JAPANESE SUPERPHOSPHATES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2817, 4 March 1908, Page 10

JAPANESE SUPERPHOSPHATES.

I The following communication, which explains itself, has been received by the registrar of the Arbitration Court: — The Registrar Arbitration Couit, Wellington, New Zealand. Sir,— My attention has bean drawn to a cabled report appearing in the Argus newspaper of the 14th inst. of the evidence given befoTe the Arbitration CouTt in connection v/i-th Japanese superphosphates. I enclose a newspaper cutting of the report herewith: — " Wellington, Tuesday. — In giving evidence before -the Arbitration Court, Mr Ja-s. Henton, general manager of Kempthorne, Proeser, and Co., said that Japanese manufacturers of chemical manures were most dangerous competitors. The Japanese had the raw material in their own country, and secured labour at Is a day of 12 hours. They could snip manure to New Zealand at a total cost of 10s a ton, whereas it cost 12s 6d to ship a ton of manure from Auckland to Dunedin. The amount of capital the company had invested in manure, works, plant, and stock - throughout the Dominion was £70,215. The wages paid were between £60,000 and £70,003 per annum.'" — Melboiue Argus, February 12, 1908." I desire to draw the attention of the court to three of the statements, which are very misleading — viz. : (1) "The Japanese had raw material in their own country." This is net co: all the phosphate rock being imported. This I know of my own knowledge. I am intimately acquainted with Japan's resources, imports and exports. I have recently arrived from that country. (2) Labourers in fertiliser factories in Japan work 60 hours per week— not 12 hours per day as stated. (8) " They could ship manure at a. total cost of 10s per ton." This is not so, the freight from Japan to New Zealand being very much higher, even for cargo lots. It is true that Japanese labour is cheap as compared with ours; on the other hand a labourer can live comfortably in Japan on Is per day. New Zealand workmen have to pay as much for one day's living as a Japanese for a whole week's. For further information regarding Japanese superphosphates I would refer you to minutes of evidence taken before the Federal Royal Commission, 1906 (Division 4, Agricultural Products, page 21). Like New Zealand, Japan has sulphur, which the Japanese make up into acid l used in the manufacture of superphosphates from imported phosphate rock. The only Japanese superphosphate which has been sent to New Zealand or Australia during the past few years has ]iad to pass through my hands. I control the Japanese exports in superphosphates. The Japanese superphosphate which goes to New Zealand and Australia is known as Hasell's. Australian manufacturers are now selling superphosphates in New Zealand a long way under the price at which I can sell Japanese. — Yours obediently, A. H. Hasell. Mr J. W. Henton, manager for Alessre Kempthorne, Prosser, and Co., was informed of the above criticism of his statement on Feb. 27, and in reply reminded our representative that when giving evidence re the Japanese as chemical manufacturers, he spoke in a general sense. He certainly said that the Japanese had raw material j in their country, but did not say that they had all the raw material, being well aware j that all their phosphate rook had to be imported. The Japanese, however, had the sulphur, which may be said to constitute half the raw material used. As to the Japanese working 12 hours a day, that was the case when Mr Henton was in Japan some years ago, and he has every .reason to believe that this ie at present the case. Mr Henton further said that in giving 1 evidence before the Arbitration Court he merely quoted the Japanese and the super - , phosphates 'as an instance to show the I chances of competition in that direction

and to emphasise the exorbitance of the d*ev mand of tne local workers, who were asking 10s a diay for doing what could be done in Japan at Is.