MEAT AND SHIPS.

Taranaki Daily News, 30 July 1917, Page 5

MEAT AND SHIPS.

ERODUCEES' PROBLEMS. DEPUTATION' TO MMSTEBft ' INTERESTING DSOUSSHffIFj • On Friday afternoon a deputation' from the tamers' Onion Confeen* waited on the Prime Minister, Sir Jom& ■ ward, and the Hon. W. D. & w-i?fc£-aid, and presented the resolutions oarrisd at tJie conference regarding rfrip- ' ping and meat storage problems. Messrs W. D. Lysnar and G. W. Leadley stated what fho resolutions were. In his reply, the Prime Minister said! that the authorities had not lost sight of the point that shipping companies Bhould he regarded as common carriers, but the Crown Law Department w not quite certain whether they came wHMi ' the present la»w «r not, hut was looking < into the matter. On the subject of stor- ; > age the deputation might have noticed!' what had been done regarding rhnwid the Wellington Harbor Board v&g jn« creaaing its storage. Maybe sometfciaa of the kind could be done La tfee The importance of assisting in the aaM tor of butter and ohceae was not over* , looked. Just lately rt had been arranged to ship 00,000 boxes of butter to relieve stores before thg new seasoa'a ' produce came in. He «ntid not eav Wfl would happen later oa-ie did not ,* —bat he hoped the cotopcmiea wnid d£ - weir best to increase their 05m storaflS' R-esh machinery for tie caawg season oould not be obtained, butap3ieatl<sar for financial aesktaace 'Would be rvßr sidered in the future. All that eonld bd done by it the Government would doa , here ha<l been an alteration In sUp* ■ ping matters, and the wWfe overseas shipping was controlled bySa Shipping Controllers, with Sir Josenb Macla.v at the head. The Shipowaw? - Uommittee was practically extinct. Th* withdrawal of neutral ships through fear of the submarines had intensified'the difficulties, and on account of the #hort* age of vessels tho food reserve ia Eng[and fell dangerously low. Ships had '' then been withdrawn from the Australasian trade to get wheat from North • , America and meat from South America. Irotest was made, but the answer was that it could not be helped. ' ; Mr Leadley: Wliy not take some of ■ the« snips that are laid up? Mr. Massey aaid they were not our < ships. He did not think the position ' was as bad now, but Britain was still | anxious.. We could not build as many ships as we were losing. The withdrawal ' of slups was not due to trust operationa. • *•' | Mr. Poison remarked that 82,000 tow ■ °j -Argentine meat had been taken td , ' New York stores, largely by our shinp. ' Mr. Massey replied that he was unable "• to explain that, but the United Stater was unable to produce meat for herselfc , Mr. Poison said that 82,000 tone meat were exported from m . Britain. _ . V Mr. Massey said that'thftfcontentliii ' was not reasonable. They would dot tranship from New York with shipping ftnd the meat market in their present elates. ' r • - Mr. Lysnar said the thing was ex--191510 7 thC rßP ° rt ° iv ' DS statiets «s foi ■

Mr. Massoy said there was never soeb 1 demand in Great Britain for meat as it the present time, but it was impossible for the Meat Trust to inffaiL, the position. There had been a suggea- , tion that Wellington got an advantage - over other New Zealand ports. The tab '■ planafcion was that Wellington wa& & anal port. and cheese, and in eonaequenae tlosa com- ! Committee, endorsed the statements of ■ ' the Prime Minister. Wellington had not < been favored. In the past the Otoeeed Shipping Committee had not racognfaad any responsibility as to the kind o£ meat to be put on the vessels, and tber? . were cases where the freezing companies y )iad not exactly followed ingtmctionßl > Jttnv, however, the Shipping Cojiunittee was issuing detailed statements of t&e cargo to be shipped at each port, and the irregularities of the past wore fflW ' likely to recur. .

Mr. Massey here remarked thai it would be rather difficult to give prece- < ienee to butter, as suggested, because ' the Imperial Government bought meat and cheese, and consequence those com- > modifies took precedence. He was satis- < Tied, however, that justice Would be done to New Zealand regarding available shipping—even more than justice. The Gov-

ernment hero would leave nothing undone to keep the industries going. He was prepared to go into the matter of , ; payment for meat on hooks. Sir Joseph Ward said that while they >■ were in England they endeavored to - get the fullest supply of ships possible, and at this end also the utmost had been done. Thero was no one connected

with the shipping companies who had any say as to where the ships were to go. We were not the only people inconvenienced, but he believed that jmtiil the war ended we would not get mock relief. He was sure the Shipping Con* 1 troller would give this country all the steamers that could 'he spared. As to .

payment for meat on hooks, it would bo a good thing, but it must not be forgotten tlmt there wits a contract with th«

British Government providing for d«j f.o.b. Did the producers want to revoke the contract and take the thances ? ■Mr. Miiasey: That wouUL'be a danger* ous thing to 80. Sir Joseph Ward said lie did not believe that the Meat Trust had any voiep in the shipping arrangements. Mr. 'Uassey: I hold that opinion, too, Sir Joseph Ward .said he was strongly opposed to the proposal lor loading produce at one port. That would be, retrogressive and a bad move. He considered it merely natural that the supping companies were already effecting yvliat saving of time they could. The Hon. W. ©. S. Mac Donald said New Zealand was not so badly off as \ u.st nil in. It 'Would take 16 insulated and over 500 ordinary vessels to take away the produce now waiting in Australia, and there were 9,000,000 tons of wheat to 1» dealt with next February. Mr. Massey said that respecting wool, packs two cargoes were to arrive in New. Zealand within the next few months.