Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY, OCT. 1, 1896. Experts.

Manawatu Herald, 1 October 1896, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY, OCT. 1, 1896. Experts.

To question the appointment of an expert for one industry necessarily questions the advisability of the appointment for any, as the same conditions exist. The Danea pro* vided plenty of butter for the English market, but experts, or as we may call them, colonial commercial travellers, proved to buyers that thi3 colony could supply as good an article and would accept the market price. In the case of flax we are told there are so many '.competitors that an expert could do nothing. The answer to that is, that in other branches of colonial industry experts have proved successful, and there is no reason why the flax expert, proI vided a proper appointment is made, should not be similarly successful. Wo now coma to the astonishing fact, emphasized by a dinner at Bellamy's of a large Association of Manchester, actually doing the same thing as we are proposing. Tney have sent delegates to find out what; we have tosell and what we charge for it, and are possibly aho finding out what we buy and what we are willing to pay. An Association with a total trade of fifty -eight millions a yea* might have "been reckoned as doing a satisfactory turn over, but yet they sent these delegates. Why ? Mr Stokes, one of the delegates, very clearly showed " there were many prejudices to be broken down." These people object to the •• middle man, ''.and declared he sold colonial butter with something like 60 per cent..ch*rges, and it is the " raiddfe man "who desires to prevent our flax commercial traveller from being appointed to, break down prejudice and charges. If such a large trading concern finds it to its interest to seek new markets, surely with our struggling industry it is much more important. The appearance of these three delegates seems to have surprised the Premier, as at the dinner he said •'. it was a reflection on the enterprise pf the colony that, while it w&8 to crtfr interest to find markets, here wero three delegates coming among ids from the greatest buying association in the world to look for produce themselves." Just so. ami it may be thought particularly lucky that these delegates have come, or it might have been years before the enterprise of the colony would have sent anyone to them. This is our point, and we do not think anything better could have happened in sup port of of our request for the appoint* ment of an expert to find customers j for our flax, than the fact that this Association has had to send delegates to the colony to find in what we deal in and how we sell.