WHO SHOULD PAY FOR GRADING?

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 1522, 14 March 1916, Page 3

WHO SHOULD PAY FOR GRADING?

IMPORTANT TO THE HEMP AND DAIRY INDUSTRIES.

A correspondeat writes as follows in Saturday’s Wellington Post:—“To ray surprise, I learnt some time ago that there were a number of persons engaged in the grading of flax. I naturally supposed that these were engaged and paid by the producer, as it was for their benefit that the grading should take place, so that purchasers at destination wpuld know the quality of the article they were buying. When I was informed that they were engaged and paid by the Government I was simply astounded. Why should the taxpayer, who has no benefit or interest in the flax industry, put his hand into his pocket in order to give nice fat billets to men in order to save the pockets of those who are at the present time making a pot of money, ? The railway workers are asking for a rise in wages. The Government is shilly-shallying about a reply, yet they pay in order to put money into other people’s pockets. These graders have a high old time, though their work is of a most arduous nature, and, so far, they are deserving of the sympathy of all; The work consists of testing a bank of hemp that weighs about 61b or ylb, and has been removed from the bale by the' men in the shed. The graders look at it, and after most careful and strenuous examination (I wonder if their eyesight is being injured ?) they pass it as fair, good, or whatever the grades may be. I ask you to kindly inform the public bow many graders there are throughout the colony, their salaries, and allowances for travelling expenses ; and whether they travel first or second class by rail and sea. There are other products that are also graded : wool, butter, cheese and fruit. Are the graders of these paid by the Government, or by whom ? If by the Government, how many graders in each class, and their pay, etc. If they are not paid by the Government why are the flax graders ? If they are, it is time the payments ceased. The country has enough to pay to its defenders, and it is high time that those who are reaping the benefit by the great increase of prices in productions, which is unearned, should have to pay.” In an editorial last night commenting on the above the Post says : “A correspondent in a letter published on Saturday raised an interesting point which is commended to the attention of the Minister for Agriculture. He wishes to know why the flaxmiller should not bear the cost of the grading of his produce. It can well be understood that in the early days of this industry the Government should assume the responsibility for the quality ot the article exported. This as much in the interests of its good name as of the ’conscientious flaxmiller who disdained weighting his bales with water or anything else other than fiqre, and confined himself to the production of the best article of its kind. For years past the flaxmiller has been independent of such help. The market, it is true, is a very tricky one, but it has not been so bad of late as to make a grading charge of, say. 6d per bale on hemp and 4-d per bale on tow a burden too grievous to be borne. Together, based on the export of 19x5, these charges for work and labour done would yield the Department of Agriculture over ,£3OOO a year. And if on hemp and tow why not on cheese and butter grading ? These exports are most carefully graded by Government experts, at the charge of the general taxpayer, not the individual producer. Yet a very small grading charge of, say, id per box on butter and 2d per per crate on cheese on the exports tor 1915 would yield the Department over ,£7OOO per annum. In all, these nominal and merely suggested charges would reimburse the Department for its ’services quite ,£IO,OOO a year, and relieve the taxpayer to that extent. The expenditure on the Dairy Division of the Department of Agriculture for 1915 was ,£14,956 not to mention ,£2O contribution Irom the Government towards printing the report of the conference of the dairy farmers’ own association, held at Palmerston North. The grading charges suggested ot id per box on butter and 2d per crate on cheese would go far to pay for the entire working of 'the Dairy Division, and double the charges suggested wpuld make it selfsupporting.”