THE P. & O. COMPANY & THE NEW ZEALAND TRADE.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume IX, Issue 1008, 6 December 1881, Page 4

THE P. & O. COMPANY & THE NEW ZEALAND TRADE.

In reference to a rumour which has gained currency that tho P. and O. Company were about to put Oil six’! steamers to compete with the Union Company for the New Zealand and Australian trade. A travelling Inspector of the P. and O. Company was lately in New Zealand, to inquire whether importers were satisfied with the Union service in regard to conveyance from Melbourne of goods transhipped ex P. and O. mail steamers. There had been complaints of delay, and it had been alleged that some preference given by the Union boats to Melbourne freights, whence arose delay in forwarding through shipments from England, which it was asserted were often left behind in Melbourne. It is understood that these complaints were to some extent substantiated, and that the P. and O. Inspector endeavored to ascertain what support might be expected if the company ran boats to New Zealand. It was proposed only to run to Auckland, Wellington, and Lyttelton, as it was thought the Port Chalmers bar would prevent the access of such large boats to that harbor. The plan was to lay on some of the older and smaller boats of the company, which will be thrown out of work when the magnificent new boats now building are ready. I have heard it hinted that the hasty journey home of the General Manager of the Union Company, to hurry on the completion of the new boats building for the company, was partly caused by threatened opposition of the P. and O. Co. However, from what I can gather, the idea has fallen through for the present, and the P. and O. probably are not unwilling to sell to the Union Company the boats with which it was thought to run against them.