MEN ON THE LAND

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 May 1939, Page 7

MEN ON THE LAND

VARIOUS PROBLEMS DISCUSSED REMITS AT CONFERENCE. SALVAGING DETERIORATED AREAS. Amongst questions discussed yesterday by the Inter-Provincial Conference of the Farmers' Union wasithat of deteriorated lands. The Wanganui delegates put forward the following remit: "That hill-country be classified into three classes—land which will save itself under reduced costs; marginal land that could continue to produce with some measure of assistance; and areas that have deteriorated and are not worth attempting to save and that such land be abandoned as early as possible and be planted." Supporting the remit, Mr H. Morrison said that although we were facing bad times and the world was in a mess he was optimistic enough to believe that New Zealand would again sec good times. That being so it was essential that marginal land should be developed. Mr J. J. Lissette said hundreds of thousands of acres were developing into a bed of ragwort. Mr H. Bennett said that deteriorated lands were the cause of many farmers leaving their holdings. He suggested that , the Government' should be asked to take men engaged on unproductive public works and employ them, on a subsidised basis, in clearing noxious weeds from deteriorated land. That would be the greatest assistance it would be possible to give the farmer and it would enable him to remain on his land. The remit was adopted. MORTGAGE ADJUSTMENT. Opinions were- divided on the following remit, which was described by one delegate as merely nibbling at the problem, "That legislation be immediately brought down to protect the mortgagor from extreme action by the mortgagee embracing stock firms, banks, and private mortgagees, and the Government reinstate the most efficient of the Mortgage Adjustment Commissions to deal with all cases of hardship and that in the best interests of all, the commissions’ finding be made retrospective.” Mr A. McDonald, who was a member of the Mortgagors’ Relief Commission, said they had handled over 3,200 cases and they could count on their fiinger-tips the number of mortgagees who had been unjust or unfair. Any man who thought he had been exploited had himself to blame because every case dealt with by the commission was open to review. The remit was defeated. THE EXCHANGE RATE.

"That this conference urges that the exchange rate be allowed to find its own level,” was a remit put forward by the Hunterville branch. Mr L. T. Daniell opposed the ( remit, observing that when prices fell the exchange premium also dropped. The motion would not provide a solution of the problem. The chairman, Mr Lloyd Hammond, said we had drifted into a chaotic state because exchange was not free. With a free exchange there would have been no ■ import restrictions and the further the Government went with those restrictions the bigger muddle they would get into it. No alternative scheme hacl been put forward and a free exchange' was the lesser of two evils. Referring again to import restrictions, he said, the Government was "monkeying” with an economic problem that should never have arisen. If the exchange rate had been put up 12 months ago we would not be in thposition we were in today. Opinions were sharply divided in the course of a general discussion and a number of varying arguments were put forward. It was eventually decided that the matter be referred to the Dominion Conference.