CORRESPONDENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 July 1915, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE.

THE WAR AND MIGRATION TO NEW ZEALAND. LETTER IV.-I'MMIUHATION AM) FINANCE. To tlie Editor. Sir, —Two facts connected with i,he much discussed but too little practised question of immigration are gen -'a .y overlooked. Firstly, tlmt Cod does not give His blessing o» the laud um.il moil have done llieir part in its '.■nliiviUion. No wool, meat, wheat, fruit or dairy produce was raised in New Zi a and a hundred years ago, and none is raised 01 a large part of it at present, where man has not yet settled. Secondly, labor it) vapital in its raw state. In the production of •products labor is the predominant factor; in the distribution capital is foremost. Most of the rapital spent on the development «f the rountry was first tilled from its soil by tc.il and labor. We do not want the Britain of the iSohth to remain comparatively empty (10.31 t 0 the square mile), while England lias l! 0!) on the same area, o' the whole of the Britain of the North, including Ireland, lias loli.ij per square mile.

The only way also to avoid a war in the iPaeific. is to cease inviting other nations to occupy the empty areas of New Zealand. They must be settled; if with trained soldiers the defence scheme will 'be greater. This is the only way to preserve a white population in the Dominion. The time required and cost involved in placing troops on the battleground of Europe lias shown what would i>< the case were troops to be sent to defend New Zealand from alien peoples. It is, however, very doubtful whether the working classes at home would agree to be taxed to keep large areas unpeopled, Which New- Zealand might have tilled up with .British people if she had liked. Their earnings are not siillk'icnt to provide themselves and their families vitli what should be the national minimum oT food, air, clothes, house-room and recreation, .and they argue that the iwoiiey niight bettor 'be spent in housing reform, wider roads and other forms o»! social relief at home. The .people of New Zealand should remember that each such soldier would cost .-0500 to train and place in the Dominion. They then would neither know j the conntrv nor be accustomed to it and the climate. Their shooting would be. I useless for some time, until they had ' become accustomed to the perfection of the air of the Dominion. It is quite possible that any nation invading the country, whether martially or with peaceful settlement inteiit, would not wait sufficiently long to enable such troops to arrive before they finish their business and had settled down. Troops also produce nothing, arc not taxpayers, and have to B(T!ed. ' On the other h>ud, settlers produce several times as mueh as they consume, and are the principal taxpayers. New Zealand was made by immigrants, and from ' being word nothing she is now worth four hundred million •pounds. People at home recognised that it is due to New Zealand and the other dominions that wc shall be' in any way successful in the war. Without such I outlets for some of our home population I we should now be so overcrowded that j we- should have sunk to the level of a | second-rate Power. Without the trade of the Empire we could not-have all'orfied to pay for the war. Without the food supplies of the Empire we should have grossly deteriorated in physique. .Without the aid of the overseas troops— j well .imagination fails at the content- i •platio'n of such horrors as would have . ■ensued. I

, At the same time 'we realise how much improved would have Been onr position had the immigration policy of New Zealand been more sustained, more statesmanlike, and more comprehensive. Tnei. both the food supplies and troops of the Dominion would have been larger, our Imperial wealth would have been greater, and our poverty <at heme would have heen less. Most of those who are now supported on the rates at hfome would have made good settlers in their'younger days. In New Zealand there would be no. unemployment in the towns if the Governments of the past twenty years Had settled, more people on the land. The interests of Laibor would I>e advanced if, after local workers had all b.ecn placed, a number well within the balance of the remaining permanent situations were introduced. Otherwise, goods have to be imported which could })e. made locally, and in many cases they 'are -made under sweating conditions of labor at home. The purchasers are therefore employing sweated labor, however indirectly,' whilst they themselves enjoy all the benefits of a most advanc|ed labor legislation and regulations. Moreover, the spending capacity of the workers'is thus lost to the Dominion. If a thousand more workers arc permanently needed in the clothing factories, e.g., than are available, and seven hundred onlf are introduced, these will spend fifty pounds a head (£35,000) each year on food, bousing -and* clothes for themselves, and to supply such will require another two hundred workers, and their needs will require other workers, and so on. until we .find that the introduction or exclusion of the first party means the annual increase in the Dominions wealth or otherwise, to a figure which six figures will scarcely represent. —I am, etc., THOS. E. SEDGWICK. 33 Oriental St., Poplar, London, E., May 28, lillo.

DA.(RY FARMERS AND HOME SEPARATORS. To the Editor. Sir, —Re 'Automatic" on home separation: There is nothing to show that an yimprovement lias been effected in home .separation since last grading season. The only late method is an automatic separator that shows so much vibration as 'would probably render it quite useless after it had been in use for a short time. ''Automatic" admits that home-separated cream is producing a lower-grade Butter than the creamery j produces, but by his reckoning, and allowing nothing for depreciation in the value of the article produced, we would save a farthing per lb .by home separation. I would remind him that, as our Dairy Commissioner put it, it is very easy to save a farther per lb at this end and lose twopence per ft Tsy deterioration in quality when sold in the open market. "Automatic" remarks that some of our creameries do not pay, a point on which I iTave no_prcsent available information, as the uircctors of the •Moa Company always issue so incomplete a balance-sheet regarding the working expenses of the factory. "Automatic" may have information denied to shareholders, as the secretary is also a separator agent, so I will not contradict Jjim, although I believe he is wrong. asks me if a man gives up dairying, and goes in for sheep, who would buy His shares? I will answer his question by asking another: If a mail height an automatic separator and then found that, owing to excessive vibration, he had to buy another, who would huy the automatic? Again, "Automatic' 1 says if a man supplies 1000 lbs of milk at four test he need only cart 40'.hs weight to the factory, which iplainfy shows, although an cnangetw separator agent, when he gets to milk supplying and home separation he does not know what he is talking about, as lnnoVho of ridk m n four test nrodiices

ter-fat, but .probably the automatic separator produces vibrft'tion enough to convert cream to butter, ,and although not clear to others he bases his calculations accordingly. His style of .Imok- ' .keeping must also be peculiar, as he debits the fanner with twenty-one days' loss in carting milk for a season, and forgets all about the hours spent night ,and morning separating, washing and .delivering his cream. The best the ad-, vocate of home separation can show is a hazy saving of one-I'arthiiig per lb by allowing nothing for loss in grade, which means only 4s 2d on a cow producing •itM.'i'bs of butter-fat in a season; while on the other side we must show a direct loss of £4OOO on our creameries, and, on a low estimate, taking the whole district. .C(iOOl) must be spent in separators —practically .010,000 being lost or spent in unnecessary expenditure, and no assets to finance regular payments for but-ter-fat. It can be truly said that one or two of our directors and the separator agents are doing their best to persuade the suppliers of this company to drop the 'bone and grasp the shadow. In conclusion, I would warn all suppliers, before sanctioning any change when so near our annual meeting, to insist on getting their balancs'-siiect before allowing any drastic change, as they will undoubtedly get a very rude shock when it appears, as by present appearances they will find, in comparison with other companies, and allowing the whole of the expenses on running the creameries as a dead loss to be added on to the amount paid out for butter-fat, it will not then make up the amount other companies are .paying out in excess of the Moa company, and our butter has realised top priees. I would remind ,

''■' Automatic" that it is etiquette in replying to a correspondent signing his own name to do likewise and not shelter behind a nom do plume.—l am. etc., H. A. HUNT. Waiongoiia, 22/7/10.

THE WF.I.KH M'IN.ERS. To the Editor. :sir,—Being a working man and a reader of votir paper, T. trust you will lind space for this letter. "Two hundred thousand Welsh miners out"—thus the heading in one of our Taranaki papers. Do these 2'iHUMIO Welsh miners and tlieir employers realise or know what they are lighting for? Can they not, or will they not realise the meaning of "The Rr'itWi Empire" and the honor of our soldiers and sailors? Can they not for one moment, think of their own .gallant Welshmen in'the Army and Xavy. tlieir own flesh and 'blood? These brave Welsh soldiers and sailors are 'fighting for the honor of Wales and liberty. You 200.000 Welsh miners and employers, think of our neiile Allies. France, Russia, Belgium. Servia. Montenegro, Japan and Italy! You should do as the Irish Nationalists and ITsitermen 'did, and say that the Em]('re"s peril is your peril, and "Hands off!" to Germany, Austria and Turkey. But say it quickly, men. And don't forget,.' you 2110,000 Welsh miners and you employers, that Welsh steam coal has saved many, a good ship with its officers and crew. Our Navy needs your coal, men. See that they get it. What would have been your lot and that of your fellow workmen throughout the Empire if the fleet in the North Sea had Rieen short of coal during the early stages of the war, or if they are short now or at any time until the war is ended? Tne work without coal. Then, you 200,000 Welsh miners and employers, give it to them, and give it quickly. Kitchener wants it to drive machines to make munitions for the new Army. If you really think you can't dig that tlaiiky coal anyhow, send for me, von Welshmen, and I will come thirteen thousand miles and dig fjliat long-suffering coal for you. Shake hands, you men and masters, and keep that good old Hag, the Union .Tack, Hying, as the writer believes it will tty, for ever. . But not unless- you dig that <:oal.—l are, etc., WORKER. Rahotu, 22T/15.