THOSE BIRDS OF PREY.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 2550, 13 November 1888, Page 3

THOSE BIRDS OF PREY.

TO TIIK KIITIIR Sin,—Doubtle-s you have often heard the old saying, "xV rolling stone gathers ne moss."' Such is the case with me, for in rolling about from one country to another, 1 certainly have gathered no nv.s-, but am quite .is b.ire as when I a'.arted to roll. Jiut one thing 1 have gathered, and that is, that farmers in all countries where I have been are very disunited ; those in the Auckland Province are especially so, and more particularly those of the Waikato. Another thing I have gathered is, that all other classes unite together for thoir mutual benefit. Only see what wa have in Auckland. There are corn rings, land rings, rings, and Heaven only knows how many other rings. Attain, we have Associations ad libitum, there are tho Grocers, the Butchers,' the Bakers,' and as the auctioneers .say, others too numerous to mention. The hrmers through their disunion become the "Beasts" for all those "Birds of Prey," and they do put their hooked beaks into them most ruthlessly, so much so that they get all the flesh off their bones, leaving the poor farmer a perfect skeleton as tar as cash is concerned. Just take tho Grocers Association for example; they not only want you to take out all the butter in groceries, etc., but, they must have twopence per lb for selling when butter is below Is and threepence or fuurpence when it is above Is. I call this doing it with a vengeance, and yet this is only one of the "Birds of Prey" that are constantly pegging away at the poor " beasts." A year or so since when a certain Hamiltoman gentlemm was going to "shake Heaven and Earth," I mean those " l'.irds of Prey," (the middlemen) from their perch by co-opera-tion, I thought there was a promise of success, but aa soon as I saw their method of procedure I at ones perceived that it was going to he the shadow only. You know, Mr Editor, as well aa I do, that if an association or company is to be successful in its operations it must be conducted by practical, straightforward, honest, business-like men, and not by mere theorists, and they must start without taking off a lot of old seeds and rotten Swiss cheese. When our cheese and bacon factories started I thought they would be a benefit to all of us in general, but the farmers in this, too, are like a lot of hounds after a hare; the leader gives tongne, and all the rest follow, without questioning whether they are on the right trail or not. But instead of all going in for one thing, some should have gone in for cheese, others for butter and others for condensing milk, and then, instead of our factories going "the way of all flesh, they might now be still in the hands of farmers themselves, instead of having to let them to those who will run them in their own interest. As it is patent to all that our factories have proved a failure, let us try to find the cause thereof, and the first that presents itself is inexperience, or bad management. The second, dishonesty of suppliers, for I have been informed on good authority tint some avaricious farmers not only watered their milk, but set the evening's milk in shallow vessels, and skimmed it next morniiiK before sending it to the factory. And, thirdly, the method of purchasing milk adopted by the factories, for had milk been paid for according to the cream that it contained the dishonest man would have reaped the reward of his dishonesty, but as it is now he has not only brought on himself the desserts of dishonesty, but has dragged the honest man with him, and instead of getting 2Jd per gallon for their milk, and have the skim milk for pig and calf-feed, as they ought, and would, if by proper management and honesty they'had kept their factories in their own hands, they are now only getting 2; ! f d for 10ilb3 of 10 per cent milk, thus adding to the already numerous multitude another "Bird of Prey."—Yours truly, Rolling Stone. Ngaroto, November Cth.