870 



PRICES OF LIVE STOCK. 



[Dec. 1895. 



PRICES OF LIVE STOCK AS RETURNED UNDER THE 

 MARKETS AND FAIRS (WEIGHING OF CATTLE) 

 ACT, 1891. 



Statements have been published in each of the previous num- 

 bers of the Journal of the Board of Agriculture showing in 

 tabular form the particulars of returns received weekly by the 

 Board of Agriculture under the Markets and Fairs (Weighing of 

 Cattle) Act, 1891, from the 19 places in England and Scotland 

 scheduled in that Act. These particulars are now continued for 

 the third quarter of 1895, the figures for the corresponding period 

 of 1894 being added for purposes of comparison. 



Animals. 



3rd Quarter, 

 1895. 



3rd Quarter, 

 1894. 



Cattle : 



Entering markets _ . . 

 Weighed - _ _ _ 

 Prices returned _ _ _ 

 Prices returned with breed and quality 

 distinguished. 



Sheep : 



Entering markets - 

 Weighed - _ _ _ 

 Prices returned with breed and quality 

 distinguished. 



Swine : 



Entering markets 



Weighed - _ _ . 

 Prices returned - 

 Prices returned with breed and quality 

 distinguished. 



No. 



270,831 

 22,320 

 19,345 

 13,815 



No. 

 279,586 

 20,611 

 18,408 

 12,216 



1,444,156 

 9,727 

 7,348 



1,502,874 

 9,278 

 6,526 



48,127 

 1,014 

 453 

 2 



20,676 

 743 

 157 

 3 



While the total number of cattle and sheep entering the 

 markets in the quarter now under review shows a decline of 

 more than 3 per cent, in each case compared with the corre- 

 sponding quarter of 1894, it will be observed that the numbers 

 weighed increased in the case of cattle by about 8 per cent., and 

 in that of sheep, where the weighbridge still seems rarely used, 

 by nearly 5 per cent. The per-centage of increase, in the cases 

 where particulars of price were rendered in the prescribed form 

 showed a further improvement — 13 per cent, as regards cattle, 

 and 12 per cent, as regards sheep. 



The numbers of swine reported as entering the markets show 

 extensive fluctuations, but the details hitherto furnished of 

 weighings and prices of this class of live stock continue to 

 be extremely defective. 



The much greater extent to which the help of the weigh- 

 bridge continues to be called into requisition, in selling cattle, in 

 Scotland than in England, is shown by the following table. In 

 the latter country but little over 3 per cent, of the cattle entering 



