LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2907, 20 October 1916, Page 6

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

FIXING THE PRICE OF. BUTTER

Sir, —The Board of Trade are to be congratulated -upon tho exhaustive report they liavo presented, as to tho fiest method to he adopted in fixing the price of butter for "local consumption," and as I understand, the conclusions arrived, to practically mean that an export tax is to bo levied to meet the situation that has arisen.

Tho question of an export tax on butter, cheese, meat, wool, etc., was advocated in Parliament two years ago by 'Air. Hind marsh, M.l'-, and again in 1916 Mr. Hindmarsh, M.P., put up a strong argument in favour of tho imposition of an export tax on butter, etc., so that the same could bo used in securing cheaper food for the people of New Zealand. Mr. Hindmarsh's speech npon this subject can be found ill Hansard No. 176, pago 123. • The National Government would not consider or N even discuss the proposal mado by Mr. Hindmarsh. As a matter of " fact they (National Government) stated in the Budget that tho prico of commodities could not be fixed. Yet the National Cabinet four months after the session has closed, have adopted a proposal that was made by Mr. Hmd'marsh (and taken no notice of at tho time), and reiterated by the Board of Trade to meet a difficult position. And I trust, Sir, that tlie Board of Trade will in the near future be given far greater powers of initiative to deal with tho prices yof commodities than they aro at present endowed with. Tho fact that the fixing of the price of butter has now been an accomplished fact, what about getting after tlis prico of somo of the other necessaries of life. Tho Board of Trade has shown itself to be stronger than the National Government, "which stated in their Budget that the prices could not be fixed" by tho mere fact that they have fixed tlie prico of ono commodity.—l am, otc., E.KENNEDY.

Sir,—After reading your leader on I tho restrictions proposed by tho Board of Trado, I was quite satisfied that tho common sense of the authorities would not risk bringing in their ridiculous solution of satisfying tho clamour of the towns at tho expense of tho country producer, for that is what the position amounts to, no matter how it is laboured or glossed over. To bring the dairyman supplying a cheese factory into the scheme, that is what hurts, quite a large number that had'mado preparations this season to help tho war effort by producing maximum results in spito of the drawbacks of want of help. Just to cite a few cases out of many: My neighbour, close on P0 years of age, with two sons at the front, is managing by late and early rising to do~tfte milking of tho farm himself; ordinarily work for two". He supplies a cheeso factory. -This farthing a pound deducted will just bo about tho. last straw, and lio will easily find a different way of working with dry cattle, when he considers that this unjust demand goes provide cheaper butter for people that can well afford to pay for it, whether w-age-carners or other classes. Take another case around me. An old man .over

70 years, dairying, whose son enlisted. Ho is up about 3.30 to 4 a.m. each morning, rounding up his cowsjm tho hills, while his daughter is getting tlio milking machines ready. Is' it fair or just that a man struggling liko this should help to provide cheap butter for business men and Government officials going to work at 9 a.m. P This man also has readied a stage of temper over this matter that will have a certain effect" on output. 1 could go on enumerating cases in tho immediate vicinity where tlio producer, paying ■ high rents for land, wheto wife and frfmily are required to got a living which will not leavo wages for the man, not to speak of help of the family; aiid after five months out of nine of slack season this reduction from his cheque at the cheeso factory is a serious matter, to reduce the cost of living of two-thirds of the public that is in I would like to know if tho public or the makers of tliestf restrictions have

a correct idea what it costs at present to produce a pound of buttcr-fat under present conditions. I think if they did it would malto them more considerate. AYhat if tho price of butter is Is. Bd. or even 2s. a pound, it is war time, and that will not last, but in the meantimo ■wo are all paying high for tho cost of living. Then why .single out a limited number of hard-working producers for treatment of this kind? I for one liover did believe in tlio oft-paraded assertion that the dwellers in towns woro not more carefully looked after than tho country residents. I am certain of it now. Truly the producer is a man to be envied, and lest the shcopfarmer thinks that ho is in a safer position I would draw his attention to the operations of the.Meat Trust firms, and yet wo have an Act on tho Statute Book to deal with commercial trusts' that are out to rook the people of this State. It-gives nie that tired feeling when I hear our politicians remark that trusts are not in active operation. Thi6 by way of comparison how the interests of the producer is looked after. —I am, Ct °'' PRODUCER.

Sir,—ln our local paper, of October 11 we read that the representatives of tho "dairy companies," after a conference, adopted resolutions expressing entire disapproval of the proposal of the Board of Trade to levy a tax on all butter-fat, on the grounds that tho levy was economically unsound, a class tax, and an interference with_ the farmer, who at present was bearing an enormously increased cost of production conscqucnt on the war. Now, sir, it is headed "Conference of Producers," but was reallv a confereuce of dairy companies.- AVe 'ive in a dairying district, and know that the fanners at paid Is. Id. per lb. for their butter-fat, which is sold to these dairy companies, and it is these companies that are responsible for the price of butter, and not the farmer. In fact, to bo quite correct, it is tho "poor spineless city worker" who is responsible for the present high cost of living. Had the workers in tho cities paid a Quarter of tho attention to. tho cost of living tho la6t ten years that they, have spent on seeking highe.r wages and strikes, and feeding up their "soap-box orators," they would not have been paying the high prices that they have. Had they been awake and fully alivo to their own interests, they would not liavo allowed margarine to be put on tho market in a butter-making country, nor liavo fed their children on dripping and lard, while all {Rat butter, over 20,000 boxes, were stored tii tho cool'storage last July; but would liavo had their butter, milk, end meat under municipal control. —I am, etc., JACK AVILLIAMS. Blenheim, October 12, 1916.