33 



at the reports of the earlier sales ; they realised no more than 

 ordinary rough veld bedding, and were in fact bought for the same 

 purpose ! But that was only because the townsman did not know 

 anything about the new hay. Steps were taken to have trial 

 lots tested by large consumers, but to move a market requires 

 either the whole-time energies of a shrewd business man or some 

 fortuitous accident. I had other things to do and could not act 

 as Trades Commissioner for the introduction of Teff-hay on to the 

 Johannesburg market ! But the accident happened. As far as I 

 can learn the details, they were as follows : — 



THE STORY OF ITS SUCCESS. 



- A farmer having more Teif-hay than he required for the con- 

 sumption of his stock, decided to sell the surplus, and sent it to the 

 Johannesburg market. As stated above, it did not sell well ; none 

 of the buyers knew the grass, and it was finally sold for stable 

 bedding. This was disappointing, and I, personally, was afraid 

 it might check the spread of the new crop. But I need not have 

 had any doubts. Evidently the low price was profitable to the 

 grower, for it was only the surplus of his crop ; the balance was 

 used to feed his own stock, and doubtless paid him well for the 

 cost of production, so that what he sold would be clear profit. 



A few farmers continued to send small lots of Teff-hay to 

 Johannesburg, some of which were bought for bedding-down horses. 

 As bedding, Teff is softer than the ordinary bedding cut from vlei 

 sedges and Arundinella Ecklonii. One lot was bought for a racing 

 stable, as being superior to ordinary tedding. Rumour has it 

 that the owner of this stable found his racers eating their bedding 

 in preference to the oat forage in their racks ! Being an observant 

 man. and realising that the price he paid for the new bedding was 

 much lower than for Lucerne hay or oat forage, he decided to buy 

 more and feed it. To his surprise (the story goes) his horses not 

 only ate all of the Teff-hay, but began to improve in condition. 

 This was enough for him ; he bought all that was offered on the 

 market, and inquired for more. Dealers and buyers soon got wind 

 of this, and the price began to improve ; it was not long before 

 it rose from 8d. or 9d. per bale (about 70 lb.), or 20s. to 22s. 6d. 

 per ton of 2,000 lbs., till it commanded the same price as Lucerne 

 hay, i.e., 5s. to 7s. 6d. per 100 lbs., or £5 to £7 lOs. per ton. 



A MARKET GAINED. 



Once a market was established, production went up by leaps 

 and bounds ; the markets were soon flooded, and the price fell to 

 a more reasonable figure, i.e., £3 lOs. to £5 lOs. per ton. But by 

 this time farmers had learned the value of Teff-hay for feeding 

 their own stock, and when it did not pay to rail to market, they 

 fed it. Once prices had fallen, I never expected to see them rise 

 again, but increased demand in the towns, and increased local 

 consuraption on farms, stimulated by droughty seasons and con- 

 sequent shortage of winter grazing, have kept the demand above 

 the supply, and srood prices are still maintained. 



Mr. F. G. Siddle, who formerly farmed near Standerton, claims 

 to have been one of the first to have sent Teff-hay to the Johan- 

 nesburg market. He has supplied me with the following infor- 

 mation : " I think it was in 1906, while farming at Standerton, that 

 amongst other experimental seeds issued by the Government (the 



