EXPORT OF MEAT

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2351, 6 January 1915, Page 6

EXPORT OF MEAT

—_*. _ SHIPS AVAILABLE MR. MASSEY ANSWERS A CRITIC THE ONLY COMPLAINER ' TW statement of the Prime Minister published yesterday morning concerning the amount of shipping space available for the carriage of frozen cargo has drawn a reply from Mr. H. G. Hill general manager of the Bristol and Dominions Producers' Association. Mr. Hill s statement of the position is controverted in every detail by a later statement made to a Dominion reporter _by Mr, Massev: last night, but those interested will better understand the controversy if Mr. Hill's statement is set out in-full. 'Following is the full text of Mr. Hill's statement: l — Capaolty of ships. \ "The Prime Minister must.be misinformed when he states in his- official review of the-position that the Buteshire is available for lifting January meat cargo.. It ia quite true that she will be leaving Wellington this'week, but it is equally true that she will not be lifting one ounce of :meat that was not killed and in the freezing works during December. Had it not been for the Christmas and New Year holidays intervening, she would have filially left Wellington before January 1. ■ She, then, is eliminated-from the lißt ot steamers which Mr'. Massey says are aT f' a ble for taking January cargo. _ Take the oase of the El Cordobeß: The Prime Minister's estimate, of the carrying capacity of the seven steamers remaining as 100,000 carcasses a-piece. JNow, the El Oordobe's capacity is approxunately 75,000 carcasses, but or this capacity 50,000 carcasses only is available for meat, the balance of the space being taken up by cheese. The EI Cor*bes is a substitute for the Sussex, available for January last year, but f™ „£, tt6r llas a ca Pacity for nearly i°°>°°P oarcasses, against the former's 75,000. Telegraphlo Correspondence, "Only last Friday, seeing the critical position that must arise—if it has not already arisen—l sent the following telegram to the Prime Minister, who was then in Auckland:— • . ' ■ "Triggs.advised me yesterday refrigerated space available not all applied tor. I aßked for name company or boats would.guarantee fill. Information refused. . Gribble -'phoned last night you advised Buteshire left Auckland half full. This may be correct; out you forget Wellington is final port, aud Buteshire will be filled to hatches. Was advised by-'phone last night Masterton .works circularised farmers owing works Mocked . closing- down in few days-. Auckland works cannot take stocVofferihg. Waikato sending Patea, Wanganui, Wellington, Whakatu. Wanganui can kill if we oan arrange space, but neither Shaw. Savill or New Zealand Shipping Company will take owing to agreement Wanganui have withTyser. If space available, as Triggs says, must be Shaw, Savill or New Zealand Shipping Company, for Tyser and Federar-woefully short; therefore I claim I should be a,ble to arrango snipping through Wanganui to relieve ppsition m the. Waikato. Have no desire to blame the Government ■ or the shipping companies for tie present shortage.; but I protest strongly against your information showing plenty of steamers available to the end\of ,Januarr fhen we know that there. is not sufficient to lift all the meat offering to the end of December.'

To that telegram Mr.' Massey replied from Palmerston North on Monday stating; that the matter would have tiis attention on arrival in Wellington. The public statement to the Press, I take it, is his reply. • But my information of the actual position is shown in the following telegrams:—On January II tele- , graphed to the manager of the Patea Freezing Company. as follows:—'Please wire position your .works re steamer space. I want-to send you a further 500 head.cattle. Am laying whole position before Prime Minister, so include authority snow, him contents your wire. '-Hill.' I received the attached reply: 1 can not Possibly take your 500 headcattle. Expect to close down within a Fortnight. . Wanted spice January for BOOi quarters:. beef.V 50 tons ' boneless, SnjS. , sllee P : Have onl y secured space 5000 sheep. Use information.—Freezing Company." ; : ■ ; ■ "Again I telegraphed to the freezingcompany, Wanganui, v as follows:—'Am laying .whole position shipping before Prime Minister.' Please wife low you are situated with authority to show him.- Are you still open to kill stock from Waikato on '.our account if we can arrange steamer space?— Hill.' The reply to this telegram waß:!Replyinz your wire,, have over 40,000 in store Can treat equal 6000 month. So far only v 24,000. Can treat fair/amount of 6tock on your account if you can arrange shipping space.—Uresswell, secretary.'

Mr. Massey's Assuranos. "The producer," Mr. Hill ■ continued. can now appreciate the diffioulty those who are called upon to arrange space for him are in. The trouble is that the mutton end |beef raisers have relied upon Mr. Massey's assurance that there will be sufficient insulated 6pace for the carriage of their produce; but the/facts are all to the contrary. If there are ho more steamers available to carry- the meat away than Mr. Massey says in his public statement; then it. is inevitable, in my opinion, that a. number of North Island freezing works will be compelled to cea6e killing Btock for, a time owing to the: congestion of their stores with meat awaiting l shipment. A'l this information I should have been only; too glad to have given the. Prime Minister, privately had an opportunity been afforded me to do so." '

PRIME,MINISTER REPLIES

ON MATTERS OF FACT COMPLAINTS ANSWERED IN DETAIL. In reply to.Mr. Hill's allegations the Prime Minister made tho. following statement last night :-7.. "Mr. Hill takes exception to my statement that the Buteshire is one of the'ships available to cope with January shipments. It was not suggested that every boat sailing in January would take only meatTrpm stock slaughtered in January or from any particular port. As a matter of fact the Buteshire left Auckland 'for Waitera and there lifted 8000 carcasses. All boats loading in the' early part of any month may be expected to take a proportion of meat killed during the previous month. ' "It was never said that it was estimated that the carrying capacity of the 6evcn steamers was 100,000 carcasses apiece. What was actually stated was that when the original estimate was made as to tho numbor of steamers likely to bo wanted for, January shipments it was considered that seven would be required • with a» average capacity, of, say, 100,000 carcasses bach. Later in my statement, where the steamers available for January shipments were named, it was stated that tho seven boats mentioned havo a capacity of 707,500 freight carcasses. ■••■"■ , "Although Mr. Hill iimy not bo awaro that steamers have had to leave without ,-«<ur, refrigerated Bpace being entirely

filled owing to sufficient refrigwited cargo not 1 being- available, 6uc£ bag happened. '.',-• The Blocking of Works. "In the telegram to the Prime Minister quoted by Mr. Hill, be states ho wag advised by telephone tbe previous night that the Mastbrton works-had circularlaed farmers to the effect that owing to the works being blocked they woukf be closing down in a few days. This statement was made by Mr. Hill on Fri. day last, ahd whatever may have been the case then, absolutely reliable information in my hands to-day is to the effect that the • management .of the works in question does not anticipate any serious trouble. ■ In. respect, to*. Wanganui, inquiries made by the Government have elicited information-to the effect that the storage accommodation there has not teen blocked, nor is it likely to be blocked for January. - In the case of Patea some difficulty has anson, and inquiries are being made with a view to ascertaining how the matter can be remedied, although it has not been previously represented to ine. Since-my statement was given to the Press information has now become available that the Makarini and the Niwaru, which were set down for February loading, will be available for January, and will be able to carry 212,000 carcasses between them;

Space Should be Ample, Last year 18 steamers were sufficient, to carry refrigerated cargoes during the two months _of January and February, i February shipments of meat are heavier than January shipments, yet we havenaif the total number.of steamers re-, quired last year for these two months available for January of this year, exclusive of the Buteshire. Further, it must be remembered that meat shipments in January of last year were far in excess of normal on account of the dislocation of shipping caused by the waterside workers' strike in the closing months of the previous year. _It is rather , remarkable ' that Mr.: Hill is the only person in any way connected' with the-freezing industry who has so far voiced any serious complaints to the Government with regard to the lack of shipping space.