KAURI GUM INDUSTRY.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 11 October 1917, Page 3

KAURI GUM INDUSTRY.

GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS

FOR the benefit of our readers who may be interested in the gum industry, we publish the following from the Auckland ''Star" of 29th ult.:— .

A meeting of representative merchants and brokers was held this week to consider the report of the operations of the Government in connection with the kauri gum industry. Mr Gribbin (Mitchelson and Co.) presided. The object of the meeting was to refute the statement made in the House that the Government's operations in kauri gum had been highly successful. It was claimed by various speakers that the operations of the Government had not been the " splendid success " referred to by the Prime Minister. After discussion, the following resolution was adopted and forwarded to the Right Hon. W..F. Massey: "At a fully representative meeting of gum merchants and brokers, held today, it was unanimously resolved that the gum superintendent's report presented to Parliament last week is incomplete and misleading in many important respects. The meeting unhesitatingly challenges the Prime Minister's statement that the Government's operations have been a success, and respectfully call upon the Government to publish a full and complete balance-sheet, showing their entire operations to date,- with a true and certified valuation of stock unsold. We are communicating the above to all Auckland Members." ■ >■ In order to better explain the: position, the following letter has been sent to various Members of the House : — RE KAURI GUM INDUSTRY. " 1 beg to enclose copy of telegram sent to the Prime Minister this day re the above matter, and more especially re the report of the Kauri Gum Commissioner, dated June Ist, 1917, presented to Parliament last week. This telegram speaks for itself, but I would like to add that those interested in the gum industry are strongly of opinion that the Government operations in gum have resulted, or will result, in a heavy loss to the country, without any benefit at all to the producers or to anyone else, except, possibly, those actually employed by the Government

"The reports presented to Parliament each year are lacking in the necessary information to enable anyone' to ascertain the true position of the Government respecting their operations in gum, and it is considered by those interested in this' important Auckland industry that the time has long since arrived when the Government should be called upon in no uncertain way to furnish the taxpayers, through the proper channels, with a full and complete balance-sheet, showing the actual profit or loss made since the inception of the scheme, this balance-sheet to be based upon a true and fully certified valuation of the gum still unsold. To-day's meeting further decided to go fully into the whole matter of the Government's operations in gum, and to place before Members of the House, and before the public generally, many important facts which have been withheld from them, and which, when known, will, it is strongly held, show that the Government's operations have not only not been ' highly successful,' as claimed, but have, in fact, been a complete failure. These facts will be laid before you as soon as possible, and meantime we hope you will use your influence to secure from the Government a full and complete balance-sheet,.and statement of affairs in connection with its operations in gum to date. It appears to those interested in the industry that this is a very reasonable and proper request, and as such it is hoped that it will receive your cordial support."

Mr Massey replied by telegram as follows; yesterday afternoon : " Your telegram of yesterday received, transmitting resolution passed at a meeting of gum merchants and brokers, and in reply I have to inform you that the representations will have the careful consideration of the Government." :The following committee was sfet up at the meeting of merchants and brokers : —F. L. Gribbiin, Chairman (Mitchelson and Co.), L. H. Barchelder(L. C. Gillespie and Sons), J ( Montague (S. Winterbourne 'and Co.), T. Charter (A. S. Patterson and Co), and T. H. Hammond (W. S. Whitely and Sons, L'd.). It will probably b« remembered that shortly after the outbreak of war the Government, fearing . a crisis in the gum industry, and consequent trouble for the men engaged in that business, offered to advance 50 per cent on the gum

dug if the diggers handed it over to their representative. The advance was to be on the pre-war value of such gum. As the war started on August 4, 1914, and cables had at once come from abroad to stop all shipments for fear of enemy raiders, there was a complete collapse for a few months in the gum trade. The Government advances began about November of the same year. It is contended that as the Government has now ceased to make advances to the diggers there is no further need for its operations to be continued.