THE SUEZ CANAL RATES

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 796, 20 April 1910, Page 6

THE SUEZ CANAL RATES

''AN;EXTORT!ON OF EXTORTIQNS." \ SATS SIR: JOSEPH WARD. , ; Interviewed. at Gisborne on tbe subject of the Suez Canal, the Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward), in the course of some interesting remarks, said:— "My; own opinion is that the present rates on ships and passengers aro an extortion of extortions,,and it is difficult to understand why in this civilised age it is tolerated, certainly, by the British arid French .Governments. ' Although holding that whatever is a reasonable undertaking with the Egyptian Government must be respected, the fact remains, as L-pointed out at the Imperial Conference, that it is largely' a' system of the worst possible kind,, If the rates through the Suez Canal were reasonable an enormous return on'the investment would still be made. '-At present the return :on the -shares in the Suez Canal is altogether out of proportion to -what it ought to be, because the obvious intention of the originators of the canal was to have it utilised as a doorway of commerce, for ships and the interests attached to ships. As a matter of fact, it is being used very largely for a huge investment by the parties, and if the respective Governments were to say .that they would limit the rates to produce a return of, say 7 per cent., after making full allowance for i depreciation and the upkeep of the. canal, 710 one could take any exception, but there is no limit to the earning power so far as I know. The return is probably four times what I say. "If there were moderate rates admitting all of the.qcean-going steamers from New Zealand carrying our produce through the Suez Canal—which, at present they cannot do, oh'account of the prohibitive rotes—our producers would not only have a shorter journey to the Old Country, which is of very great importance, but the millions who consume our meat, butter, cheese, and other products in the Eastern countries could be supplied from New Zealand direct, that is by its being put into.cold stores at/Port Said,,to say nothing of the fact that .they would be able to serve other territories en route to Port Said, through Colombo, for instance, and-from the standpoint of the New Zealand meat-grower and dairy farmer' there -would be a" great advantage in getting the produce on the market in a way in which, as far as the London market is ' concerned, would keep the products at firm prices all the year round. Now one of the things that we suffer from is that there is only a limited time for the:'transport of our frozen produce to the Old Country, and one effect of the whole of the supplies having to come -within a limited period is ihat. it naturally depresses the market.'. If we could, by helping to feed the Eastern countries, divert a considerable proportion of our produce, the least experienced of our people wiU recognise at once that it means that the glut,on the London market will be avoided and a higher and better standard of prices be obtained.

"I am inclined to think," added the Prima Minister, "that the Americans will not make the same mistake with tho Panama Canal when it is completed, and at present it looks very much like a diversion of a considerable proportion of the traffic from New Zealand and Australia going to the Home markets via the Panama Canal, and the sooner the Panama Canal is finished, from our poinVof.view, the better. To some extent it will mean competition between the two, and you, know that one of the greatest reformers you have in anything is. to. have to fight for ■'success. That applies to canals just ; as it does to any other branch of business in the world.