NO AFFINITY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 209, 28 May 1908, Page 3

NO AFFINITY.

FARMERS' UNION AND EMPLOYERS' FEDERATION. ' . AN INTERESTING DISCUSSION. (BY ■ TELEGRAPH.—SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.) ' ■ Feilding, 'May 27. Community of interests between the Far 'mors' Union, and the Employers' Federatioi was diligently, sought for in the debate al the Wellington Provincial Conference of the Farmers'-,Union here \vesterday, and apparently the search was in vain, : Mr. W, Morton,'Kimbolton, moved that as the town labour leaders havo shown themselves determined to bring 'all agricultural workers within; tho scope of the Arbitration Act, and as: in that , case it was' necessarj ,that -tho most export advice should be. available for members when, dealing with the resulting awards,. the Colonial- Conference, be respectfully urged favourably-to consider the question of affiliating with. the . Employers' Federation. . i Mr; A. AfGregor, Huntervillo, seconded the motion-.. . ■' ' , Mr. Morison,, Halcombe, m opposing the proposal, said:thatthe. Employers Federation was .protectionist,;; while' tlie farmers were freetraders.; (Cries of "No!" and."Yes!") Why, should they ally themselves with a body that-was always in. trouble?. . Mr. E. Newman, Marton, said protection was the' Employers' Federation's sheet -anchor! Farmers should hesitate 'before affiliating l . Mr.' J. G. Wilson, president, said that Mr. Pryor, the Federation secretaryhad said it was, a pity they did ,not affiliate, because union'v gave ' strength, and it was scarcely more than •a, question of subscription. In .tho Course of the shearers'' dispute .Mr. Pryor gave-them most 'valuable .advice"/on points of law. The Canterbury' Union, however,- advised' them not. to' affiliate. iHe believed mombers' the' Employers'; Federation had voted against the freehold.' Mr. Moss, Eketahuna, . skid , there could' be no affiliation, .because - thorp was no'.affinity: The, man. who was agitating t<) draw them into , tho Federation ;had - been angling for some time past/ and afc last he had caught £ crab. ' (Laughter.)' He hoped he was satisfied.- There had'been great objection raised against Mr.':j Collins's activity among . tho workers because' he was a member of the Conciliation Board;' but Mr. Pryor was doing exactly the-same thing, except, that he was on the Arbitration Court, on the side .of the employers. ' '■ . ': Mr. Crabby said Mr. Pryor had bee-n misrepresented.l He took absolutely no action in tho .shearers' disputo till' the 'citations wore.''actually, in Court. ; - • v . . : , Mr. ■ F- - Jacob, 'Kiwitea, said that if tho terms of affiliation wore satisfactory-and ;ave : 'tfem - good .representation';/they ought' to join the Iteration for'mutual protection against labour • unions, "whoso, demands were becoming more' outrageous every day. ,With-' sut' the aid of the Federation lie did not unow._ where -the' sheep-owners ' would;.have been ,in the, late; shearers''dispute.; •>; : ; • Mr. ; Falconer, . Kaitiina, said the • protection gulf dividing farmers, from "Ihe Emiloyers' Federation had been exaggerated.. .'Mr. Saxon, Levin, said Mr. -Seddon pro.uiseM that rtho .Arbitration Act should -not ipply to farm labourers, but v this;',p'romiso aad been/' broken , by' the.' present Govern-: nent. ! J ! ■' /. ".- The' motion vfts' defeated" by 20 votes to 16. 1 ,--\ y- \ ' WAIFtARAPA/ NOTES.'" ' ' PlibS^^ ■ (From; 4'; Correspondent.)' • There Svas an 'exceptionally - large" attend-! mco' :.of: farmers at , Messrs.... Abraham, 'and; Williams's'.Ma'stertoh • stock' - .heldyes-' :erday. . Competition was keen- in. good- lots )f sheep and cattle, and there was an.,improvement in prices. A number of farmers, ntoryiewed'' regarding, the, present state-of ;he market, considered: that ;it would continue to improve, consequent upon the exsoileht; climaticconditions prevailing, ~and the. abundance,, of grass available. : Pioneers in: l .Mastert'on and 1 ..-the , contiguous l district state v that.:thoy . hayo not; during, the past thirty years experienced such", a favourable mtumn:'. as Ythe '.-'present.' The ; weather - has jeen -splendid, .growth; unprecedented in the; history.''of,- the - district in this .'period '■ the year. £>tock ; are 1 in fine condition,' ih'd no fears • are_enterta!ined. for the winter. Land has. gone-'up in valu6 in the Ponjaroa district. Soma 'days ago a' section. of over. 300 acres changed'hands aty£B an acre, riiei'same/property; -was- purchased.- a few years.;ago.'-'for...about'•' £2 per- aero. v. . It is anticipated;, that' there' is a good -future in store for that place. . The annual dog trial of the Masterton Collie . Club ; coirimenced at .Lansdowne tolay. Competitors "from all parts of the Island; arrived in. town .yesterday, ' and exceptional interest is being taken in. the trial, D-winfe to : several dogs being' ■ present from New South Wales to take part in various jompetitions. : '■ .'/'■■■' ' ■ '■■ ■ ECCS IN COLD STORE. QUITE FRfeH AFTER, THREE YEARS. 'A sample of eggs that, have been preserved ror nearly) three years and,are now almost as : resh as when they, were first' put into cold store ia« been received by the, Government poultry, jrader-at' Christchurch, Mr!- R'., Pounsford. Tho eggs are part, of -theVfirst, lot -of-' eggs graded by the Department'in _Auckland, Mr. Pouiisford,-. who: was, then, stationed at ; iAuckand, placing them ; in 'cool store oil' August 18, 1905, for-Messrs. Dyke Brothers. 'Most jf .tho eggs were sold about six months afterwards, but about thirty dozen were left in is an-, experiment for the Department, and Tom time to' time they have;been taken out; ind sampled. Mr./-Pounsford .showed, a re-, softer., one of the .'-eggs,, and, breaking it,, demonstrated 'that tho egg was perfectly fresh, md much superior to .eggs .usually preserved .n lime.:; This, Mr. Pounsford said, indicated the superiority of . cool storage if intelligently jarried out. '. It was not; being , adopted ,to iriy- "extent 7 .-in ,-Christchiirchj - but -in -Auck-: land the number of eggs treated had " risen from 1,128,000 in 1906-7 to over two million ind .a, half eggs in 1907-8.. The method was merely to grade the eggs arid place them in jardboard. boxes, each egg: being partitioned Dff, , but '-riot packed V \vith anything. Of course, -the grading, meant everything.'. 'The sample: of eggs/he; had received'was taken from the cooler at Aucldand' on. April 16.. •'