RIVAL PORTS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 188, 7 February 1914, Page 4

RIVAL PORTS.

LONDON AND BRISTOL. The persistent .idvocaey of Mr Lvsiwof Bristol as the port to which New Zeahind produce, should be shipped, and the lormatiou of a company to utilise that port instead of London, has aroused the Port of London authorities to an un- "" wonted state of activity, the of which is evidenced bv the despatch of a. representative, Mr." Est ill, to the Dominion on a missing having for its abject tho demonstration that London is the .market of the world. Both Mr. Estill and Mr. Lysnar pave addresses at Wanganui last week, with the intention of giving both sides of tho question, a very worthy project, provided the statements made are free from bias and unmingled with misleading facts. So much has been heard of tho unsatisfactory conditions under which frozen meat was handled in London that, assuming Mr. Estill's statements to he true, it will ciime as a surprise to learn that the I or!. Authority handled about sixty per cent, of the total meat imported into London, and that less than one per cent, of tilt- amount was barbed. His account of the matter in which tho meat was handled certainly leaves nothing *o be desired. Frozen mutton wan landed direct on to the quays by means of eleetrio elevators, which delivered tho meat to endless band conveyors under cover. 'These curried to meat to a sorting table, .also under cover, whence it was most expeditiously taken "direct. to insulated railway trucks alongside the steamer for" . despatch to the provinces, to insulated vans for tho Smithfield market, to in-, sulated railway trucks for conveyaac* to the Port Authority's cold stores, or' to insulated burses for conveyance *o private stores. yWhat barging" of meat was done was carried out liv private cold store owners, but even then inflated barges were invariably used. He pointod out that the London importers would not in their own interest tolerate for a . moment the abominable condition of at", .fairs which had .been stated bv critics -to exist. As evidenco of the desire of the Port Authority to handle colonial produce in tho best way, Mr. Kaiill , pointed out that they were now spending half a million on additional facilities, besides building a new dock at a cost of l further two millions, also that adjoining Smithfield market the Authority was erecting a new insulated warehouse , with a capacity of 80,000icarcases, thug torturing up the total cold storage accommodation to 1,350,000 carcases. The chief points, however, that Mr. Estill rightly stressed were: (a) Within a .radius of ten miles of the London docks was a population of eight millions, for the most part wealthy, and ready pay for the best the world could produce, while within a radius of 100 miles there were sixteen millions; (b) London is a world market, consequently the maximum competition exists there; (c) the excellent accommodation already existing there, and to be further extended; (d) its unrivalled distributing system by means of railways. Turning to the conditions existing at Bristol, Mr. Estill stated that the storage accommodation at Avontnonth, seven miles from Bristol, was equal to 00.000 slji-cp, which is about a third r o f the carrying capacity of a single steamer, and.'naturally, he ridiculed the idea that Bristol could supply London cheaper than London could supply itself. In support of this. he pointed out thai to convey meat from .the ship direct to Smithfield cost 14r 7d per ton, or less, as against 27s 7d or "28s 7d from the ship at Bristol to Smithfield. In relation to dairy produce, Mr. Estill stated that insulated barges were used invariably when it was conveyed fo the Tooley street wharf, ami no mishandling wis tolerated either bv the insurance companies or the brokers. As ,td wool, he maintained that the accommodation in Ijondon was unrivalled, there being id acres of storage room, and the facilities for distribution being excellent as well as cheap. In his renly .Mr. Lysnar stated that New Zealand wool was mishandled under unfavorable conditions; that the SmithfloM j stores were between three and four boms' journey from the docks, iastcul of a quarter of an hour as stated by ■Mr. Est Ml, and that improvements mentioned had been spoken about for the last three years, but had not yet been effected. \U\ contended (hat the revised storage rates were all in favor of thi> big man, and (bat the curse of the trade was centralisation. To these statements Mr. Estill demurred, adding that if it had not been for the misstatements made it would not have been necessary for him to come to New.Zealand. It is, always well to have both sides of n question presented, and in the light of Mr. Estill's explanations the producers in New Zealand should be able to judge fairly neenrately as to the merits of the rival ports.