CAMBRIDGE FARMERS CLUB.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 657, 5 August 1876, Page 2

CAMBRIDGE FARMERS CLUB.

Tits usual monthly/™' if? of th» above Cubans hold at^ 9 - A " (l °" L Hotel on Tuesday last the l Xt IIIS \ -^ following noro the membej? P«"«nt :-B Maelcin, rarUer, IS JJ V* al i er ,' U * l J> , Ferguson, a E Clarl J ylin tlsher ' * Hic ks, J Hunt Junes llu. I™™1 ™™' 11 ' a ? JD Pearaon, X Parr W 1* Murhn « and H Buttle, (Seerotiry') Tlitf mmutes of thejprevi. us merli in* having beoll rt ' ad aud coufi.mcd, Mr i W°L M-i rtMl P^P o3^ Mr Sin was a member, V vho was ellJct^ oa a ballot being; take!"'. •. The SeoV* 1^ reid a letter f rom M.jor Wilson, sv'\7 ITl f .1113. ll13 wiNiiigne'S to become one of 7 ue tl)llteen inemberj to read «ne...yon«!tfJ« w ' , Mr jfi B v\j^ r rfad -an- eway— on^_ onei'jj nml oufie p I* asture.' Mr Ilicks would like to make a few remarks. There were a, few things which had been forgotien. There must be somo other Lmd of lood besides grass foi sheep, hay wjuld not do, they would ba»e to grow s>ne sort of roots. It would bo impossible to keep them without some s.icti change. Pastures wouid not bj healthy i* th«y were kvpt nure tl.aa four or five years, borne of his pastures wore b ■coming foul already, a th jugh they liad not b e 1 down «o long a* tnat. The grassrs niuit be supplemented by something else. Mr Maclean baid that although it was his priviiedge as c'la'rman to speak l«st, he would just maka one remark with referen -c to the culling of flocks, some of the on mals would b« found to bo fatter tlun others, but t'^y would nos necessarily have the best llee.-c. The animal with the longest and best fleece was to be preferred. l)id he uacu'rsUtnd this to ba Mr Walker's tneaniiijr ? Mr Walker— Y-s. Mr Jai^es Kunciman said he was not present ut the beginning, but be quite eiido sd the piit relating to grasses. He behoved in a variety, but there was a nrc.it difficulty in g. ttmg them. Mr Walker nad said t hit 25 percent of the grna* was nut alive a ter fi<e years, this wasp.-rkips owing to I lie f.ct that tne seed was o d when it left the old country. Much money was th own away cn^Llu li see I. If some one could ba indues J to grow seed in the col.my, it would piy larmeis to give a much higher price for it, because it could be depended on. As they were all advocating variety of grasses gome one might be induced to do this. Mr Maclean suid that Timothy wjs a. t;ood grass, they had tried it several times, but tud tailed umil thej got seed from San Franc sco, grown the preceding season. Yarrah wa* aluo good leel. Mr Jaa.ei Kunciman, asked if Ihe Yirruh would grow on ptutuio land. Timoihy encouragod the catterpillar, Mr Maclean satd >bat the Yarrtih waj a herb. In England it wa* looked upon us a weed. A gemleaiau in M&nawuta u ed it as a protection for hi) live fences as it was fireproof. It was not altogether gi\m that was wanted for sheep j herbs were require.! to ketp them io henltii. Diiudeuon aad Sanioin were very useful. Mr liuncnuan said sheep destroyed tho latter aLo. Mr Hunt would like to ask Mr Walker if he would recommend that pure bred rams be put to Merino ewes, or 15th or 10th bred rums Mr Walker would said ho would answer the questions already put to him, seriaiicn— with reference to nnportei grasses, tho first he had sown came from Lawsons, .Nothing grew but tha c'ovcr. Ho grasses grew at alt Some that they got Iroui Canterbury did very poorly, as also some thoy got from Auckluud, This year he hid procured seed fr m Mr Millar of Patei-an^i, aud they v»ei-e doing rery well. He hud got tomo Yanah seed but had not been able to plant it cxct.pt a httlo in the arden. I lo jked vrry hkesoire'. Th 3 lambi wore exceedingly find of it. —ln answer to Mr limit's quotum, he wuuli put the eves to ptuo br.d rums. Nothing else should be ustd. The produce ot a ram cannot, be de^eudtd on unios-t he u puve-breJ. Mr Jb'eigusson said he could not ngreo wish Mr Walker on th.s poiufc, it would bs imp^sible to follow this course at piesent. Tilt) en-es must also bo well bred. It would be b t er if farmers would try to KBiuiiUte the ram and ewe, and to crc"<s ea.h time nith a pure ai.imal. Mr Walker laid that no doubt if onlr pare bred rams were us. ; d many ewes we u'd not bo in l«mb at all. The pedigree of tha sire rau-t nr»t be looked to, then th; 3 pedigree of the dam, h was the s.'imo wi'h ail aniaials. Mr Mac cm said ltwo-'ll not, p«rhip?, pay to put purr bi"d rams to pure merino ewes, but, wo.ild it p-iy to use cro 3-bred rums ? Mr Ferijusson : No, but if he hacj a cross-bied ewe, it would not be wit,: to put a |mre.-b ed ram to it. Sheep c> uld not be pure, unless the partntn^e w s pu c on both siJe«. lie had read of .v gentleiniu who had otossed black-faceii ewe i with jiure bred iams, but, he was told tha pr geny could not become pure. A member said that sheep were mppoied to be pure after fifteen or a xtecn crosso» with puie bred rams. It nas saii they wera pure in twenty years. Mr Ferguson did not think so. In the 'Field,' which he considered an autbonty, he had read that cross bred abeep could not become p ire in a hundred years Mr Hunt sad he hid been told that the progeny followed the purest parent, and he had proved tins by exp-rimint. Mr Walker said he thought Mr Fergmson had referred to pure bred Merinos, my sort of ram was good enough for some of the Merinos that camo from Napier. Mr (Jlark said there was one topic which had not been touched upon. The ram s antecedents should be looked to. A good type should be selected nnd toot to. Some said that a bisis should be formed of several ; but, ho believed in keeping to one line of blood, using pure bred rams. No improTement could be made, unless this was adhered to It was a very important thing to get the right food lor sheep. Roots, ho thought, would have to be resorted to. With regard to a variety of grasses, he would siy toat the lack of variety in his pastures bad been the cause of muclt loss to him. Sonio kinds of grass alone were very unhealthy, producing jaundice. Ue thought there would be a difllcu'ty in introducing sanfoin into this country. Ho had some seed sent him from England, which he sowed, half in spring and half in autu-nn. It came on very well nt flivt, but dissnppcared in a year, from what cause he could not lei) ; it might have been for want of grazing. It was considered very valuable fi.od for shoap in England, and he would be very glad to see it established here, as it was well adapted for sowing in clover-sick pastures. Mr Hunt asked if any member had tried sheep parsley. Sheep were fond of it in the old country, and it was also a good thing for clover- sick pastures. Mr W L Martyn could hardly see that one line of blood should be kept to. A person might as well keep the same rams year after j ear, b cause, if one sent to the breeder of this particular type he might sand a brother of the rani one had had before.. It would he breeding in and in. Mr Maclean said that was Mr Clark'i idea to keep to one blood, and the fljck would resemble tbc original from which it was selected. Ho knew a breeier of Merino sheep, who had bought no »vHr

fl ck Of course, d.ff<**nt types nuted "irC^cdiftbUWddoiua ft c oo I bun or ram, h* would put him to h.ii..ogeny,«o long at tie herd or flock Sid lot, deteriorate, which could easily bo discovered. * „ •.. Mr James flnncimsn would >>*c io ask one question. Would not the constitution of the animal, oe irjured after breedi. q in for tJirre gerera ion*? Mr M.clcac-The most valuable type of sl.ort-horns was got in lh.it way. Nearly all about the year 1800. It intcn.ilied the tr air' Clark moved a vot. of t W*. to Mr Wplkrr, fur his Tcry iuteresi ug -ssiy. Mr James Kunciman seconded, a .U t&e motion wss carried. , Mr Hicks i.poltgised for not being prepared with the aubjoct of farm ins ecti. n, £l.ub had bee., brought forward en hm khalf by Mr Fisher. He bad pot the necesr.r/ p»per 9 , &c, withhim, bu' if IhiciufilSowbt it desirable, he would b, h « r py to ao so ht some luture meek ng. llns was agreed to. Mr Clark nu»ed:— •Ihpt in the opinion of th<s Club, it is d. »ir..blo the po.U of New Z^ land be tl sed against the importation of cattle and sluep from Europe.* In support of tb.it resolution, the norer st.tid he would fiist consider their potitnnns a pastonl disirict. Their sheep and cattle were their working capita 1 , and and less of herdt and fl cks to many n< aid Jiean simply ruin. It wo s for their consideration which of th* two they could rest afford at tbe preient period,— to c'o<e tleirpoits to the importation of tt. ck from Europe for a time, or run the n-k of 1 ■ porting foot and mouth dis-i te r Jo pire tome idea of the raTus»es this <lie*ae had made in Britain, ac woud leid an extract from a paper real befoie In. manners Club in London, February ttbf>W6, by Mr Jumet Howard. Mr Howard ttated, shaking of foot nnd r, outh disease— 'l would call attention to the grave danger winch exists of tl ese maltniet becoming naturali«ed among our tminuhs for a c oser study and a growing knowledge of tbe facts or epidemiology »>ra constantly adding more and mto suipoit to the views that dieenos, .iot. nHurally inherent, ra»y by their preval♦n v in generation after generation Li.onie indigenous. To my mind, tluie is oi c of Ihe mot serious ■••«]; eels of tho vh le question, lor it would be converting i.Huialiv healthy flo ks aid be.ds into uninalhy one«, sulj-ct at any time to ou Weak* of contngious disease*. If, ac »o are aiturtd, there 'n danger ■ f tv h a cal flinty, it behovet Goverm ent, it b'li"Tß* all concern'd Io muks a uctern ini'd t nd uuited eff irt to stamp out ond k-tp out so dire an enemy.' -Again, f-om tu 3 saa.e paper he would quote iim» fie res worthy of their considcrition. T e n I urns for the county of Ch &hire in 1572 h'.ow (bat no loss than &2,0» 0 catll* wi re offt cted with foot and mon. h diaf a s e, at rl the lost aloi.e in this county writ e«t mitert at not le*s than £15(',000 to £160,000 for the y^ar. Again, in evidence jj vi-n by Mr Duckhnm before a Favliaji entarj Committee in 1873, showing the diicct money 1ob« sustained in 1872 by tie Suciownfrs of Herefordshire, Mr Puikl.um stutid that if t! c lcs* was as prcat in other parts of tho United Kingiloin, it w uld amount to the «ttounrling •i m of £20,000,000. These facts s v ould v u-e tin in to coii-ider their pisition. f l hi --c fi. ires wee taken from a past year, 1 nt he lh light he might snfeh stale that fh s t-ulj. it, at the present t mo, was oicujiyinj; ihe mind (tw a harassing degree) of t\"cfy thinking ttockowmr in the I mud Kingdim. With the c c fnett bi fort th< m. were they justified in remainii q the oii'y colony in the Au^rulasian jri. uj) th.il courts the danger of impor ins ilii* *'i*e'ul d 6e«w ? By to doing tley liul clo« t d the Australian ports to their sleek. 3be>e were ninny views to be tuk. nof this suhict. Were they at the nenj of stud brc<der* only their case >t. u d not be as bad, for althoußh thoy njiyht run equal risk it would be for jimmnlt of eujienor qu-ility oily, and ciliul.itrd to im}-roTe their flocks and 1 eids, l ut they ran greater risks from »p. (ulnturs who sliippod Io thiir poits (rotably during th* past year) quantities rf eliccp that are not calcu ated io in prove the flocks of the c 'lonv in tbe >ey slightest decree, but on the otler liaml, to liave a dan aging tffect, for many ni'ie led tiway with the idea that if tl.ey ott nined an imported animal they coi.ld ret fail in niakmg improvement in their florkß. whit h »xperience proved to be a corn | le to fallacy. Hence, »aid Mr Clark, we run a risk in muny instance* to iinpoit worthless an inals. Withthse ti w rerraiks, he begged leo.Te to move the lts'ilution. Mr X H D FergußSon seconded, f Aftir a rather long ducuition as to the iiu'u-e of the disr»i«e, &c, it was agreed to ttneiid tht resolution ■• fol'o«a, ia which sta'e it w»s passed : — ''Jbat the ports of New Zealand shall te ccfcei-U the importation from Europe cf all "l%|to»l« subject to the foot and mouth disease, and that all animals so Huble, now on the way, should be place f I in qunr.ntine, on an island distant at lea»t ten miles from the mainUnd, for a p( nod of bt least three months.' On tbe motion of Mr Fer(ius*on, it was apiecd to telegraph the rescluton to Mr C x. Mr Walker gar* nottee that be if ould, at the next meeting, propose Major Hay as a u enber of the Club. Mr Jmr.es Runciman gave notice ihit 7c would propose Mr B Fisher as a member. tn vious to tbe meeting dispersing, Mr Forr, a gentleman from Mongonui, vms inirtduied, and reod a paper on the cultivution and utilization of linseed, and f xjiretseci his readiness to give all inforr> nlion on the tul ject to any one desirous ot to d. ing. A vole of thanks to the Chairman bioupht the meetiDg to a close. [Mr Walker's etseay we will endeavour to gite in a future issue.]