NO GERMAN GOODS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 30, 4 February 1916, Page 7

NO GERMAN GOODS.

BEYOND DTTEH.ITED SHIPS' CARGOES. MR. MASSKY'S STATEMENT. An emphatic repudiation of the suggestion recently made by the president of the Chamber of Commerce (Mr. E. Anderson) that enemy goods arc creeping into the country, despite the ban upon them, was given by tnc Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. W. F. Massey) when questioned with regard to the extent of the truth of the statement.

Mr. Maesey declared that the close investigations of the Customs Department revealed that the importation of goods from enemy countries had entirely ceased. Last year only £7.700 worth of goods entered as German were imported, as against £683,000 worth the previous year, and even this small quantity was entirely accounted for by the releasing of cargoes of interned steamen which left Germany prior to the war. The Customs Department was on the gui vive all the time. If the officials had any suspicion regarding a shipment of goods they could detain it until they were satisfied that it was of neutral origin, or it was delivered only on payment of full value into the public account. Replying to Mr. Anderson's inquiry why the legislation of last cession, which imposed an additional duty of 50 per cent upon all enemy goods, had not been brought into operation, Mr. Massey explained that it was unnecessary, because there was total prohibition of importation of enemy goods, and heavy penalties were provided by the Trading With the Enemy Act. The legislation alluded to was intended to prevent the importation of goods from present enemy countries after the war. Outlining the precautions taken to prevent the transhipment of enemy goods in neutral countries, Mr. Massey stated that British Consuls in neutral countries had been instructed to watch the movement of enemy goods in those countries, and their reports to the British Government were communicated to the Dominions. I