THREE MORE SHIPS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 155, 26 March 1919, Page 8

THREE MORE SHIPS

A DOMINION GRIEVANCE VIGOROUS REPRESENTATIONS STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER The Minister in Charge of Imperial Supplies (the Hon. D. H. Guthrie) has at length received a reply to his repeated cabled requests for more insulated shipping space for New Zealand produce. Yesterday the Minister received, the following cablegram from the High Commissioner:— "With regard to securing increase of insulated ships for Now Zealand, this has been urged vigorously during the past months by Mr. Massey, who in addition consulted the Controller and communicated wjtli tho Imperial authorities. Mr. Maesey has by several interviews in the London "Times' drawn pointed attention to tho Dominion's shipping needs. Mr. Massey has now been advised by tho Controller that three additional steamers hnvo been assigned to New Zealand for April-loading.". ' "I am pleased to,bo able to make this announcement." saiftl Mr. Guthrie, referring to the foregoing message. "I have sent numerous- cablegrams to Loudon urging that more ships should be allotted to New Zealand, because our cold storage capacity was reaching its limit, while information from Australia disclosed tho fact that the freezing stores of the Commonwealth will be practically cleared by tho end of April. For this reason I have urged the view widely held by New Zealand producers that New Zealand had not received a fair distribution of the insulated space available for Australasia. Tho explanation of the Imperial authorities was that owing to the recent influenza epidemic and to strikes at Home the arranged allocation of insulated tonnago was disorganised, and further that New Zealand suffered through vessels having been transferred to Eastern ports from direct lines in order to transport troops from Mesopotamia to Britain. "Tho New Zealand Government has made the strongest representations on this matter to tho Imperial Government," 6aid Mr. Guthrie. "Even now it is not apparent that New Zealand is receiving its" quota of insulated shipping allocated to Australasia. While this condition remains we do notintend to let tho matter rest until we are assured that New Zealand is receiving its fair share of the available tonnago. "I trust that the extra ships we have l>een aide to obtain now will relieve the congestion existing to some extent, and allow the freeziim industry in this country to go on. "With regard to general i cargo ships New Zealand has no ground for complaint. We are very glad to have these ships, but. the greatest urgency is for insulated ships, seeing that our storag>> capacity 'U the country' Ims reached its limit, and there is air pie fat stock in the country. Indeed, producers have a fear that they may not be able to quit all their fat stock before the end of tho season. This has resulted ill a serious drop in prices of fat stock throughout New Zealand."