READY TO TRADE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 189, 19 January 1915, Page 7

READY TO TRADE.

CANADA AND NF\Y ZIOALAND IXTIOUVIKW WITH MK. D. J. NATHAN. "DORMANT OITORTUNITIFS." ' I I In speaking of the manifest desire ■ of Canadians to trade with New Zca- , land, Mr D. .T. Nathan, of Wellington, ' who has just returned from a trip, I abroad, stated to an Auckland Star ■ representative that, the people of our •- sister dominion were inclined to criticise 1 our shipping arrangements. They ask L what is the good of subsidising a line i of steamers between Montreal and New Zealand if they can't get them loaded 1 with produce for the return voyage. It ' was considered that we were not getting the best results out of the Vancouver . service, as most of the produce reached ; there by that line was sent from Aus- ■ tralia. In fact, it was considered that the arrangements made by the Union Steamship Company were not conducive to the. best interests of New Zealand. "The terms and conditions which the Union Steamship Company oll'er.s," added Mr Nathan, "to the shipper, both here and in Vancouver, are not the same as oll'ereil by English companies. v Evidently the Union Company's manager has been too clever, not only for the present Government, but also for the previous Government, in the making of arrangements. The position is really extraordinary, inasmuch as the people in Canada are quite ready to buy our goods, but they are frequently unable to obtain space for shipping, unless they buy space that is held by previous contractors." The way in which South Africa dealt with a similar position was explained by Mr Nathan, with the suggestion that the example might well lie followed by New "Zealand. Before the ' entered into a contract or granted a subsidy, they named the rates of freight which were to be charged inwards and outwards, I and in calling for tenders ashed the shipping companies to state what subsidy they required for providing the service. This was merely an enlargement of ('he principle which was introduced in the United States by a Board of Commerce to regulate railway freights and conditions. "If we only had one or two shipping companies trading to New Zealand," said Mir Nathan, '• it would not be a bad idea to adopt this system so that the rates for goods and passengers might not be left to the arbitrary discretion of a shipping company's management, but might be equitably arranged with an adequate allowance for profit by the competing companies." ' Mr Nathan expressed the, opinion that : it would be well worth while for New Zea- ' land to encourage an extensive inter- ' change of trade with Canada. J