Manamatu Herald. TUESDAY DECEMBER 31, 1889. THE NEW YEAR.

Manawatu Herald, 31 December 1889, Page 2

Manamatu Herald. TUESDAY DECEMBER 31, 1889. THE NEW YEAR.

Whilst the colonists as a whole are to be congratulated on the much improved prospects that are before them, owing to the improved markets for wool and frozen meat, yet our readers are those who have the most to be thankful for. A 'short twelve months ago, the flax industry was just receiving attention at the hands of our settlers, though the pioneers of the industry had been at work some months The trade was then looked upon as being purely speculative, and likely to, at any moment, give way. The amount obtained for the dressed fibre at this period, ranged about £15 to £16 a ton at the Foxton wharf, and that sum was supposed to represent some £4 to £5 profit. Under this idea many persons embarked their all in the industry, and after experienc have discovered that the profits were not near so large as they imagined. If the value j had held at these prices, and the demand had dropped in July, as predicted, there is no doubt but that a very large sum of money would have been sunk beyond recover} , and the speculators would have been ruined. We have, therefore, in faking a retrospect of the past, to be duly thankful that such ' a misfortune did not overtake us, and whilst congratulating the mill owners, we are bound to state that the most of them owe their present prosperity more to good fortune than to sound knowledge. We have always endeavoured to s cure for the millers all the mosi reliabh dala regarding the outlook for the trade, and wts wera the moans of urging our member in Parliament to obtain from the Government the assistance of the Agpnt General. This, whic^

nhould have been a wise ittdre, lias not resulted in My Very »atisf actory f «nW&, ftwmg to the. want of knowisdge of the character of the trade, at tlie London office. Lucidly, ye need not n:>w trouble ,ab6M tlie I Agent-Gtmidr&lVttrtaU London market, 1 as We 1 ttaife bean told all along tliat the Americans were the largest buyers, and if we could only satisfy tiljenx, the ijidtoy Ms Wtabliaheci. ' The, latent information that comes to Sand from the Agent General's office is, that Mr Owen Jones has returned from Ma visit to Canada, and reports that th<?re is practically now ail unlimited market in the States for New Zealand flax, providing the fibre be really good. We know that previous to this (he Americans had wired orders to the colony, and that vessels have been loaded direct for the States, so we may look ujton flax - dressing- as an established industry. To the colony at largo this is very important, as It ie Bfcated that since July 1 last, 32,205 bales of Now Zealand flax have been, shipped from "Wellington to England, and 8160 bales to America. By the end of the present month an additional 3408 bales will be shipped for England, and 1800 for America, making a total export for the half year of 45,473 bales, representing a value of about £227,365, or roughly stated some half a milliou a year. If it affects the colony to this extent, the way in which this town and district are affected can bo estimated, aSj in and within a radius of ten miles, fifty mills are sending out tho pre pi red product, nnd even if the estimated output is put at twenty ton* per month, which is considerably under the amount, and the price keeps at what it now is, there is coming as outside cash into the town, some £240,000 a year, out of which there has to go to the labouring population £150,000, which is in its tain, divided amongst the store* keopers and other businessus, leaving also a portion to be retained by the saving ; aud ilso leaving £90,000 a year to go to the owners, as wages, outlay on machinery, repairs, carriage, and profit. So many of the mill owners being either farmeis o the sons f farmers in this district, it will be fair to assume that a large part of their profits will be retained here, and re-divided by improve ments on their freeholds. It is a matter for most sincere congratulations that these sums are not idle estimates, but solid facts, which can be tested by the most simple. The ( further facts, that the Agent-General, who has not hftherfo evinced mtfch faith in the trade, declares the market in America to be xtnlimit^d and as tlie Americans are sending for the fibre, and the dif£ >rent har* hour boards, especially Wellington, are preparing- for increased shipping on account of this trade, we may f liily look forward to a more pros- i perous twelvemonths than the one past and gone, which has been also a very good period for business. Our main stay, tho farmers and graziers aro not overlooked, and their prospects so m as hopeful as that <>f the hempmillers, as frozen meat is steady at paying prices, wool rules higher than it has done for years, with a prospect of remaining so, as a larger demand for woollen goorls has been crea' ed by the cheap prices they have previously been sold at, The farmers around here are also reaping the advantages derived from increased local consumption, which has been increased over ten fold. Taking all these circumstances into consideration, we feel that we may fairly expect, what we most sincerely wish to all our readers, and that is