“MERE HUMBUG”

Wairarapa Times-Age, 21 March 1939, Page 6

“MERE HUMBUG”

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CRITICISED APPOINTMENT OF RABBIT INSPECTOR. POSITION IN TINUI DISTRICT. An allegation that, the Department of Agriculture was merely trying to humbug and evade the Union over the matter of the appointment of an additional rabbit and noxious weed inspector for the Tinui district was made by Mr J. Andrew at yesterday’s meeting of the Wairarapa Provincial Executive of the Farmers’ Union. A letter on the subject was received from the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon W. Lee Martin, but it was decided that a deputation from the Union again place the position before the Minister in Welingtbn urging upon him the necessity for the appointment, of another inspector. In his letter the Minister said “I have to advise that the Department is considering a readjustment of districts in the Wairarapa and other parts of the North Island, and you are assured that the claims of the Tinui district to adequate inspectorial supervision are hot being overlooked, tn the meantime arrangements are being made for the Assistant-Inspector at ’Masterton to give special attention to matters in the Tinui district.” “Five months ago,” said Mr Andrew, “the ntimber of inspectors was reduced from three to two. We protested and were told that another would be put on in his place. Then we were told that districts were to be rearranged and that Tinui would be given consideration. At one time there were six inspectors in the district, and now we have the spectacle of one man going out with a push bike and a horse to cover one million acres. The department is twenty years out of date. The man should have a car, a horse, and- a horse float in order to do his work properly. “There was one man in Carterton covering 600,000 in acres, but after he had been there for a year, and had got to know the district he was shifted to Dahnevirke. The department is just trying to hvnfibug us. As soon as the Rabbit Board was formed in Tinui, the department took our inspector away, although they said they would do What they could to help us.”