WAIKATO AND THE SOUTH

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 192, 16 August 1927, Page 10

WAIKATO AND THE SOUTH

WATER-BORNE GOODS. ) . . ■.-■-■ INCREASE IDT FREIGHT RATE? MERCHANTS PERTURBED. (By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent) HAMILTON, this day. Hamilton merchants are perturbed over the proposed increase in water freights between southern ports and Port Waikato. The rise represents 3/ per ton, which they consider -will mean not only a great falling off in waterborne trade, but the destruction of Waikato as a distributing centre. Yesterday,, at the. instance of the local Chamber of -Commerce,. a conference of merchants was held at ,the Town Hall.j when the new position was discussed. The Mayor (Mr. J. R. Fow) presided. Mr. A. M. ■ Bieley said the present freieht rate was that charged from southern ports to Auckland, and it had| been in ever since the southern steamer had been trading to Port Waikato. It seemed to the speaker that the steamer employed on the service was too small for the trade, Mr. Fraser stressed, the point that it was not the 3/ per ton that mattered so much as the effect which the imposition of this biffhpr rate was going to have on the futurt of Wa?Vato as a distributing centre. A substantial water-borne trade had been built up between southern ports and the Waikato Heads, and upon reasonable freight rates depended the issue of whether Hamilton was ti remain an town or became an important North Island port. j Mr. Morris thought the merchants could hardly expect the shipping company to run its service at a loss; The development of Hamilton a* a in? centre i»"rely rested rather with the merchants than with the shipping company. Mr. F H. Clapham. president of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce, en«rgested that pendinsr an agreement >. being reached on the matter, a tentative arrangement, whereby the two 'shipping companies and the merchants would equally share the burden might be come to. Mr. C. Rooee (manager of the Roose Shipping Company) explained that th«»re was no rise in river freights. ■ Th« Holm Company had. however, found, after six months' resmlar running to Port Waikato, that the service had been conducted at a loss*. Personally the speaker considered that a bigger boat on the coastal service would soTve the difficulty, the cost.of running a largei eteanier was proportionally smaller than that for the lower. freighted vessel. After a little further discussion it yfta 4«rided to invite Captain Holm to at fJWjT 4 conference to be held