DIRECT SHIPMENTS.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 January 1921, Page 4

DIRECT SHIPMENTS.

ANOTHER STEAMER COMING. PORT PIRIE LOADING. IMPORTERS URGED TO ACT. Messrs. Collett and Co., Ltd., Taranaki agents for the Cunard and Commonwealth and Dominion Line, Ltd., yesterday received advice that the steamer Port Pirie is loading at Hull, Antwerp and London for Auckland, Wellington, and (if sufficient cargo offers) New Plymouth. It is expected to despatch the vessel finally about the end of February for New Zealand ports, via Panama. Importers in Taranaki are urged to communicate by cable with their British buyers and shippers irr order to talce advantage of the opportunity of direct shipment which is now offering. According to the present time-table the vessel should reach New Plymouth about the end ot April or early in May. IMPORTERS ACT QUICKLY. The committee of the council of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce was hurried.ly called together yesterday on receipt of the news regarding the Port Pirie. The committee expressed gratification at the information and resolved to at once take steps to advise all interested in importing goods from any of the above places to secure all the cargo possible so as to make the shipment direct to the port of Taranaki a success. Importers should at once communicate with their agents so that ail available cargo for which there is accommodation on the Port Pirie may be shipped by that vessel for New Plymouth. She should reach New Zealand about the end of April or early in May. PREVIOUS VISIT RECALLED. Ihe Port Pirie will be remembered in Now Plymouth as the steamer which took the record cargo from Taranaki last year, and her lengthy stay in port enabled the ship’s company to make many friends here. She is a vessel of 7316 tons gross, 475 feet in length, and beam 59 feet, and she has a carrying capacity of 14,'800 tons. Another interesting feature of the Port Pirie’s visit on that occasion was that the vessel established a further record in the trade through Taranaki’s deep-sea port, in that she came direct to New Plymouth and left direct from here, no other port in the Dominion being visited. The Port Pirie arrived at New Plymouth on September 24 and she remained in port until October 10. During that period she loaded the record cargo of 90,130 freight carcases of meat and 12,000 crates of cheese, the approximate value of which was £22O,<KM). The produce came from all parts of Taranaki, the works at New Plymouth, and Patea sending quotas. FIRST DIRECT SHIPMENT. The direct trade between England and Taranaki was inaugurated last year by the Shaw, Savill liner Mainari, a vessel of 8114 tons, which arrived at New Plymouth on October 20. Her cargo consisted of 500 tons of general merchandise and 1000 tons of basic slag, and the result of the direct shipment was a very marked saving to Taranaki importers. The occasion was marked by suitable ceremony, and the shipping companies then made it clear that they were satisfied with the port and were prepared to continue direct providing sufficient cargo was offering. The Cunard Line has now fulfilled that promise by deciding to send the Port Pirie here, and it only remains with Taranaki importers to find the cargo.