WHEAT & FLOUR

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2359, 15 January 1915, Page 6

WHEAT & FLOUR

EMBARGO ON THE KAIAPOI RESULTS OF CENSUS CERTAIN ,MYTHS CONTRADICTED. So ar as it known the Kaiapoi, with! 100,000 bushels of, wheat aboard, belonging to the New Zealand Government, is still held up in Sydney Harbour hy order of the Commonwealth Customs authorities. The Prime Minister of Ne,v Zealand has cabled his request that the wheat be sent on - at once, but the only reply he has receivel is a telegram from Mr. Andrew Fisher, • Prime Minister of the Commonwealth, now in New Zealand, with whom Mr. Mas soy also communicated. Mr. Fisher telegraphed simply that he was taking action. "Quite Inaccurate." Certain myths that have been given publicity and some credence as to the ■ supplies of wheat held in New Zealand were referred to by 'Mr. Massey in conversation with a Dominion reporter yesterday. "You have probably noticed," said Mr. Massey, "that Mr. Ell has been publishing some correspondence he has exchanged with me. In the correspondence published reference is made to his having received a letter -, from someone in South Canterbury giving information about wheat alleged to be held by one of the large farmers there. After this was published the writer of the letter telegraphed to me as follows: 'Deduce from Monday's 'Lyttelton Times' Ell sent you my letter re wheat at Timaru., Ell never acknowledged my letter, never asked, never received permission to give you the letter. My information was given to enable him to secure definite facts from South 'Canterbury instead of pestering you with vague generalities.' Acting on the information contained in the letter I have had inquiries made, and I find that the farmer referred to holds in stock 170 sacks of wheat sec- / onds and tcreenings, 350 sacks of fowl wheat, and 1300 sacks of milling wheat. This milling wheat, however, is held to the order of a firm of millers in the North Island, and as the residue of an. amount which the farmer agreed to sell ' under a contract which was made in January last, and which runs out this month. 'What has happened in this ' instance is on a parallel with what has happened in many other cases. Statements have been made about quantities of wheat being held : in different localities, which statements have invariably proved to be quite inaccurate. Who Holds the Wheat? "About "the middle of November I had a wheat census taken in occardonce with legislation provided for the purpose, and soon afterwards notice was ■ given to merchants and farmers holding wheat that they would not be allowed to exploit the public in war time, and that therefore their wheat 'must he disposed of within a reasonable period.. I have reason to belieYe that in almost every case the wheat was put on the market and sold, and that by this' time it has either been used already or is in the- ■ hands of millers. I may say that while the census showed that some of the millers had largo , stocks, there was comparatively little wheat held by merchants, and very little indeed held by . farmers." Private Importations. The refusal of the Commonwealth Government to allow the Kaiapoi's cargo of wheat to leave Australia does not mean that no Australian -wheat or. flour will come to New Zealand. Advices received by the- Prime Minister show that merchants in New Zealand are importing considerable quantities of flour, having been encouraged to do so by the remission of duty and also as the result of negotiations between the New Zealand and Commonwealth Governments, which allows flour' already purchased under contract to be imported • into New Zealand from Australia., Mr. Massey : informed a reporter that many hundreds of tons had already reached New Zealand under that arrangement. Only that-morning he had received advices that by . the Riverina to Auckland i one consigned bad received' 220 sackß of flour and another 374 sacks; and that on the Warrimoo there were fifteen tons of flour for one Wellington merchant and thirty-five tons for a Dunedin merchant. Similar consignments to various firms were due practically every week. In addition there were 300,000 bushels of wheat now on the road to New Zealand from St. John's (Canada) by the s.s. Hesperos, so.that the delay in theKaiapoi's shipment will at the worst bi only a temporary inconvenience.