ARMY SUPPLIES

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2709, 2 March 1916, Page 7

ARMY SUPPLIES

NEiV ZEALAND'S SHARE

A COMPREHENSIVE STATEMENT

Since the inception of the scheme for the purchase of the Dominion's production of beef, mutton, and lamb available for export, the Imperial Government Supply Department have shipped to the United Kingdom no less tlian: — 484,407 quarters of beef 2,596,477 carcasses of mutton. 3,685,454 carcasses of lamb. 52,917 bags of beef. 297 pieces of beef. 9,004 bags and crates of mutton. 197,175 legs and picces of mutton. Of these quantities, 393,721 quarters of beef, 2,184,209 carcasses of mutton, 3,14G,(J20 carcasses of lamb, 49,422 bags' of beef, 221 pieces of beef, 6,953 bags and crates of mutton, • 182,279 legs and pieces of mutton have arrived in the United Kingdom, in 64 steamers, and 61,706 quarters of beef, i 84,436 carcasses of mutton, / 381,473 carcasses of lamb, ' 2,077 bags of beef, 76 pieces of beef, 1,313 bags and! crates of mutton, 14,896 legs and pieces of mutton are en route in 11 steamers. The balance is on board the six steamers now loading in the Dominion, the Waiwera, Devon, Delphic, Indrapura, Essex, Tongariro. \ One steamer, the Clan MacTavisli, has been reported sunk by the enemy en route to her destination, the meat on board consisting of 8,883 quarters of beef, 12,749 carcasses of mutton, 7,969 carcasses of lamb, 1,418 bags of beef,' 738 crates and ha'gs of mutton, purchased at a cost of £47,558. The payments for this huge quantity of meat made by the Imperial Government Supply Branch total no less a sum than £7,326,841 lis. 9d., representing shipments from the undermentioned districts of the Dominion:— Auokland £534,968 16 0 Poverty Bay 802,040 1 1 Hawke's Bay 758,250 12 7 Taranaki ..' '304,255 1 1 Wellington 1,985,776 .1 0 North Island £4,385,290 11 9 Marlborough' 47,669 .6 2 Nelson : 26,947, 10 3 Canterbury .... 1,712,608 4 10 Otago 602,281 10 5 Southland 552,044 8 9 South Island! £2,941,551 0 5 ' Total £7,326,841 12 2 The quantity of meat in store at the inception of the scheme amounted to 1,383,781 601b. carcasses (the unit employed by the Imperial Government Supply "3lancTf). This quantity gradually increased, until the freezing stores in the Dominion held on July 3 of last year 2,187,659 001b. carcasses. The supply of insulated tonnage then commenced to overtake tho killings at the works, and this total ivas gradually reduced until on November 13 there only remained in store 102,932 601b. carcasses. Now,- however, the new season is in full swing, and roe stores held on February 12 (the last date of stocktaking) 1,411,364 601b. carcassos. As already mentiomxl, there are six steamers now loading in the Dominion, and a further six are to load in March, while eight more are due to arrive during the next six weeks for subsequent loading. Cheese. In addition to -the transactions in meat, the Imperial Government Supply Branch are filling an order from His Majesty's Government for no fewer than 15,000 tons of cheese for Imperial Artay purposes. This quantity has been requisitioned pro rata from tho wliole_ of the dairy ' factories manufacturing cheese in the Dominion (between 300 and 400). Crates totalling 99,669, approximately 727S tons, have already been shipped in nineteen steamers, of which 2577 tons have arrived at destination. The payments made to the factories since the inception of the scheme, September 20 last, amount to £485,560. The purchase of the whole of the scheelite produced in New Zealand is another matter attended to on behalf of tho Imperial Government, and operations. commenced on November 4 last. Up to date 88 tons of this ore have gone forward, and payments by way of advances to producers total £17,101. The purchase of scheelite is, it might be explained, carried oiit on a c.i.f." basis, and the yalue is determined, for the purposes of making advances to the producers in the Dominion, by analyses carried out by tho Now Zealand' Government Analyst, and finally by further analyses made in England.