The Taihape Daily Times AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE. MONDAY, MARCH 8, 1915. MEAT EXPORT.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 157, 8 March 1915, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE.

MONDAY, MARCH 8, 1915. MEAT EXPORT.

(With which ia incorporated The Taj hapo Post ',.a3 "Wiimarino News.)

The remarks made in our editorial columns of last Friday’s issue on the export of meat under the Imperial commandeer, and in connection with the details of the bargain arrived at by a conference of the Government and freezing companies, seems to have evoked a good deal of interest among our local producers. Several questions have been asked in connection therewith, and a desire has been expressed for further information, but as the cue for our article was taken from the report of a meeting of a southern branch of the Farmers’ Union we cannot do better than allow the speakers themselves to answer the queries that have been put to us. Everybody knows, of course, that stock prices have considerably receded owing to the shortage of insulated shipping, and naturally, in consequence, there is a great divergence of opinion as to how far this condition is to detrimentally operate against shippers under the commandeer. As we pointed out, if buyers for export have options over the shipping available, then there is little chance of anything getting “on the hooks’’ except under their auspices, and this means that farmers will have to wait to a disastrous extent or sell their fats to these middlemen at a price so much lower than the Imperial Government is paying so as to allow their usual middle profit, whatever that may be. There in nothing to be gained by a simple paraphrasing of the speeches made by expert producers at the meeting, so we give excerpts from them just as they wore reported. Mr. 11. F. Luers, of West Oxford, said, “There was a strong feeling among farmers that the Government, having commandeered the meat supplies, should go a step further and carry .the policy to Its logical conclusion. Unless that was done, he was afraid the sheep-owner and

the farmer would not receive the price he ought to get, while the {imperial Government would be asked to pay the full price, the difference between what the farmer received and what the Home Government paid going to the speculator, or what he might term the opportunist, who was undoubtedly making hay while .the sun shone. It was a well-known fact that speculators had booked most of the prospective space for some considerable time to come, and consequently they were in a very great measure in a position to 'command the market, since they had the facilities for shipping which other people had not. The fact that many farmers were extremely hard pressed at the moment for feed as a result of the drv season experienced left them under the necessity of selling their stock, and to a very great extent such sheepowners were a 1 the mercy of the speculator, who would no doubt take full advantage of the strong position in which he found himself placed through a series of circumstances. He had heard of men who were making £6O and £7O per day, and he considered this was not right, since the farmer should reap the fruit of his industry. If the Government commandeered the freight space it would be in a position to deal directly with farmers. For some time it was not anticipated that the shipping accommodation that would be available would be adequate to cope with the amount of meat that would be ready for the works, but under such a system it would be possible that each producer of fat sheep and lambs would be able to have a certain proportion dealt with from week to week. Sheepowners could supply the Government with full information regarding the number of sheep or lambs that they held, and then as accommodation was obtained they could be relieved of a certain proportion thus reducing the drain on their feed supplies. H« could see no difficulty in the way of the Government dealing direct with the farmer, and he expressed a hope that the matter would be taken in hand at once." .Mr C. H. Ensor, president of the Farmers' Union, said that' if it was fair for the Government to commandeer sheep and lambs—and he did not question the right of the State to do so—it would be equally fair to commandeer space," and as far as he could see such a step would go far to solve the problem at present confronting the men on the land, many of whom are beginning to be appre hensive on account of the search/ of feed. If the present system were allowed to continue the speculator would grow rich at the expense of the farmer. Speculators were now scouring the country purchasing stock practically ■ at their own price, as they were the only men who could command space, but he hoped that little time would be lost in dealing with the matter in.a manner that would secure to the farmer the fullest return for his produce." What we ask is that the Government should, at the very earliest posible moment, let farmers know the precise position, for it cannot be in the interest of anyone, excepting perhaps the middlemen, to set up anything in tin shape of a fool's paradise.