NEXT SEASON'S WHEAT.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17419, 1 April 1922, Page 7

NEXT SEASON'S WHEAT.

QUESTION OF GUARANTEED PRICE. A meeting of wheat-growers was hold in .the rooms of th© Ashburton A. and P. Association yesterday afternoon to discuss the question of asking the Government to fix a minimum price for the wheat grown in the seaeon of 1922-1923. At the opening of th© proceedings there were about a dozen farmers present, and the president of the Association, Mr Hunter Morris, who was in the choir, remarked that from the small attendance he thought ho might come to tuc conclusion that all were satisfied with the present duty on wheat, and there did not appear to him that i hero was much for the meeting to disuss. During his opening remarks, however, the number present increased to between 30 and 40. Mr \V. 'l'. LIU e aid some wheatgrowers thought it would bo a good thing to have the wheat grown commandeered and fixed prices paid, and that if this were not done there would not be much wheat grown next season. There was no great profit for the farmers in wheat growing. Mr John Farrell: The threshing-mills get the lot. Mr Lill went on to say that sheep and butter were far beyond wheat, and there was no chance of getting rich by wheat growing, which only paid once in about live years, and the growers only collected the money to give jt to somebody else. It was election year i.nd the farmers' influence was small compared with the votes the Government would get from others. There was no greater gamble under the sun than wheat growing, and personally he felt it was not worth troubling much ;„bout. He hail grown as muoh as 20,000 bushels of wheat one year, and he had not mado hiuch by it. Thero had been a tremendous lot pf money mado in wheat during the commancteor year, but he did not brieve in the duty business. The Government could make a handle of it and could play ducks and drakes with it. He did not care much one way or the other, and the Government could take the duty off at any time if "they thought fit. Mr John Farrell said he did not want any commandeer and he did not see why they should go to the Government una a sic for a guarantee price for wheat. They would look like a lot of sqhool boys to go to the Government for a guaranteed price. He was a wheat .grower, and had got seven shillings a bushel for his wheat when there was no guaranteed price, and was quite satisfied._ He moved "That this meeting of wheat-growers is opposed to asking the Government to give any guaranteed price for wheat , grown this season." The motion was seconded by Mr FFrampton, who remarked that in 1914, when wheat was free, lie got 7s 6d a bushel for what he grew, but thiß was the only occasion on which ho had over mnde anything out of wheat-growing. It was now time farmers went on their own, and they would be studying their own interests by telling the Government that they did not want any further guaranteed price. Mr G. W. Leadley expressed himself in favour cf a guaranteed price. The man who provided food for the people must have an assured reward for providing that food. It was not desirable that this guarantee should be for an indefinite period, but it should certainly be till things got down to a normal level. There was no more risky thing than wheat-growing, and only suitable land should be devoted to wheat-grow-ing. In view of this they ought to ask the Government to guarantee a price for next senson. Thero -were powerful influences which would oppose a guarantee, but tho Government should bo asked-to give it, . , Mr D. G. Wright was of the opinion that if a guarantee were given it should bo low, about the cost of production, and for ft period of years. If the guarantee, were too high it would induce farmers to grow more wliaat than their land w-iifi fit for, and do more cropping than tho land would stand. Mr H. Henderson said he did not wont a guarantee, and the farmers would have been better off to-day if there bad been no guarantee for the price of wool or blitter. Mr John Brown said tliey should think of tho young farmers wlio had taken up wheat land, and land which was not suitable for keeping cows. Ho did not want a big guarantee, but a guarantee which would com© as near as possible to tne cost of production. Mr J. Robertson, a, young soldierfarmer,' said labour marketed its price, and why should not the farmer market the price for what he produced, and make that prioo as near oost ae possible? Mr J. M. Hampton remarked that ho had been growing wheat for the lost 40 years, and lie could assure the young farmers that if they stuck to wheatgrowing they would not bo able to pay their rent. They wanted to go steady and grow ft wheat crop, say, three times in five years. Personally, ho would not grow a single aero, -more wheat with a Government guarantee than if there were no guarantee. On Mr Farrell'e motion being put, it was lost by 14 votes to 12, a number ofl those present abstaining from voting either way. Mr D. G. Wright then moved, and Mr J. Brown Dcconded: "That, with the object of assuring a supply of wheat sufficient for local consumption, the Government bo asked to carefully consider the advisability of guaranteeing a minimum price of «iot less than the cost price far a period of years." Tho motion was carried by 17 votes to 5.

EXPORT OF WHEAT.

rNSmrCTIOKS TO BBOEEES. (SPECIAL TO "THE PBES3.") TLMARU, March 31. In reference to the purchase of Tuscan wheat for export by the Government, advice baa been received that tho Government brokers have been instructed to send all samp.es of Tussan wheat to tho export agent in Christchurch, who will decide whether or not the lines ore suitable for export, and, if so, the wheat will be ordered into a town store for sampling and grading by the local Government grader. On wheat passed for export, the Government will pay all store handling and grading charges except weighing, wlhich must be borne by the grower, but the Government will take no responsibility in regard to charges on any wheat ordered forward hut which, on arrival, is found to be unsuitable for export, in which oase the charges will be a matter of arrangement between the grower and his sel»ing broker. When a Government broke I .' offers the export agent a line of wtieat, he must advise as to the name of the grower, and also the quantity ; in order that nil particulars concerning game may bo recorded by the export agent, but if the line should not be accepted, it cannot be re-offered to him except through the broker who originally offered it. Sometimes a line of whea'j standing in the paddock is slightly out of condition, ana consequently may be refused by the export agent, but after remaining a few weeks in the paddock its condition may reasonably be expected to improve, and it may then be reoffered to tho export cgent.

BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

THE CHAIRMANSHIP QUESTION. | ME BEAITCHAJMP'S TEEM OF j OFPIGE. (SFECL&I TO "THE PEESS.") "WELLINGTON, March 31. Mr Alex Macintosh, formerlv of the Bank of New Zealand, has written the following letter, which appears in today's "Dominion":— "The inference likely to be'drawn by the public from tho statements that nave appeared in various sections of the A J ress motive io the proposed change,in the chairmanship of the Bank of New Zealand, is that the rehabilitation of that institution began with the advent or Mr Beauchj.mp to the directorate, i'his is not only entirely contrary to fact, but a most unjust reflection on i: thers who took an active part in the control of affairs. To say further, that the institution was bankrupt when the gentleman alluded to became associated with it is also wide of the mark. It is probable that but for the adventitious aid rendered by the Government in 1&94, liquidation might have ended in loss, the too frequent result of a process of winding up then solvent concerns. This, together w'ith great embarrassment to commercialism and industrialism in New Zealand, was averted by the prompt action of the Government and Parliament, and the position was no doubt further strengthened later on by the elimination by absorption of a competitor. "A period of over four years intervened before Mr Beauchamp appealed on tho scene, with the dawn of an era of prosperity, and much was done in the way of reconstruction duringa time of great depression, under the direction of a competent board, one only of whom survives and to-day occupies a seat at the board table. This is a matter that lias wholly escaped attention in the statements just made. It is quite unnecessary for me to occupy your space by quoting figures. They are on record rind can no doubt be mado available, if required. "Reference is made to the estimation in which the Bank's shares were held by the public in 1398, and for some years previous to that date, and even as recently as 1902, when the payment of the maximrm dividend then permissible under statute operated so largely Towards a complete restoration of public confidence in the Bank. It wfll not be necessary for me to give illuminated details, which would 'doubtless bo interesting, but a quotation given below from an open letter addressed by me to Mr Mnssey in 1913 will clearly illustrate the position in this respect, and disclose the insignificant part Mr Beauchamp played in regard to this important step, with its beneficent, results. "I now come to the year 1902, by which date, cliiefly because of the increasing prosperity of the country, the bank was in the position of having more than met its statutory obligations, and therefore able to pay a dividend under the Bank of New Zealand and Banking Act, 1695, which sets out by section 11 how the profits of the bank are to be distributed, and provides, inter alia, that a dividend not exceeding 5 per cent, per annum shall bo paid to the proprietors of'the ordinary shares who have paid all instalments on their shares. In my annual report to March. 31st of that year, after making plain tho situation, payment of the maximum dividend then permitted—s per cent. — was strongly recommended. Intimation was received that Cabinet had emphatically declined to allow a distribution of any portion of the profits by way of dividend, and that in bo deciding they ffad the concurrence of the chairman of the board, who, presumably, would be supported by his nominee Let us now note what was involved in this autocratic intention to set aside the Statute, and what were somo of tho considerations that influenced my recommendation in favour of payment. "(1) Tho shares of tho bank were so utterly discarded by tho publio that they had not been quoted for eight years—a circumstance that very materially affected its prestige. "(2) There were between 22,000 and 23,000 forfeited shares on the bank's hands, and it was highly desirable to have these restored, if possible, to the register in the names of persons who would be good for the liability, thus effecting the double object of strengthening tne position and improving tho Government's own security. The decision to veto the dividend would render any action in this direotion hopeless, and the shares forfeited might be regarded «is so much waste paper. "(3) The creation, or I might say a revival, of a healthy public interest in the hank, nnd thus accelerate beyond idm sure the release of the State from the heavy liability it had undertaken. "These, apart from the imperative provisions of : the Statute, were weighty reasons against the ill-advised interference of Cabinet. The decision arrived at was not, however, quietly submitted to. The matter was fought out with some determination, and finally the objection to payment was waived, and tho responsibility for any oonsequenoes that might follow were passed on to me, and that responsibility I had no hesitation in acocpting.

''What were the consequencesP Briefly these. In a comparatively short space of time share quotations reached and passed par, the forfeited shares were all dinposed of, the register strengthened, the Government security improved, over £60,000 placed to reserve fund, and the credit of the bank re-established in tho financial world on its own merits as a sound institution, irrespective of tho support accorded by, the State. Political interference would have negatived a proposal that by distributing the comparatively small sum of £21,0Q0 resulted in all this, and brought at least £160,000 into the coffers of the bank.

"Before I close, may I, for Mr Beauchamp's instruction, also quote from a letter that appeared aver my signature some years ago in on© of the Wellington papers, dealing with another episode in the economy of this world of oura? There is such a thing as retributiom, and it will with unfailing certainty overtake those who lay_ themselves out for it. Fiat Justitia, mat coelum."

COMMERCIAL NOTES FROM' HOME. GAS COMPANY'S NEW FUEL. DOMINION DEMAND FOB FUBNITUEE. (fbom oub own correspondent.) LONDON, February 14. There is evidently an increasdnrr demand from tho Dominions for furniture, as a paragraph from tho "Furniture Record" implies: '"Trade is still very quiet," says the writer, "especially the Home trade, but <>rders for export are coming in pretty freely, as a large firm reportod to mo this week that they would be nowhere if it was not for the Australian and New Zoaland orders. I also learn that American buyers have placed largo orders for carpets in Kidderminster and orders for linoleum in London. Considering the tariff on English goods, what is wrong with American carpets and linoleums ? I am told that the figures for these contracts are very surprising as to their bulk." London is promised a new smokeless fuel which is to supersede coal in tho household. It is claimed that it will be cheaper, last longer, give more heat, and serve as well for cooking. To the housewife who has to pay from 45s to 60s a ton for coal—and tho expert argues that the higher prices secures the most advantageous purchase—this foreshadows a domestic revolution. "This new fuel," said Mr E V. Evans, cliief chemist of the South Metropolitan Gas Company, "is the outcome of research by the company's chemical staff, and introduces an ontirely new departure. We are making it 0 n a small scale, and hop© to be able to erect larger p ant in the future. Meanwhile those who have tested the product prefer it to coal; not only does it light as easily, but being smokeless it radiates a good deal more heat than the ordinary firo. As a firm, solid fuel, in handy chunks, "it is readily transportable. It is mado from coke to which has been added a certain proportion of cheap _ coal, but from that coal has been eliminated the material which renders it smoky, ensuring a goneroois fl&mo and a cheerful, pleasant fire."

Taxing Necessities. Dr. C. Carpenter (Chairman of the South Metropolitan Gas Company) has made an empliatio protest against tho proposal to apply the corporation tax to public utility undertakings. One and all of them supply the necessities of life ; not the luxuries, and it is on the majority, and therefore the poorer classes, _ that the incidence of those taxes will fall. "One" can understand a racecourse or ft theatre being thus taxed, always supposing the wisdom of such kind of taxation is admitted, which I, for one. certainly do not. But it does seom unfair that the consumers of gas and water, to name only two necessities in every-day life, should be taxed ip this way."

Thermal Value. The same authority expressed the opinion that the sale of gas as reckoned by its thermal value .had certainly come to stay, for the proposal was conceived wholly in the interest of consumers. Town's gas may hnve very different thermal or heating values according to whether it is produced wholly from coal or enriched with oil g;as or diluted with water gas. To-day it is thermal value which counts, whether the problem be to light a room or street with incandescent mantles or to cook a dinner or warm a room. The thermal value is much more easily tested than was illuminating value when gas was supplied as being the equivalent of so many candles. A British thermal unit was the amount of heat required to raise one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit, and a cubic foot of gas might contain the equivalent of 600 of these units, or it might contain 300. So that although one paid, say, half-a-crown for the same quantity of each quality, one would be paying for the cost ot kettle-boiling twice as dearly in the one case os in the other. The therm system corrected this inequality of charge and put all supplies of town's gas, whatever their intrinsic value might be, upon one uniform and comparable thermal value. Before long it is hoped that continuously recording instruments .'W'ill bo installed by tjie ens referees all over the country, by which the quality of the gas supply will be automatically recorded day and night. Meanwhile testings are carried on in London by the L.C.C. independent examiners, and somo 6003 or 7000 tests are made during the year.

Co-Partnership. Ones more, co-partnership had been severely tested, said Dr. Carpenter, and while its bonds may be truly described, in Burke's words, as light as air, they have certainly proved strong as iron in binding together the interests of employers and employed. Ho hoped that the last great strike had happened, and that a wider application of the principles of co-partnership would set Capital and Labour in that light, new to the great majority of employers and employed, with which for over 30 years they' had been regarded by their company. Cheaper Steel. Under a sliding scale the wages in the steelworks in the North of England have been reduced 332 per cent. The wages of bricklayers' labourers em-> ployed in steelworks will also be reduced 10s 8d per week, bringing them down to 48s for a 48-hour week—a drop of 60s in twelve months. In these circumstances It would seem to follow that a considerable reduction should result in the price of material needed for development works in New Zealand. Ruined Toy Trade. The unusual spectacle of grave members of a Board of Trade Committee handling growling "teddy bears" was witnessed when the committee under tho Safeguarding of Industries Act met to consider complaints from the Incorporated Association of British Toy Manufacturers and Wholesalers that toys manufactured in Germany were being .sold or offered for sale in tho United Kingdom at prices below those at which similar toys could be made in this country. Mr B. Faraday classed the manufacture of toys as one of the oldest industries of this or any country. During the war the British manufacturers extended their work. Since the Armistice it has been one long dismal tale of dismissal and short time. In 1919 there were 300 firms engaged in tho toy trade; recently 82 had resigned from tho association and closed down. "In a very long experience," said Mr Faraday, "I find it difficult to name any industry which has suffered more in unemployment than this one." In 1919 there were 40,000 hands employed ; now there were barely 5000. Wages paid in 1919 were about £3,000,000, while to-day they were only £500,000. While British toys cost twice as much to produce as in pre-war days, German costs had fallen. "Is the British child to play with goods made in England or to play with goods made in Germany?" he asked. Mr IT. Janiech (Messrs J, K. Farrell and Co., Ltd.) said that his firm had been established fifty-one years. Producing a number of squeaking ' teddy bears," he handed them to the committee, who examined them with interest. Similar bears, be said, wero obtainable from Germany at £1 Is 7d per dozen. The English price was £2 3s 3d a dozen Witness caused laughter by stating that the squeak or growl in the bear was in somo cases imported from Germany. Mr Pearce (Bono and Pearce) described business now as in a "fearful

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state," He handed in a number of small clockwork motor-cars which were bought from Germany at seven marks the dozen. Tho British corresponding price would be 12s Bd the dozen. "On equal terms," ho said, "I could undercut the Germans right and left." Cheap imported toys did not really benefit the purchaser, tor toys imported at 8s fid per dozen were sold In this country at 2a 6d each retail. Handing in some strong-looking motor-waggons, witness said they v.ero made entirely from waste material, such as old oil cans. A well-mado mechanical limousine about 12 or 14 inches long could be bought from Germany at £l3 10s the gross. They were sold here at 9s lQd.. "J am fighting for 30,000 British employees or more," said Mr Peprce, at tho conclusion of his evidence, "and I am fighting against a combine backed up b.v a British member of Parliament which ia interested in tho German combine." Slump to Games, The governing director of the Chad Valley Company of Harborne, Staffordshire, said the competition in the manufacture of indoor games was very keen, and this statement was supported by Mr J. O, Roberts, of Gloucester, who handed in samples of toy picture cubes which he said were made in Germany, for sale in this country, at 6s 9d per dozen. English manufacturers could not produce similar articles at less than 10s 6d per dozen. Dominoes from Germany were selling at 6d per box, while British manufactured dominoes were Is 9d per box. In 1920 he booked orders to the value of £24,022. Last year tho orders had fallen to £3989, and this year's bookings were £2121. "I never remember such a slump," he said. British Industries Fair. The coming British Industries Fair, at the White City, is being looked upon as the most important of tho series which have up to the present been organised by tho Department of Overseas Trade. Forty-eight thousand invitations have been sent to foreign firms, and a quarter of a million to prospective buyers at home. British manufacturers are fully equipped to supply the wants of oversea buyers, prices have been substantially roduoed. and tho manufacturers are eager to sell their goods. Foreign markets are almost denuded of British commodities, and there is said to bo a real desire to buy as soon and so far as conditions permit. Broadly speaking, _ the exhibits will fall into two categoriesgoods which formerly were not produced in Great Britain, and articles which have long been noted. their excellence in the hands of British manufacturers. An interesting example of the first group will be exhibits of the product, formerly a German monopoly, known as galolith. This is a bone-like substance similar in many respects to celluloid, but non-inflammable, which is made from casein by means of formaldehyde. It is now being produced by five different firms in Great Britain, and all the five will be exhibitors at the Fair. Galolith in the hands of British manufacturers is said to have attained a higher quality than the original product, and the demand for it coming from all parts of the world is at present in excess of the supply*