POULTRY NOTES.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 23 December 1913, Page 3

POULTRY NOTES.

(By Utilitarian.) ... The following defence of middlemen may be rend with interest and, perhaps, with amusement, by co-op-erators : "The JNew Zealand Poultry Journal has. a special department devoted, to the interests of the N.Z. Poultry Association. This department appears to be conducted by the editor of the Journal. In the last issue of the paper received, there is an article in it on 'Aggressive Work,' from which it appears that the efforts to develop co-operation are, in a measure, impeded by 'the distrust of some poultry men. "it is said that one of those not in accord with the movement affirms that 'poultrymon have no confidence either in the secretary or the president, because they happen to be middlemen.' The editor says: "If we could believe that were the consensus of opinion held by poultrymen, both officers would gladly vacate the positions and give the most suitable men an opportunity to fill them." Mr Robinson says: "The situation is hardly unexpected. It is one of the legitimate fruits of the rantings of rabid advocates of co-operation against 'middlemen.' Wherever cooperation is'preached there-are those who, in their zeal for a cause which they no doubt sincerely believe in, are utterly unreasonable in their denunciations of middlemen, alriiost always referring to them in such terms that it £s no wonder if some of their readers in time come to suppose that middlemen are the natural enemies of producers and .altogether a most undesirable element in au economic community. "By stirring up among producers the feeling that middlemen are a species pf pirates, the unwise apostle of co-operation creates in their minds distrust of just the class and type of men necessary to make a cooperative movement ?a success. When the matter is analysed to the end, it appears that the. success of a co-op-erative movement depends upon the producers securing the services of" men capable of performing the work of 'middlemen' on terms more advantageous to the co-operating producers than to their agent.'" ■ Why an arderit co-operator should become zealous, be a rabid individual, might be hard to ascertain if one did not recognise that evidently the writer of vne foregoing has tumbled into the old confusion of mixing up mid-' diemen and agents. , Middlemen are not necessarily agents on, behalf of the producer; when, "dealing" they are actiiaig entirely t in their. Own, interests, but agents; acting or' selling on a commission' and returning to the producer -all that they realise on his behalf, (less the aforesaid commission) is an individual whose existence is necessary to co-operators. Whether that agent is a single individual or the managing director of a company composed of co-operators, is immaterial. To go further, a middleman can buy and sell otitright; but one acting as agent: has no authority (unless specially granted) to so do. He is merely the go-between for-produc-er and retailer, or consumer^ In the writer's opinion the world contains too many middlemen, and not enough.producers, and, perhaps, that combined with immense expenses in the upkeep of militarism, accounts for the excessive cost of living in these time,! Poultry men are evidently in for tough limes, judging by the way wheat % rising in value almost weekly. Reports of wheat under crop in this country are not encouraging. Rowever, it is no good.trying to eco- # nomise with inferior quality, with the idea of saving expense. The loss will come out in a diminution in* eggs, or 1 poorly reared chickens. Maize is a capital' green food for poultry in the autumn, and though 'somewhat late there is yet time to sow a patch. ' It is possible' that,.chick feed, prepared in the Masteiton district, will be available for next season. - - Much has been said at various times against iron for walls of fowlhouses, i have lately seen one built, practically- all iron, and the v owner has excellent results. As long as the house is open fronted and the perches are at least a foot a away from the iron wall, there seems to be no reason why it sTiould not be used. It is quickly placed in position,; and can be'so fastened that if the owner' contemplates moving his' quarters at any time, but little: time .'-is taken in removing it and conveying it to his new destination. ' t • , . " Though it is generally just as profitable to get rid of leghorn cockerels at ten or twelve weeks old, Wyandottes and Orpingtons are more remunerative if kept till &i to 5 months —after that age they are liable to become coarse and staggy for the table. '