HONEST, BUT INDISCREET

Auckland Star, Volume LIV, Issue 219, 13 September 1923, Page 8

HONEST, BUT INDISCREET

HOSPITAL BUTTER SUPPLIES. REJECTION OP A TENDER. BOARD DISCUSSES REASON. <13y Telegraph—Own Correpondent.) HAMILTON, this day. ■ The resolution passed by the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce a few nights ago calling upon the W'oikato Hospital Board to give n public explanation oi its refusal to consider the tender by the Waikato Co-operative Dairy Company to supply butter to the board at Jd per lh loss than the New Zealand Co-operative Dairy company, "on the ground that the former was a proprietary concern," was discussed by the board to-day, when a letter complaining of the board's attitude was received from the Waikato Valley Company. Air. A. <!. Dent (Kaivhia) considered the letter sent to the dairy company by the secretary was a very indiscreet one. Mr. A. K. Webb said the secretary might have been more discreet in his reply. Nevertheless, it was an honest letter for the reason that the tender was turned down was undoubtedly because | the Waikato Valley Company was a pro- i prietary concern. The. whole policy was) absolutely -.vrong. They should buy in j the cheapest market and keep the | cost of administration as low as possible, j Mr. Wagstan" said that certain mem- | bers of the board had been twitted that j they turned down the offer because they' were suppliers of 1 he co-operative com- | pany. This was absolutely contrary to ! fact. The board was satistied with the ■ quality of the butter it was getting, and I that the price it was paying was reasonable. Mr. Campbell .Jobnstone said there was no question about it that the board turned down thp offer because the company was a proprietary one. (I.oud cries of "No!" and "Yes!" and general : hubbub.) Mr. .Tohnstone snirl emphatically it was Mr. ('. .1. Barton who said lie was responsible for the reference to co-operative and proprietary concerns at the board meeting in question. He still believed the! board did right, and did not believe in ' buying in the cheapest market. The | hoard had had previous experience of ] buying cheap milk, much to their sorrow. They had patients to consider who were entitled to the lest the board could buy. Mr. .1. Price (Mntamata) said the board had not called for tenders ror butter, but this company had butted in and offered to undercut the N.Z.CD. Co., which already had an existing arrangement with the hoard. Several other members regarded the proprietary company's offer as not a legitimate one, and the letter was merely received.