296 



GENERAL AGRICULTURAL NOTES. 



[Dec. 189G: 



of the South Australian Department of Agriculture are prepared 

 to chill and ship produce. The prices charged are as follows : — 

 Butter: 6d. per 56 lb. box, to include receiving, chilling, 

 wharfage, and delivering to lighters at the depot. Eleven days' 

 storage are allowed fc/r butter which it is intended to export out 

 of Australasia, or six days if it is for colonial or inland trade. 6d. 

 per box per week is charged beyond these periods. 



Lamb and Mutton: l\d. per lb., to include slaughtering, 

 dressing, weighing, bagging, freezing, putting on board vessels 

 at the depot, wharfage, freight, insurance (covering all usual 

 risks), and London charges (including selling commission and 

 remitting proceeds). Pork If*/, per lb., to include the same 

 services as for lamb and mutton. In the case of these animals* 

 a rebate of *35(:L per lb. will hi made to persons desiring to send 

 consignments for sale through their own agents in London. 

 Animals may be delivered at the depot either alive or slaughtered 

 and dressed, but no allowance will be made for killing and dress- 

 ing. When the slaughtering is undertaken by the Department,, 

 the by-products — except the skins, which will be returned to the 

 owner at ths depot — remain the property of the Department. 



Poultry: Ducks and Fowls, Is. Id.; Turkeys, 2s. each, to 

 include receiving, killing, dressing, packing, cost of wraps and 

 crates, freezing, delivery to vessels at the depot, wharfage, freight, 

 insurance (but not London charges or selling commission). 



Babbits, 4<i. each, c.i.f. London (London charges and selling 

 commission not included). These must be killed and gutted 

 before being sent to the depot. 



It will be seen from the above inclusive charges how much is 

 undertaken by the South Australian Government. Great atten- 

 tion is paid to the quality of the produce, the Legislature 

 considering that the goods cannot be profitably exported unless 

 the Colony has a reputation for first class quality only. With 

 the object of securing this the following conditions have been laid 

 down : — 



Ample notice of the space required must always be given, and 

 all goods mu>t be at the depot several days before the ship, by 

 which it is desired to forward the goods, leaves the port. Butter 

 must be submitted for examination before chilling. Badly- 

 nailed, indistinctly branded, second-hand, or soiled boxes o£ 

 butter will not be accepted. The butter-boxes must be lined 

 w ith the best waterproof butter paper, put in the box in two 

 pieces only, so that the solid square of butter may be shaken out 

 with the paper adhering to it. Each box should contain 57 lbs. 

 of butter, to allow 1 lb. for shrinkage during the voyage. Boxes 

 containing butter must be legibly branded with the name of the 

 factory ; &c. 



Lamb (of first class quality only) should be about four months 

 old, and weigh from 30 to 40 lbs. per carcase. Mutton, also of 

 first class qualit}^, should weigh from 50 to 70 lbs. Pigs (for 

 fresh pork) should be dairy- fed, and weigh from 60 to 80 lbs. ; 



