THE PRICE OF SHORTHORNS.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Issue 2538, 2 March 1887, Page 2

THE PRICE OF SHORTHORNS.

The fall in the price of pedigree shorthorns, which has been going on ever since 1883, has been as great this year "as it was last, when according to the A lmanac of the Live Stock Journal, the 34 auction Bales of shorthorns realised a total of £65,703, this being equivalent to an average of about £37 10s. as against an average of about L4310s for the year 1884, There has been a still further drop in the average this season, as although the number of sales has increased considerably prices have fallen very low, the net result being thaVthough 1953 head of pedigree shorthorns have been sold they have fetched only £60,590 15s 6d, or less by over £SOOO than the 1750 sold.last year. The average, in short, has fallen from £37 10s to £3l 0s 6d, &nd this is almost as low as that at which it stood five or six years frgo.. The number of sales was 44, as compared to 35 a twelve-monthago, the mostimportaut being that of the well-known Willorby herd, which was broken up owing to the-death of Mr Booth. The domand for the Booth blood is always' very strong, and it is not surprising therefore, to find that 57 lots in this sale realised £5547, or over £97 each, the highest price being 330 guineas for a. heifer of the Heouba family. This was not the highest individual price of the year, as at a saleheld.in Cumberland a month before Mr S, P, Foster, who disposed of only a portion of his herd obtained 5.05 guineas for a heifer of the Bate's blqod, this heifer bejng purchased atHolker, The portion of Mr Sorter's head which changed hands made the very satisfactory average of LBj| 0s 6d whereas the portion of Sir Wilfred.' La'wson's lieigboring herd at Brayto? sojd on she' following day, averaged little more than, a fourth that sumThe third best sale'of-. the season /was that of Mr St John Acker.s her 4, the forty animals in which L6B each; a,nd at three oversales, at which t|e average, esceedejl L 5,0 the most interesting wa.s th,at of the Prince of Walts' stoqk, pd at Sandriflgham during the' week of the Royal Agricultural Show at Norwich, Only a portion of the Prince's herd was disposed of, but the gathering was

the year's sales is ®JB3Iy. unfavorable. ■>