534 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
June  20,  1901. 
The  Sliows. 
The  round  of  county  and  local  agricultural  shows  has  got  well 
into  swing,  and  it  is  satisfactory  to  find  that  they  are  being  attended 
with  a  greater  measure  of  success  than  they  obtained  la<t  year,  which 
was  such  a  disastrous  one  to  many  of  them.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  will  have  at  Cardiff  a  similar 
experience,  although,  if  entries  are  any  criterion,  the  prospect  is  not 
encouraging,  for  they  are  smaller  all  round  than  they  have  been  in 
any  year  since  the  show  was  last  at  Cardiff  in  1872. 
Very  little  is  heard  amongst  farmers  in  the  way  of  opinion  as  to 
the  wisdom  of  having  a  permanent  show  yard,  but  those  which  are 
given  are  mostly  unfavourable.  The  metropolis  is  easy  of  access,  and 
farmers,  like  other  people,  are  fond  of  a  trip  up  to  town  ;  but  socially 
there  is  a  serious  drawback,  for  most  farmers,  especially  members  of 
the  society,  whenever  the  show  came  into  their  own  neighbourhood, 
made  a  point  of  entertaining  friends  from  a  distance,  and  these  house 
parties  were  often  the  means  of  giving  and  receiving  valuable  farming 
knowledge  and  practice,  quite  possibly  exceeding  the  benefit  to  be 
gained  from  the  show  itself. 
He  Future  of  Britisli  Wool. 
As  midsummer  approaches,  the  home  crop  of  wool  begins  to  come 
on  the  market,  and  we  have  before  us  reports  of  some  of  the  opening 
local  markets.  The  prices  quoted  are  depressing  in  the  extreme,  being 
from  5s.  3d.  to  8s.  per  14|  lbs.,  or  from  4£d.  to  6£d.  per  lb.  Surdy 
there  must  be  some  extraordinary  reason  to  account  for  such  a  low 
range  of  prices.  When  Wheat  first  fell  below  30s.  we  all  thought  the 
depression  was  only  temporary  ;  but  alas !  we  were  mistaken,  and 
28s.  seems  to  be  now  the  normal  price.  Are  we  to  have  the  same 
experience  in  the  case  of  woo!  ?  If  we  are  to  believe  a  special  article 
on  the  subject  lately  published  in  the  “  Yorkshire  Post,”  and  evidently 
written  by  an  expert  on  the  subject,  we  may  as  well  resign  ourselves 
to  the  present  level  of  prices.  One  paragiaph  in  this  article  we  think 
specially  worthy  of  quotation.  “  Our  home  sheep  farmers  will  have 
to  devote  more  time  and  attention  to  the  mutton  side  of  the  industrv, 
and  we  think  the  time  has  arrived  when  their  fleeces  will  have  to  be 
regarded  as  but  a  by-product,  or  as  the  hides  of  slaughtered  cattle.” 
Tnis  strongly  endorses  our  oft-repeated  contention,  that  first-class 
mutton  is  the  only  possible,  or  rather  practicable,  object  in  sheep 
breeding  at  the  present  day,  and  that  although  wool  has  never  been 
really  anything  but  a  by-product,  yet  its  importance  in  that  capacity 
has  dwindled  to  such  a  low  point  that  for  the  present  and  immediate 
future  at  least  it  must  be  left  out  of  consideration. 
The  same  writer  has  evidently  an  idea  that  farmers  will  hold  their 
wool,  and  decline  to  sell  at  these  low  prices,  a  course  which  he  strongly 
advises  them  not  to  pursue,  as  he  states  that  there  is  nothing  either  in 
trade  conditions,  supplies,  or  consumption  to  indicate  anv  advance  in 
the  immediate  future.  The  quantity  of  wool  from  Australia  and  the 
River  Plate  which  competes  with  English  wool  in  the  home  markets 
is  certainly  a  very  dominating  one,  being  262,000,000  lbs.,  as  compared 
to  90,000,000  of  English.  Very  httle  consideration  is  required  to  see 
that,  under  the  present  or  similar  depressing  conditions,  the  locking  up 
of  the  greater  part  of  the  English  clip  mignt  have  very  little 
appreciable  effect  in  increasing  values.  That  farmers  will  hold  much 
of  their  wool  we  do  not  believe.  Too  many  are  leading  too  much  of 
a  hand-to-mouth  existence  to  be  able  to  do  so,  and  many  others  are 
wise  enough  to  turn  the  nimble  sixpence  with  as  little  delay  as 
possible.  A  few  here  and  there  like  to  have  a  granary  full  of  wool  to 
talk  about.  We  know  some  who  have  held  wool  lor  2s.  6d.  per  lb., 
and  would  do  it  again.  Alas  !  there  are  but  few  nowadays  who  can 
afford  it. 
Graziers’  Difficulties. 
Occupiers  of  grass  farms,  though  they  steer  fairly  clear  of  the 
labour  troubles  of  their  arable  neighbours,  have  plenty  of  their  own,  if 
ot  a  different  nature.  The  most  difficult  matter,  and  one  almost 
impossible  to  compass  to  perfection,  is  the  stocking  of  grass  with  the 
most  paying  quantity  of  sheep  or  cattle.  The  high  price  of  store 
cattle  whicn  has  prevailed  in  recent  years  has  made  a  1  ole  into  the 
grazier's  profits,  for  rises  in  tie  price  of  teef  have  hen  both  rate  and 
of^short  duration.  Siores  were  as  dear  [as  ever  this  spring,  and^the 
farmer  who  was  tempted,  by  good  prospects  of  keeping,  to  buy  almost 
to  overstocking,  is  now,  with  bare  and  almost  brown  pastures,  in  a  most 
unenviable  position.  His  only  chance  of  relief  is  to  have  some  cattle 
fat  enough  for  sale;  if  so,  they  must  go  at  once,  although  they  may 
promise  a  better  return  with  more  time,  and  make  room  for  drafts  from 
the  fields  which  require  relief  the  most.  Hay  is  likely  to  be  light, 
and  there  is  very  little  old,  so  he  will  be  loth  to  sacrifice  a  meadow, 
which  had  to  be  done  in  hundreds  of  cases  in  1893.  Selling  anything 
but  beef  would  mean  a  dead  loss,  for  it  is  doubtful  whether  growing 
cattle  are  worth  as  much  now  as  they  were  in  April.  Cow  lying  off 
in  calf  are  most  sought  after,  such  as  would  come  into  profit  from 
September  1st  onwards.  Fortunately  there  is  plenty  of  water,  and 
cake  may  be  bought,  though  it  is  still  above  a  normal  level  of  price  ; 
but  farmers  have  become  very  shy  of  buying  cake  and  seeing  little  or 
no  return  for  it,  an  experience  which  has  been  too  frequent  of  late. 
A  good  big  heap  of  Mangold  would  be  invaluable  to  many  grass 
farmers  just  now,  whilst  large  quantities  will  be  fed  to  pigs  in  the 
arable  districts  during  the  next  two  months. 
Work  on  tlte  Rome  Farm.  . 
A  good  shower  last  night  was  no  doubt  very  refreshing  to  the 
thirsty  orops,  but  the  effect  is  soon  gone,  whilst  the  barometer,  after 
falling  a  little,  is  again  steadily  rising,  so  we  suppose  we  must  still 
wait  for  the  desired  rainfall.  That  matters  are  becoming  serious  there 
can  be  little  doubt.  We  notice  that  an  agricultural  writer  compares 
this  season  with  that  of  1868,  as  being  similar  in  character,  but  we 
hardly  think  that  1901  has  been  so  hot  and  dry.  In  1868  there  was  a 
fine  and  forward  plant  of  Wheat,  and  a  favourable  seed-time  for  Barley, 
both  of  which  are  lacking  to  the  present  season,  and  with  a  continuation 
of  droughty  conditions  there  is  little  likelihood  of  this  year’s  grain  crops 
approaching  those  of  1868. 
Clovers,  Sainfoin,  &o.,  have  bloomed  much  too  rapidly,  and  are  much 
shorter  than  they  should  be  ;  the  grass  reaper  is  busy  at  work,  and  the 
scent  of  new-mown  hay  is  on  every  breeze.  The  crops  will  be  a  little 
better  than  last  year  owing  to  the  thick  plant,  but  far  below  the  record 
which  more  growing  weather  might  have  brought  about.  Without 
further  rain  the  hay  crops  must  be  even  more  disappointing,  and  with 
very  few  old  ricks  about  there  is  every  prospect  of  a  boom  in  the  hay 
market. 
Turnip  prospects  vary  very  much;  some  pieces  are  doing  well, 
having  both  germinated  well  and  grown  away  from  the  fly,  whilst  in 
other  cases  these  little  insects  have  made  bad  work,  and  resowings  will 
be  common.  Farmers  wisely  have  continued  drilling  where  the  tilth 
has  been  good  enough,  although  much  seed  may  not  grow  until  there 
has  been  a  good  rain.  Meanwhile,  having  got  the  root  crops  in,  they 
can  at  any  rate  be  getting  their  Clover  and  hay  safely  in  until  the 
weather  breaks. 
Mangold  grow  well  and  are  being  side-hoed.  Poor  accounts  reach 
us  as  to  this  crop  from  several  quarters,  many  plots  having  come  up 
patchily,  whilst  some  have  not  grown  at  all.  It  will  be  a  pity  if  the 
Mangold  crop  is  a  partial  failure.  For  some  purposes  it  can  hardly  be 
replaced;  but  as  our  annual  forecast  of  the  root  crop  generally  is  a 
favourable  one,  we  think  farmers  need  not  be  greatly  alarmed  as  to 
the  stock  of  food  for  next  winter  as  regards  roots,  but  the  tightness  in 
the  supplies  of  dry  food  and  litter  is  likely  to  be  increased  rather  than 
relieved. 
Another  shower  has  just  fallen,  sufficient  to  bother  the  haymakers, 
but  of  no  practical  use  to  the  crops. 
- -<»♦♦> - 
Are  Farm  Implements  Vehicles  ? — A  oase  of  considerable 
importance  to  agriculturists  was  heard  at  Bedale  a  few  days  ago.  It 
appears  that  a  farm  servant,  named  SmithsoD,  was  charged  under  the 
North  Riding  bye-laws  with  driving  a  corn  drill  along  the  high  road 
at  Well  after  sunset.  His  master  was  charged  at  the  same  time  with 
causing  the  said  corn  drill  to  be  driven  without  a  light  on  the  same 
day.  At  the  first  hearing  the  magistrates  could  not  agree  as  to  the 
ruling  of  the  law  on  the  point,  so  an  application  was  made  to  the 
Secretary  of  State,  asking  whether  agricultural  implements  are,  or  are 
not,  liable  to  carry  lights  ;  in  other  words,  whether  they  are  vehicles. 
Wanted — A.  Seed-Testing:  Station.  —  An  independent  seed¬ 
testing  station,  under  State  control,  is  an  institution  whioh  we  in 
England  are  lacking.  The  advantages  of  it  are  apparent.  At  present, 
if  there  is  any  dispute  between  a  seedsman  and  his  customer,  there  is 
no  court  of  appeal,  such  as  a  Government  seed-testing  station  would 
supply.  Seedsmen,  too,  would  gladly  take  advantage  of  it  themselves, 
as  if  they  could  advertise  their  seeds  with  a  Government  imprimatur 
stamped,  so  to  speak,  on  the  outside  of  them,  they  would  at  once  gain 
their  customers’ confidence.  The  President  of  the  Board  of  Agricu'ture 
is  considering  the  advisability  of  establishing  a  seed  station  of  this 
kind,  and  I  only  hope,  says  “  W.  C.  S.,”  in  “  The  Agricultural  World,” 
he  will  deoide  in  favour  of  it.  The  best  known  seed  station  on  the 
Continent  is  the  one  at  Zurich,  which  is  presided  over  by  Dr.  Stebler, 
and  it  is  to  him  that  British  seedsmen  are  now  obliged  to  send  their 
seeds  when  they  require  independent  testimony  concerning  them. 
