THE FLAX INDUSTRY.

Manawatu Herald, 20 August 1898, Page 2

THE FLAX INDUSTRY.

DEPUTATION TO THE PREMIER AND MINISTER FOR LANDS. (Continuation of report.) Referring to the petition presented eighteen months ago to the Minister >f Lands, Mr Btansell pointed out 'bat the offer of the petitioners to nay o royalty equal to 5 per cent; on a capital value of £2 per aore had been made at a time when flax was only something like £9 10s per ton, and not as had been suggested by that morning's New Zealand Tvnat when the flax boom started. The petitioners had wakened op when flax was low, and a petition presented asking the Government to take up 2000 acres on the terms above referred to. In proof of their earnestness and ot their desire to have their views carried out the present deputation had attended in very large numbers, and as flaxmillers could not be called wealthy people it was strong proof of their earnestness when they sacrificed their time and paid their own expenses in order to carry into effect the desire of a public meeting. By haviig a fixed royalty for the cutting of flax on the Motoa Estate people with little means would be induced to Btart in the industry, whioh was not the case at present, as when the price of fl&x advanced the royalty would be in oreased. The millers did not object to the present royalty bat ihe uncertainty with respect to it prevented people with a few hundred pounds at their disposal launching into the flax industry who did not want to be at the mercy of the owners of the flax who conld fix any price they liked. By doing what the deputation asked a person could start operations, make his calculations and would know exactly what he would have to pay. The policy of the Go vernment in the past— with which the deputation and he believed the country agreed —was one of encouraging the employment of labor. The Lands for Settlement Act had been in the direction of putting people instead of sheep and oattle on the land — the Government preferring to see human beings rather than sheep and cattle on the land. Sheep and cattle would not of themselves make the colony go ahead, but popn lation would, and to have population you roust have employment for them. For an outlay of £500 under the Lands for Settlemens Acb one man and a boy would be found employment, but for the same expenditute on the flax industry twenty men with twenty or thirty dependant on 'hem could find employment. The Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company acknowledged the ad van t -•ga to be gained by encouraging the flax industry by making every con cession possible with respect to freights, During the 1889 boom the manager of the company had informed him that the revenue from passenger traffic had been £2000 more than at any subsequent period The Assets Rea'iaation Board had been accused of having hearts of stone but the same accusation could not be made against the Manawatu Co. On these grounds the deputa fcion came to the Government and asked in the interest of tha whole colony that the small concession asked for should be made. They j claimed it as a right, not as a con cession, seeing that the Government could borrow at 8 per oent and they were willing to pay 5 per cent. Instead of receiving a very doubtful £1000 for 1000 acres the colony would get £12,000, calculating flax at £10 per ton. If they had wanted to work on the Realisation Board they could have quoted facts and figures which would have shown the Board that it wai totally wrong in its ideas from an £ s d point of view. The Premier : Give us the £ s d point of view— -that is the crux of the whole thing I Mr Stansell, continuing, said that it was well known that the flax land on the estate was four feet above the level of the sea and is subject to floods. Only last Monday when he had come over the road in the vicinity the water was up to the pole of the coach. The water was flow ing over the grass lands which were higher than the flax lands, and the effect of grubbing the latter land? would be to lower the levels. By allowing the flax to remain the water did not go through with the same impetus and also gathered silt. Where flax land had been cleared rushes and docks and abominable weeds sprang up, and if the Noxious Weeds Bill became law it would puzzle many of the setters to get their weeds out of the ground. He claimed that the Realisation Board was making a great mistake in what they were proposing, but as it would have been deemed presumptioua if the deputation bad waited on the Board they bad decided net to ap proach it. Mr Gardner said he was afraid the Mayor had left him little to say. The whole strength of the deputa tion was in the facts : (1) That there is a large number dependant on the flax industry ; and taking into coufederation the large number depend aot on the trade it was a matter for the Government to protect it, espocialy considering the small amount necessary to invest in these lands —

£8000 was a trifling sum to the Go* veroment, but it would be the means of supporting the whole working population of Foxton ; and (2) that 'he Government would be able to fharge for the flax cut, and though <.he millers did not complain o r account of the royalty but of t^ lestruction of the raw material* Vie pointed out that the average yield of fibre was four tons to the acre, and at one cutting off ihe area to which the deputation referred would pay more than the capital valutj of ihe land. The yield of an acre for three years would be 243 per acre, or 8a per acre per year. This he considered would be a very fai^ rjnt for land of a capital vahje of £8^ per acre. He bad paid itf -jSyalty for 81 acres £78 for one cutting. There was a large number dependant on the industry, and the Government had an opportunity of receiving a fair royalty if they acquired the land. As a matter of fact the Realisation Bos.d h.ul been receiving a fair royil'y Th • Jiv. Mr Woollass charac^ teii-fd the nqnest of the deputation a? :i m >diist and reasonable one t and one wbicli those in power shooW be willing to grant. Of this he was sati.-fhd f,om his knowledge of the Premier and Minister of Lands who had granted greater favors than the present oue to those who had not so much at stake. L Thwe were 132 men employed in the industry at the present who had 202 persona de. pendant on them, or a total of 884 persona directly interested in the industry. Then the tradesman who were represented in the deputation were also deeply interested in the matter. As a matter of fact it meant the whole life of Foxton if the flax on the Mofcoa Estate were taken up. F. x'on was a place at the end of the railway and there* mn no through communication, consequently they had to depend on their Hying tuere in flax, and if (be Premier and Minister for lands were to go there and see the facts in connection with the case he felt satisfied that for the paltry sum which would settle the whole question they would be willing to grant their request. ft was understood from the Man* <ger of the Realisation Board hat the whole of the flax on he estate was to be grabbed put, thus reducing the area from which he mills could obtain flax. If the fl ix were grubbed out the mills and ibe capital which bad been spent on them, and the poop'.e working there would be thrown on*, of employment, and the whole plica of necessity must C'>!inp;e. Wh.-n Xhls state of aff-iirs w-i3 made known it would be easy to mike som.» ain»dmen!; to the Lands fjr Si'ttlenimfc Act to deal with the ma-^r. ]>, was true the land was unsuitable for settlement, but th(-y had a crop growing there without any trouble, or cultivation •>r looking ufctr— ail that had to be <hva& xv -s to cub it down every three ye:ir>-. Tha Government had gone to ho expense of sending a flax expprt, to London to look after the industry, and if Mr Holmes got a market fur flax and New Zealand was ab\o to compete with Manila, what wou'c his labours go for if the supply of iha raw material was cut offf Surely tha Government would not be foolvsh enough to allow that. If the Realisation Board Was willing to 'sell th«» estate there was 4,000 acres suitable for et'ttlement, and he was per* ft'crly S4tijfi<d that there were plenty of people willing to take it up and settle on it. Then the district instead of what it would be if the flax were taken away would be a iatgn and flourishing one He pointed out that the decrease in number of those employed in the flax industry bad been caused by the cutting off of th-> supplies of the raw material. They were there to plead for their bread and butter. A Maori had told that the natives looked upon Mr Seddon as the father of their people, as he took such a deep and lively interest in their affairs, and he (the speaker), had thought that if Mr Seddon was the father of coloured fo'ks ho surely bad a heart that could feel fur white folks. Thii in- % dustry was a working man's industry —there was not a real capitalist concorned in the manufacture of flax. Every working man who could get a few pounds together spent it in a mill and plant for turning out flax, md everything was at stake. Therefore they came with this very reason* able and modest request* and put it before the premier confident that it would receive proper attention and confident that they would get an answer which would enable them to go back to Fox ton and say : " We are not going to have our bread and butter taken from us." If the government purchased the land the deputation was interested in they would soon see that there is not the slightest doubt about getting good returns from it. He understood there was some mistake made as to tho amount of royalty paid last year — £90 -and said that some mills paid ao much as that themselves. .As the Premier was a man who took an interest in the welfare of the people he would surely not like to see the whole of the people of Foxton come to Wellington to look for billets, but that was simply what it meant. If the flax were taken off they would simply have to go somewhere else. It w6uld be far better if the industry were fostered, indeed the whole trend

of the policy of the Government hid been to foster industries of this kind and help the working man where possible. Seeing this was the case* they had been perfectly justified in bringing the case before Ministers and leaving it with the Government, knowing that they would do all they possibly could and see that this wrong was not done. They there* fore left their case with the utmost confidence in the hands of those who were able to deal with it, and he hoped they would favourably consider it even if the proposed expenditure did not pay— though they were sure it would, especially with all the favorable conditions which would accrue from improved processes and the establishment of new markets. It must of necessity pay, and if it' did not they had to live, and the whole of the colony would suffer if one part of it suffered. He asked the Government to help them to the utmost of their power, and prevent v wrong being done to them by finding the money to buy the land. There were five mills which were prepared to lease 200 acres of the estate. If they had the money they would have bought the land. They had not (he money, so they asked the Govern • ment to buy it, and they would see that the Government was not out of pocket — indeed their could not possibly be any loss. There were, of course, two aides to every question, but he believed the members of the deputation were prepared to meet any objections. Mr Thynne said he could not see why the Realisation Board should raise any objection to the Government acquiring this land. The estate was in the market for sale to the highest bidder, but when they had attempted to obtain the whole pro. perty they had been told that it was unsuitable for settlement. They now asked if it was possible to buy the very worst and lowest-lying portion of the estate and the least valuable. Mr Foster objected to sell it because it would be worth a great deal more as pastoral land, but if it was ac quired by the Government and the flax did not pay, they would be able to turn it into pastoral laud and sell it at a better price. It was a safe bargain that the deputation was ask ing the Government's help in. The difficulty in connection with the acquisition of the land for flax milling purposes could be got over by a very simple amendment in the Linda for Settlement Act. He hoped the deputation would not be turned away with an 1 indecisive answer, and paid the deputation would be prepared to reply to any objections raised to their proposals. The Premier said tbo request made by the* depufation was a very reasonable one. but the deputation having admitted that there was another side to the question he had invited Mr Foster (manager of the Realisation Board), to be present, and put the Realisation Board's side of the question so that the Government would then be able to fairly judge the question. Mr Foster remarked that he had very little to say on the subject, and po far as he was able to judge in ivJation to the flax industry what had fallen from those present was impos- 1 pible of contradiction — at any rate he was not able to contradict it. The industry was a valuable one, and there was little doubt that the value of flax land was advancing every day. From the Board's point of view it was simply a question of £. 8. d., for as a realising body it was their duty to dispose of their properties to the best advantage. Be might say that they had got from the flax lands on the Motoa Estate during the past three years ending 81*t March, 1898, in royalties £490. They had 8,000 acres of flax land, and if they calculated it out they would see that grazing would give better returns. It had been stated that the Realisation Board intended to cut down all the flax. He was not aware who made that statement, and if it had been made, it bad been made without authority. The only gentleman able to make any statement of that kind was Mr Gardner, who had interviewed him, but he (Mr Foster), had told him that flax contracts must go on. There were 140 acres under contract, and a total of between 1.700 or 1,800 acres of flax land. It was proposed to fell up to 200 acres, and this portion was the highest part of the flax land The Motoa country be pointed out was liable to heavy floods, and it did pot do to cramp the stock in flood time on 1000 acres, therefore they mrtßt have land cleared which would first be available after a flood. During the past three years there had beeu cleared 1,400 acres of the highest country, the balance bad been left, but he was not sure that Jt was the lowest part of the estate. When they reached the land which {hey thought would bo better left in flax than grassed they would stop, as they wished to work the property to the best pecuniary advantage. He Jiad no ontpide considerations, and h« was proud to pay that he had a heart of stone with respect ts the &oard ( 8 properties — such a qualifica« tion w-n necessary. Ifc was not necessary, he thought, to go into the question of the royalty received, but he considered that £490 for three

ypars wa3 an unreasonably low retarn. Last year they had got ap to 81st March, 1898, the sum of £66 in royalties. (To be concluded.)