FARMERS AND THE WAR.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XL, Issue 1837, 8 June 1918, Page 3

FARMERS AND THE WAR.

A NEW POINT OP VIEAV.

AVriting to the AVellington Post, Mr Alex. McLeod, of Wairarapa, savs: —

Personally I have always followed the pastoral.branch of farming, ami I must confess that I am ignorant of some things, which the critics might enlighten myself and other of your readers upon. Let me first, take wool. The average price paid under the commandeer to farmers for medium coarse raw wool is under Is -Id per II).

Exports sav (lint from two and nhalf to three pounds of such.'Vnw wool will produce one pound of knitting' wool, of a strong;, rather coarse nature. Ai the present day, if a wife wishes to’ knit a pair of socks for her husband or son at the front, the priee charged at the eounlry store' is .Cl per pound, or ‘is fid per skein. Now, for what the fanner sells under is in (ho raw,the retailer sells at .Cl for.the finished article. Who gets the greatest hite? I cannot say, further than that I have sat beside my old grandmother while she,spun on a wheel a mneh better article.

Noxt, again, lake meat. The commandeered prices run from under 4d to 5d per pound for meat other than lamb, which gives an average price of 4LI. The retail price runs from 7d to Is, the average being about fid. Roughly 100 per cent. Now, who gets it? 1 don’t see any millionaire hatchers about. The most of (hern tell mo that, they are making less than the man they employ. Here again I dunno. - Where! oh! where can the answer be?

Lastly, take hides. I think I am right in saying that thousands upon thousands of oxhides can he purchased in New Zealand at the present moment at under lOd per lb. The finished weight of a pair of ordinary heavy .working boots is under four pounds, nails, plates, and all. The cost is between 25s and 30s. AVho gets the balance? Well, I must confess again, I’m heat. My ignorance is of such a nature that I am not inclined to Jump on any or every one who may know more about the subject than I do, or who again may know a darned sight; less. After all, my ignorance may be found excusable. Firstly, I plead guilty to being a farmer, and that in itself is a crime. Secondly, I am one of eight brothers and sisters, born close oh 50 -years ago in the backblocks. I have now eight sons and daughters, and not in my fath r er’s or my own time to the present day have I lived within ten miles of a public school. As my father gave what little education he could to me, so am I trying to do the same to ray own children, out of my own pocket, at the same time paying my share towards the educating of the children of the unfortunate town men, I, and my father before me, are only two of hundreds, aye, thousands, of other farmers who have done tint same in educational matters. §o please make some allowance for our ignorance, you town dwellers, and endeavour to enlighten U 3 on this terrible matter of profiteering.