ON THE LAND.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2295, 9 January 1909, Page 2

ON THE LAND.

LONDON WOOL SALES

A SPLENDID OPENING—SHARP ADVANCE IN ALL QUALITIES.

(From Ocjr Srecial Correspondent.j

LONLON, Nov. 27, 1908. The wool trade tliis year has passed through some very romancing times, and beginning with a slump, there is every prospect of the year finishing in a little boom. The last chapter opened three days ago, when the curtain lifted on the sixth series of sales, but before coming to the series proper I want to direct the reader’s attention to what lias transpired since we last met in Ooleman-street Wool Exchange. Regular readers of this issue will remember that the fifth series finished with everything tending upwards, a weak opening being transformed into a strong finish. That really was the first indication of a return of life, and since Australian selling centres have kept up the pace in a very remarkable way. ••Frequent cable news of advancing prices soon alarmed consumers, this leading to a groat covering movement, immense sales of wool, tops, and yarns having been effected. Times have been lively, the last three weeks seeing a big spurt in every market alike. If readers will carefully brush up their memories, they will remember there has been since last May a steadily advancing market. OUANTITIES AVAILABLE. The quantities available are of a somewhat different character, and much larger than we have seen for some years hack, this being an evidence of the slower movement of the last colonial clip. The large quantities carried over since last scries is ample proof of this, but we- are now certain to sec the end of this proceeding. London importers and brokers have been frequently charged with bolstering up a weak situation by carrying forward large quantities, but all through I have defended their tactics, aad they certainly are rea ping to-day well-deserved thanks. Had they deliberately compelled the trade to absorb all the wool available there would have been a great slaughter, and - much money lost to the owners, and directly an improvement sets in the whole trade is clamoring for the raw material. The series opened with buyers on all hands keen for the raw material, and at the finish nothing will be carried over but a few thousand bales, not sufficient to cause a good day’s sale. The quantity available is as follows, < and I also show separately the quantity of New Zealand wool which is found in the total: Now Zealand. Total. Year. Bales. Bales.

New Zealand wools are very well represented, in fact very much better than has been the ease since 1902. Even 43.000 bales will be absorbed most readily, for tlie trade is quite as hungry for crossbreds'ns for merinos. A SPLENDID OPENING.

Last Tuesday saw congregated together of the biggest crowds of wool buyers that ever met in Coleman Street Wool Exchange, not a seat being vacanr. Three firms put out a catalogin', and while the offerings were somewhat miscellaneous, yet there was a good sprinkling of Queensland "new tin)” which helped, to improve nicolv what was t. ti bin itted. Sliped wools also bulked largely. but New Zealand greasy fleece was rather scarce. However, a very spirited sale took place, and great eagerness was evinced to acquire stock. Continental buyers were in strong force, and the merinos just suiting them, a lively time was seen. Germany operated as keenly as any, but even France put in some useful work. The home trade was well to the loro 'throughout, and proved able to snsain its competition alongside any other section, taking in the aggregate fully half of the offerings. Higher prices were strongly in evidence from the first lot, and it needed little reflection to see--that both merino and crossbreds were selling at sensibly higher rates than in October. Seldom a lot was passed in. everything being taken with great zest. . All greasy combing wools both in merinos and crossbreds sold the best, scoureds hardly selling at the high level established' for the former. When compared with the close of the fifth series,

The succeeding sales have seen a full maintenance of the opening rates, and great enthusiasm prevails. This is by far the best series-of the year, and wool is wanted badly by all sections alike.

Farm, and Station.

THE OUTLOOK

~ Messrs. PI. Dawson ' and Co. in speaking about the outlook say : “The sharp upward movement of the past interval lias created a new and interesting situation, the development of which is far from being clearly defined. The distinct revival in the States has been the chief contributor to the improvement injhe variousmarkets. It has come at'a moment when consumVrs were lightly stocked, and in the attempt to cover early requirements and to roakoyiew business, a spurt in values has resulted, which lias been so sudden and acute that it naturally causes some misgivings.

The liome trade, unfortunately, is not yet able to give a strong support to the advanced prices. The commerce of the whole, country is under a cloud, and we appear to be in a less satisfactory position Continental neighbors. The movement has affected combing sorts principally up to now, clothing wools still being plentiful, and slow of sale. Moreover, it has to be borne in mind in regard to the heavy advance in thcr-priccs of tops in Bradford, that Yorkshire values for tops had.for some time been decidedly below the London values for the raw material. .The main fact that deserves consideration is that, notwithstanding the slack markets of this year, the favor shown to worsted .fabrics has been such that worsted machinery is again hungry for the new clip combing wools. This is a significant and hopeful sign. It is also reasonable to suppose that, after the shrinkage in business in other classes of goods during the oast twelve months, there-should he chances of improvement and of making up some leeway during the coming year.

Meanwhile, there is danger lost the sharp advance, made at a time when the home markets are somewhat bare, should go further than can he sustained. The business which is being done in yarns is only negotiable at prices below the ouotations of the past ten days. The eood supply of combing merinos which is available for the present series should tend to steady and so to establish, value's. Crossbreds, however, are likely to be in small compass, and can onlv be augmented by early arrivals from South America prior to the January sales.”

FACTS ABOUT HORSES. (“Agricultural Gazette.”) About 40 per cent of the weight of air ordinary liorse is muscle. All muscles concerned with locomotion are attached to bones, and when they contract they , cause'.the bones to which they fasten to move. The lowerpart of a. horse’s legs are nearly all bones, but the muscles in the body and upper part of the limbs are attached to various p.irts of the bony construction by tendons, and call thus produce a motion of the parts located some- distance a wav.

The amount of motion produced by the action of the muscles of, sav, one of the horse’s hind legs, will depend -tipon the length of the muscles and the length of the relation of the hones to which they are attached. The commonest idea amongst students of this subject is expressed in these words: “Long muscles for speed, short muscles for power.” A long muscle enables a horse to get over the ground rapidly. A short muscle, however is not powerful because it is short, but because- in horses constructed on that plan the muscles are thicker, and contain more fibres, all of which pulling together when contracted exert a much greater pulling force than a long, more slender muscle. It is because of this that in buying horses to draw heavy loads we look for large and heavy muscles, while in roadsters we attach much importance to the length of the muscles. The most of a horse’s muscle- is in the hindquarters. Tins may be a sui-p.-i. e, said Mr. Marshall, of the Ohio Agricultural College, recently, but the next time you have an opportunity of seeing a horse pulling 'a very heavy load study him carefully. You will be impressed with the idea that most of tlie work is being done with tlie hind legs. When the hind foot is moved forward the toe rests on the ground and the leg is bent atthe liock joint; if the toe does not slip and tlie liorse is strong enough for his load, the muscles above, pulling on the tendon fastened at the back and proper point of the liock, will close the joint, or, in other words, straighten the leg and cause the body to move forward. It is by the performance of this act at every stop that the horse moves,. -although of course the strain on all the parts is much -greater when pulling very hard. This will show the necessity of having large, hroad, straight joints and legs, that give the horse the most secure footing. You have probably noticed when driving that many horses put their hind foot on the ground in front of the mark left by tho fore foot, and the faster they go the greater will be the distance between the marks made by the fore and hind feet. This shows that the lenght of a step is determined hv the hindquarters; it also explains the need of largs, strong -hocks and legs that- are so crooked as to seem weak or so straight as to lessen the leverage afforded by this-very wonderful arrangement of parts.

NEWLY-SHORN SHEEP.

DEATHS FROM EXPOSURE

The last Few weeks of bad weather has been, the means (says Rusticus, in the “Canterbury Times”) of causing the death of a few freslrly-shorn sheep through exposure. It stands to reason that sheep kept in a warm shed all night must feel the cold doubly keenly when they get their fleeces off and have to stand in a bar© counting pen till the mob is finished and they can he turned out in a paddock. •Small farmers usually do not go on shearing when rain is Jailing, but station owners do not care to turn out, dry-woolled sheep after they have been kept under roof all night. The necessity of having a few wellsheltered paddocks near the homestead is borne in upon us when wc lost; a few sheep through exposure. A few belts of trees would not cost a ruinous sum, and besides adding beauty to the place they are, if planted wisely, a good asset, on account of their shelter only. I have found that if sheep are allowed straight out of the shed on to some good feed they will stand pretty severe weather immediately after shearing. If they arc, however, allowed to stand in their yards until they get their backs up, and take to shivering, they will soon perish unless put hack into the shed. Once a sheep gets thoroughly chilled it seems to lose heart altogether. If it can get a good feed straight away it will stand a. cold snap if it is strong in constitution.

CORNER IN PIG. A FEILDING ALLEGATION. In an editorial article. Saturday’s “Eeilding Star” says:—“The breeders of pigs and fatteners of stores in this district » are complaining strongly against a combine of buyers, which is keeping -down the price of the animals. They declare that, through a. combination of buyers, they are not getting a fair return for breeding and fattening pigg" The price that is being paid to local breeders is only 3id per lb., whilst the factories that are turning the pigs into food arc still charging"high rates to retailers, and the latter have to put a stiff price on ham and bacon for the consumer. The difference between the prices that are now being paid to tlie grower and the price charged by the middleman to the retailer is so great that it seems to us an excellent opportunity is presented for establishing a curing factory in Eeilding. A co-operative movement among, growers should prove successful, or one of our well-established dairying companies might take up such an enterprise it tlie venture does not appeal to local business people.” NOTES. The care the heifer gets the first few times slie is milked determines, in a large measure, whether she is going to enjoy the operation. llie kicking cow is not born —she is made that way by the milker. The dairy farmer must breed only from the best- cows, and must take care to mate his cows with a bull of equally good quality, because it is certain that the qualities of the father, as well as tlie mother, are passed on to the offspring. Speaking to an Auckland “otai reporter of the progress which lias been made in the King Country and all along the Main Trunk line. Mr. Jennings, M.P., said that the cbinge that is being wrought is •amazing. Everywhere the land is being subdivided and converted into splendid o-razing country. At Olinra the grass hinds are wonderfully fine, and one property formerly owned bv Mr W. AYililams. is now stated to bo carryi,K- 4 1 . sheep to the acre. This, he savs. will come as. a surprise to many but it is indicative of the splendid season which has been experienced The stock are lo'okmg excellent, and everywhere the conditions are at their best! Right through the lying Country dairy factories are springino- up everywhere. A large cheese factory has been installed at Ra\igataiM, and a big dairy factory at Kawliia. The roadmg of the King Country at last seems to be nearing some satisfactory conclusion, and everywhere during his- recent comprehen : sive tour of the huge Taumarimu electorate he found the settlers in great liearri __

1908 . 42,800 177,500 1907 . 15.200 125,000 1906 . 17.700 107.000 1905 . 15,937 109.800 \ 1904 . 15.400 81.600 1903 . 32,800 87.000 1909 . 45.800 101,000 1901 . 92.000 233.000 1900 . 122,400 366.000 It will be seen from the above that

the following changes were seen Higlic: r. Grease merino, superior.... Id Grease merino, average id to Id Grease merino, faulty -id Scoured merino, super Id to id Scoured merino, average... Id Scoured merino, faultv Id Grease crossbred, fine 7' id Grease crossbred, medium.. Id Grease crossbred, coarse Id Slipc crossbred, fine id to 2d Slipe crossbred, medium.... 2d to Id Slipc crossbred, coarse Id to lid Grease Cape combing id to Id Grease Cape clothing id Scoured Cape super Id Scoured Cairo medium id to Id