Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, NOV. 12, 1895. Flax.

Manawatu Herald, 12 November 1895, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, NOV. 12, 1895. Flax.

We notice that nrir contemporary the Wangamu Herald devoted a leader last Friday to the Flax Industry. We are glad to see that the importance of this trade is getting impressed on the conductors of Government journals, as it would have been better for the colony had some days of the past session been devoted to consideration as to how the industry might be helped than in the way many days were wasted. It is rather amusing to find that the Herald appears to have wholly misunderstood the actioD of the Government in this matter, and by mistake endeavours to praise instead of condemning it. "We are pleased to notice the Government have, through the Gazette, notified that a bonus of £1750 is of fared for a machine or process for dressing New Zealand hemp " says the Herald, apparently oblivious that this amount was offered a twelve month ago, resulting in a number of inventions being submitted to experts, but none of which were considered worthy of the bonus allotted to it. Before anything was done, Mr J. G. Wilson and those conversant with the flax trade declared the bonus too paltry to induce firsfc'Olassi engineer* I

to conipel;e> and events jiHoVetl them to be Correct. The experts, we belieVe, also Reported that in their opinion the Amourit offered was inadequate. That the Government repeat that which has been shown to be useless in the past is not a matter for commendation, but for condemnation, for which we claim out namesake's support j aa it prdpsrly urged "we trust this offer will result in the invention of an improved method of preparing phormium tenax fibre thai will enable it tt) becdme one of the colony's staple products, as its preparation gives dniployrtient to a Very large iluiiiW of persons and thu3 relieves the congested labour markets of the colony, which latter could afford to give £10 000 for an improvement that would enable it to export 25,000 tons of dressed New Zealand flax fibre ft year at a reasonable profit. 1 ' D he industry is so important, its value in absorbing unskilled labour of so great an advantage, that it is a great surprise to those who believe in the professions of Ministers to find so little done to assist those who are endeavouring to develope it.