The Waikato Times. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1879.

Waikato Times, Volume XIII, Issue 1032, 4 February 1879, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1879.

Equal and oxact justice to all men, Of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political. * * * * + Here shall tho Press the People's right

maintain, Unawod by influence and unbribed by gain.

The val .alion lists of the several Highway districts of the Waikato, Waipa, liaglan, and i*iako Counties are now open for inspection by the ratepayers in the several districts,, and any objection to the same must be sent in in writing in the form of the schedule attached to the Rating Act, 187G, by the 15th of the present mouth ; a copy, also, must bo left .vith the secretary or chairman of the Board, as the case may be, seven days before the next sitting of the Assessment Court, at which such abjection will be heard. Due notice of such Courts of Appeal arc published by the Judges thereof, so as to enable this copy to be sent in in time. As will be seen by the form of objection published, us a schedule to the Act, there are many special points on which a ratepayer may object, either that his own rate is excessive or the reverse, or that that of any other ratepayer is so, or generally as to any incorrectness appearing on the valuation list. The objection lodged is not, however, to go into the particulars of the case, but simply to state the grounds broadly, but concisely in the words laid down in the schedule. The time for entering into details and proof will be when the case comes on in the Assessment Court, lu order that our readers, who have not copies of the Statute to refer to, may avoid the possibility of having their objections thrown out as informal, wo publish the schedule of the Eating Act, 1579, from which it may be seen how each ono shall frame his own form of objection.

TO THE ASSESSMENT COURT FOR

THE I hereby give notice that I objcot to the Valuation List for the , on the following grounds:—

(1) That nay name is inserted therein, as owner (or occupier) of a property doscribod as [insert description from the Valuation List], and assessed at the rateable value of £ (a) Whereas I am not the owner or occupier of suc;h property, or (b) Tho rateable value is less [or more] than that above stated, or fcj [State any other reason for objection] (2) That my name is omitted therefrom, whereas I am tho owner [or occupier] of [stato tho description and schedule of tho property], aud I am entitled to have my namo inserted in tho friat, iu readout tb^euf.

(3) That A B, whose name appears in the said list, as the owner [or occupier J of [state the description of the property in the Valuation List] of the rateable valuo of £ s d, is not entitled to be inserted in the said list, because [state tho reasons]. (4) That tho name of A B has boon omitted from the said list, whereas ho is the owner [or occupier] of [state the description and situation of the property] and ou#ht to be rated in respoct thereof. (u) That tho rateable valuo of tho property occupied by [or owned by] A B, described in tho said list as [state the description in tho list] and of the rateable value of £ s d, is more [or less] than that stated in the - said list. (6) That [stato any inaccuracy in tho list which the objectors desires to be corrected]. Dated this day of , 1879. A B [Christian and Surname in full], of [state residence]. N.B.—The objector may insert any or all objections numbered above.

The throwing open the ports in Australia has had a most depressing effect on tho market value of pedigree stock. The Colao anuual sale of the Messrs. Kobertson J3ros., which took place on the 3rd ultimo, and that of Mr Gardiner, of Uhelswortb, in Victoria, which took place on the 31st December last, give ample proof of the decline in both male and female stock. Tho ' Melbourne Age' alluding to (he Colac salo says : "It was evident from tho first that prices would not be anything approaching those of former years, and the result of the sale went to show that not only is money scarce, but that the days of fancy prices for stud stock are practically over. Tho first lot offered was uino stud Shorthorn bulls, which fetched a total of £IOSO, or aa average of £ll6 13s 'id. All theso animals were of most aristocratic breeding, as is easily to be seen by reference to the price-list apeuded below. Last year the same auimala were disposed of at an average of £792 15s apiece. Seven Shorthorn cows fetched £1391 ss, the average beiug £l9B 15s.

Seventy-one Shorthorn bulls, and 33 heifers ef the same breed, were then put up, and realised au average of £l7 5s 3d for bulls, and £34 2s 7d for heifer?, bidding being remarkably slack. A large draft of Hereford cows and heifers were also disposed of at cheap rates, the average being £G 8s 6d per head, a price in many iustanws less than could be obtained in the market for butchering purposes: in all 228 head of cattle were sold, the total receipts being £S4:SI 10s Gd. The ' Sydney Mail' in commeating on the great fall in prices at the Colac sale goes into a comparison class by class of the respective prices obtained at the last three Colac sales, iu order, it says, "to reader the magnitude of the fall clear to our readers." Those prices were as follows:—"In 1877 at Colac 12 Shorthorn pedigree stud bulls averaged £389 7s (id per head; 7 Short, horn pedigree heifers averaged £4-12 5s 7d; G Hereford stud heifers av riged £SB 12s Gd; 38 Shorthorn station bulls averaged £l9 9s; 50 Shorthorn station heifers averaged £7B 15s; 17 Herford station bulls averaged £3O 13s; and 50 Hereford station heifers averaged £36 lis. The total sum realised for 100 animals was £20,200 18s Gd. In 18? 8 10 stud Shorthorn bulls averaged £llO2 10s; 14 Shorthorn bulls averaged £-U 17s 3d; 50 Shorthorn heiiers averaged £7l 18s Gd , 9 stud Hereford bulls averaged £GG 0s Sd ; 9 stud Hereford heifers averagdd £ll7 9s Id ; IG-bullsfrom the pure Hereford herd averaged £2B 9s Gd ; and 258 puie Hereford cows and heifers averaged £22 13s sd; aud the total sum realised for

.=OO auiuials was £25,742. In 1879 nine Shorthorn stud bulls averaged £ll6 13s-; seven stud heifers, £l9B 13's; 71 pure Shorthorn bulls, £l7 5s 3d; 31 heifers, £3i 2s 7d ; and 108 Hereford cows and heifers made only £6BB 5s 6d. The total receipts for 221 head were £5481 10s 6d." It then seeks for the cause rejecting the idea that the decline is due to hardness of the times or tightness of the money markets, for ] 877 and 1878 were not prosperous years to the pastoralists but on the contrary marked by heavy pastoral losses. The opening of the ports of Australia to the importation of cattle is unhesitatingly pronounced by the ' Mail' to be te cause of the decline in price and the slackness of the demand for pedigree stock, ft says, " The prohibition, we have repeatedly contended, gave a fictitious valuo to Australian Shorthorns, and wo persisted in this view of the question, although the advocates of closed ports ever kept before breeders their opinion that there was quite enough of the " blue blood" in Australia. The late arrivals of stock in this port, (he stock on the way, aud the number of animals that are ready to be shipped are proofs that practical men did not quite agree with those who so lately assured us that importations were quite unnecessary."