that Is an hour be paid for all harvest hands, including bindermen and stackers, also threshing-mill hands, with a war bonus of 2o per cent. The meeting adopted a recommendation of the Farmers' Union Executive that the wages of all chaff-cutter hands be advanced by 3d per 1001b bags as a war bonus. A further motion was carried requesting mill-owners to carry a cook's galley with their maoiiines this season or reduce their prices £1 per 11000 for threshing.

"A farmer's wages are represented by the difference between the selling' price of his produce or stock and what it cost him to produce it. Sometimes the margin is narrow, and then his wages nre very low; at other times he gets a fair profit, and then his wages go up, but on the whole the small fanner gets a very small wage for his work," remarked .Mr. Lambie at the last Fanners' Union meeting at Hawera. Complications nre understood to have arisen (says the Waipa Post) in cases where cheese factories have sold their outputs before the imposition of the tyjd export tax. The contention hinges on who should pay this d—the buyer or tile seller. It is further understood that, both parties in the ease in dispute have taken up a lirm attitude. A dc ! chiratory judgment is being moved for. Speaking at a Farmers' Union meeting recently at Hawera, Mr. Muckie remarked that years ago he had protested against the child-slavery which then existed in Taranaki, anil although the Union then discounted the statements mads to that effect in the newspapers, he was satisfied of the correctness of them. The small dairy farmer to-day was not receiving half the hourly rate of pay received by other sections of the community, and in many cases it was little better than slavery. Mr. Lambie maintained that it was not a low rate of wages, but a want of freedom of action that constituted a state of slli very. No matter how much a man was paid in tlie form of wages, if freedom of action was withheld from him it wns a condition of slavery, but if lie hltd his freedom of action and worked (or nothing, ho was not in any sense :i (lavi*. He (Mr. J;:mibii*) had worked for nothing, Ijccuiisp he had a prospect lit vipw that was in m) a state uf eiftYerjv—Star. '