MEAT EXPORT TROUBLE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 179, 7 January 1915, Page 4

MEAT EXPORT TROUBLE.

SHORTAGE OF SPACE. MR. GRIBBLE INTERVIEWED. By Telegraph.—Per Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. Mr. N. G. Gribble, secretary of the Hamilton branch of the New Zealand Fanners' Union, and of the Waikato Graziers' Association (the latter body comprising the stok-raisers of the Waikato), passed through Wellington, on his way to Christchurch, this evening. In the courso of an interview, Mr. Gribble confirmed what has already been said of the serious position of the meat trade, especially relating to the Auckland province, with the stock-raisers of which\lie is in very close touch. He said that lie need only quote one case to prove what had been said about thgj space difficulty. On behalf of clients, he had 1000 head of cattle waiting to be frozen, but there was no prospect of their being dealt with owing to the lack of shipping space, and the result was they were spoiling, or, in stock-raisers' parlance, becoming "over-ripe." Some of these cattle had been ready since November, yet they could not be dealt with. He had been most disappointed with the way those in authority had dealt with the matter, especially as he himself had brought the difficulty under their notice quite early enough for action to have been taken. He had heard commercial men in the highest positions say that Mr, Massey's repeated statements in the House on the question, reassuringly saying that there was plenty of space up till the end of January, were childish, and they had also expressed the wish that Mr. Massey would refer to them, or to others who knew something about the matter. With reference to the deputation which waited upon Mr. Massey in ■Auckland, Mr. Gribble said that it was early in December that, in company with Mr. A. Schmidt, secretary of the Auckland branch of the Farmers' Union, and with a representative of the Auckland Farmers' Freezing Company, he waited upon the Prime Minister, to place before him the urgent requirements of the position. The Freezing Company's representative was armed with papers and figures, showing the actual difficulties that had arisen, but Mr. Massey had said lie did not want figures, and again ' made a general statement that there wag sufficient tonnage to the end of January. At that deputation Mr. Gribble said he had made the suggestion that a Board of Trade should immediately be set up to deal with this and similar matters, and had made several suggestions to the Prime Minister on the subject. He was now more than evr of th opinion that if such a body of experts had handled the matter, the difficulty which had - arisen would have been, to some extent anyway, averted, and possibly altogether. He knew that other commercial men held the same views as he did.