RESTRICTIONS ON THE FARMER

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2942, 30 November 1916, Page 4

RESTRICTIONS ON THE FARMER

The vigorous outburst of the Minister of Agriculture in replying to the protests advanced on behalf of the dairy-farmers of tho Dominion against tho State levy on butter-fab supplied to dairy factories may bo said to havo served a double purpose. • Mr. Mac Donald's purpose was to show tho dairy-farmers that others as well had been called on to inako sacrifices.

The dairy farmer, the Minister said, was not tho only man in the community under disability. Tho export of wheat, flour, and hides was restricted. Meat had been sold to the Imperial Government ' considoralbly below' its market value Something had hoon said about -wool. The Imperial Government made an offer for our clip, which the growers, nftev consideration, did not think satisfactory, and tho Imperial Government made another offer—tho Bn.mo offer as had been made to Australia— which had been accepted. Sugar was .£2l a ton instead of AM. Scheolitn was worth, in tho free market, twice the price tho men working to get it up iu (ho mountains wero obtaining for it. Tho prico. of wheat in Now Zealand was at ono timo fixed at is. 9d., when tho London prico at tho samo date was Ss. Kkl. (after deducting freights), and at; fis. lid. when tho Loudon prico was Bs. Id. Butter was by no means tho only thing interfered with. Tho Government had oven restricted emigration. (Laughter.)

All this, of course, is very true, and tho Minister was quite entitled to make the points ho did against the, dairy-farmers. But incidentally his remarks served, as already staled, another purpose. Thoy directed attention in very feisbion to tho facb that tho class in tho community which the Government has most freely penalised in connection with tho war has-been the farmiiu 1 class. In practically every direction in which Mr. Mac Donah) turned to' find porsons suffering from Stateimposed disabilities similar to thoso placed on the dairy-farmers, his eyo caught a section of the farming community. Tho farmers' wool, tho farmers' mutton, tho farmers' hides, the farmers' wheat—all subject to restrictions in prico or market at the farmers' expense. It is true, of course, that, notwithstanding these restrictions, the farmer on tho whole has dono very well, and in most cases_ has mado tho sacrifices entailed willingly enough as a patriotic contribution to tho cause of the Empire. But the importance of the part tho man on tho land plays in the life of the Dominion is once again emphasised by tho calls that have/been made upon him during I tho war. '