another view of the meat tram; crisis. i

Otago Witness, Issue 2810, 22 January 1908, Page 6

another view of the meat tram; crisis. i

The fear that the American Meat Trust, by extending its Tamifications to the sources of supply of mutton and lamb,, may be able to manipulate -the prices oi these meats as well as of beef has caused anxiety amongst English consumers h«j well as amongst those in the trade whoss occupations .are threatened. Amongst those whose opinions on the question have been obtained is the Hon. W. .P. Reeves, High Commissioner for New Zealand, who has been interviewed by the Westminster - Gazette — a fact on which the cable was silent. Mr Reeves is interested in the question, through a large proportion of the mutton and lamb supply of the Old Country being derived from. New Zealand, and he expressed the opinion, based, no doubt, ori good authority, that, however "the matter may stand with regard to beef, there is noh the least probability of the lamb and. mutton supplies being similarly controlled. Mr Reeves cites figures showing •that- while New Zealand .and Australia I contributed almost -infinitesimally -to the beef supply, they- provided double the quantity of mutton and lamb (together) .that was received from 'the Argentine: .and he regards this as a pretty good .guarantee against -any attempt to corner 1 the mutton as well as the beef supply. This, he says, could only be accomplished by getting control of the Autsralasian as well as the South American output, and he was very emphatic on the point that by no amount of "Yankee enterprise could this ever be Brought about. In Australia, as in l New Zealand, any attempts of this kind would be strongly resisted by all concerned. Mr Reeves declared without hesitation that if necessary the New Zealand Legislature would pass forthwith an emergency act to make it impossible. These assurances aTe all very well, but they do not controvert the fact that the trust has gained -absolute -control of the meat supply >of the United States, internal and export, a much larger vtJTume of trade than is represented by the exports of .Australasia, and has managed *to accomplish this by the most ruthless methods and yet keep within, the bounds of the law. It has now entered r the -South American field with such effects as to oause consternation amongst the organisations previously engaged in that trade, which is much larger in volumn than that of Australasia. And the fact must ■-not be overlooked that the Argentine freezing companies buy their stcck from the graziers, and for the most part distribute the meat through retailers who are eitber their employees or are controlled, by them, so that they /are on equal terms .with the American companies" in respect to-'absence ■ of middlemen. The trust offers its victims the alternative of dfcsorption and destruction — that is. when the victims aore too strong to be merely obliterated. Have the free freezing companies of Australasia the strength, financial and commercial, to withstand the attack of such an enemy? The occasion calls for the .strengthening" of the position of our companies by all pos- i sible means, and for the adoption of sucbi business methods as will enable them to compete on something like equal terms -with their -powerful threatened antagonist's.