OUR PRESTIGE AS A PORT

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2905, 18 October 1916, Page 5

OUR PRESTIGE AS A PORT

19' IT DECLINING? At. tlie meeting' of the council of the Central Chamber of Commerce yesterday the chairman (Mr. C. M. Luke) said that his attention had been drawn to the number of ships making ports other than Welington their first port of call and final port of departure from the Dominion. A few years ago Wellington was the accepted port of arrival and departure by the Home vessels. It was a very important matter to Wellington as a port, and it would be interesting to know what the margin of shipping was whose first and last ports of call had been diverted from Wellington to other ports, and he proposed to ask the secretary to look into the matter. He would like to know whether such diversion was in the general interest or in the interest of the shipping companies. He could understand that the. high cost of freights was affected by the time of detention incurred in visiting so nuiriy ports and the risk attendant upon that sort of thing. He moved that the secretary bo instructed to report on tlio matter. Mr.' S. Horner said that through the boats'going to Auckland first merchants now received tiioii- goods a fortnight later than they used to. He did not know how they could alter it. • Mr. .Leigh Hunt: Has the high port dues anything to do with it? Tho chairman: No. I think our dues aro generally • lower than the other P °Mr! Horner: It, suits the shipping oompanies for their boats, to go straight from Hohart to Auckland,, and then work down the coast to Wellington. They have time, and we have to wait a little longer for our stuff. It was decided that secretary should report on the question at the next meeting of the'council.