FARMERS' PLAINT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 13, 16 January 1940, Page 11

FARMERS' PLAINT.

SPEECH OVER AIR. .PRIME MINISTER'S REPLY. UNION NOT SATISFIED. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Monday. The Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage, has replied to a letter sent to him on December C by the Dominion president of the Farmers' Union, Mr. W. W. Mulholland, concerning statements said to have been made by the controller of commercial broadcasting, Mr. C. G. Scrinigeour. "I have to acknowledge receipt of your letter, in which you draw my attention to your complaint concerning a statement made by the controller of commercial broadcasting," wrote Mr. Savage. "Your representations on this matter have been carefully noted, and also your explanation that the conference at which the question of organised opposition to the Government was discussed was held in July. I feel the occasion does not warrant the action which you suggest. "There is evidently a good deal of confusion over what was actually said on the air, and I notice that in your letter you do not refer to the very positive statement made by the controller of commercial broadcasting in favour of the farmers and expressing the viewthat, far from beipg regarded as public enemy No. 3, they were public benefactors No. 1. This statement has obviously escaped your notice. I can assure you the Government will at all times use every endeavour to safeguard the interests of all sections of the community." "Specific Offence." Mr. Mulholland to-day sent the following further letter to Mr. Savage:— "Your letter avoids dealing with the matters I raised and introduces questions entirely outside those to which I referred. I must point out I had no intention of making an 'explanation' that our annual conference was held in July. I desired to protest that this fact was suppressed and the inference deliberately given was that the conference had occurred since the war broke out. I did not mention a conference at which the question of organised opposition to the Government was discussed, nor did I make any reference to public enemy No. 3. "My letter dealt with a specific offence by the controller of commercial' broadcasting and there is no confusion over what was said by him, as he quoted from the 'Standard,' and it was to the material quoted I took exception. My letter to you dealt with a particular attack on the New Zealand Farmers' Union, and I asked you definitely to dissociate your Government from this action and tJhese untrue statements, and that you instruct the officer concerned to retract completely without further comment the statements and inferences complained of and make that retraction with an appropriate apology in the same manner as he made the and.

finally, that you cause the controller to cease such unseemly conduct as he indulged in. Further Appeal Made. You state you feel the occasion does not warrant the action which I Bug. gested. I must point out that this refusal of any redress definitely associates the Government with the calumniation of a large section of people. I am, however, very reluctant to believe this attack was made at the instance or with the approval of the Government. I appeal to you, eir, to tell me this is not the case and that this unwarranted, unjustified attack was not made on behalf of the Government, that the Government regrets it was made, that it has no desire to provoke the farming community, that the Government will take the action I urge, and that it will do nothing to render difficult the co-opera-tion of the farming community with the Government, which the present emergency renders so necessary."

The statement from the "Standard" said to have been read by Mr. Scrimgeour and complained of by Mr. Mulholland in his original letter, was as follows:—"At the recent Dominion con-

ference of the New Zealand Farmers' Union detaalfld plans for sabotaging the production of the Dominion were 'lie* cussed in committee for two days, and were defeated by a small majority only. Here are the plans which were submitted to the conference: That the farmers do not the bulls with the coirs or the rams with the ewes; that they turn the cream dosvn the drains; that they refrain from going out for at least a fortnight; that they use transport ae little as possible and not pay for it; that they buy as little stores as possible and not pay the storekeeper; that they use no subsidised labour and refuse to co-operate with the Government in any way; that they boycott the Centennial ; that they picket the dairy factories and the petrol distributing stations. The headquarters of the Farmers' Union, while issuing apparently friendly pronouncements, has stirred up and is keeping alive a spirit of strong opposition."