1908.] Agricultural Show at Buenos Ayres. 603 



The Board have received through the Foreign Office a report 

 by Mr. Townley, His Majesty's Minister at Buenos Ayres, 

 on the annual agricultural show of the 

 Agricultural Show at Argentine Rural Society, which was 

 Buenos Ayres. opened on the 8th September in the 

 presence of the President of the Republic, 

 by the Minister of Agriculture, Senor Ramos Mejia. His 

 Excellency laid stress on the progress which had taken place in 

 cattle breeding in Argentina, as was shown by the excellence 

 of the animals exhibited, and he prophesied that in a few years 

 Argentina would not need to import pedigree stock. He 

 said that the irregularities which had been brought to light 

 in connection with the application of the tuberculin test to 

 imported bulls had led to some grossly exaggerated statements 

 regarding the prevalence of tuberculosis among Argentine 

 herds. Statistics showed, he said, that of 2,000,000 animals 

 slaughtered during the past five years at the slaughter-houses 

 of Liniers (which supply the capital with meat) only three 

 per thousand were found to be tuberculous. The open-air 

 system of cattle breeding which is universal in the country 

 was unfavourable to the development of the disease, as was 

 shown by a comparison of the above figures with those which 

 related to cows kept in the metropolitan dairies, 15 per cent, 

 of which were declared to be tuberculous. The Government 

 did not contemplate taking any drastic measures in connection 

 with this matter which would put undue burdens on cattle 

 breeders. They were having an exhaustive study of the subject 

 made by eminent scientists from which they hoped beneficial 

 results. Senor Ramos Mejia stated that the area under grain 

 amounted to 17,791,200 acres, being 494,200 acres more 

 than in 1906, and that the present condition of the crops was 

 excellent. 



The judges at the show included Messrs. H. Dudding, J. W\ 

 Hickling and W. Wright, three Englishmen who had come 

 specially from England at the invitation of the Argentine 

 Rural Society. 



The most notable exhibits were in the class of Shorthorn 

 cattle. Mr. Wright stated that in the course of a long experi- 

 ence as judge at many of the principal shows in Great Britain 

 he had never seen such a large number of so high a class of 



