A BOND AND FREE STORE.

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7756, 9 January 1891, Page 6

A BOND AND FREE STORE.

fBY OUR SPECIAL REPORTER.] A passenger by the Lyttelton train, or a pedestrian strolling along the South belt, can see near the east end of the Christchurch Railway Station a large, square, solid-looking brick building, about the doors of which waggons and drays are generally clustered, and by reading the letters painted on the wail can learn tbat tbe name of the building is the Albert Bond and Free Stores. From some ot the windows and doors of the building wooden shoots protrude, down which bass of sugar, boxes .of tea. and cases of all descriptions seem constantly pouring. The place wears that air of semi-mystery which generally surrounds an edifice where Government authority and commercial power work together, but, iv reality, the mystery is only apparent, for the purpose of the place is essentially business-like and practical. It is simply used by the large merchants of Christchurch as a store in which dutiable goods can be placed before che duty is paid, aud when a firm is importing large quantities ot merchandise that come under che tariff, by using chis building they need only pay the tariff on the goods as they pass through their hands. For instance, a Arm like Nelson aud Moate might import one hundred tons of tea, and if they had to pay the duty-r6d per lb—on that tea would raise che value of the stock by £5600; but instead of paying the tariff on che full amount they only pay on that taken away from the stores, wbich might be only one or two tons per week. From this tbe name Bond Stores arises—the Government holding the goods in bond until the duty is paid.

For the privilege of scoring the articles in bond the firm which owns the store has to pay the Government a certain fee for a licence, and, of course, charges the merchant for storage, whilst the use of the capital represented by che duty and the fact thac all the goods need not be carted away at once recoups the merchant. The name Bond and Free Stores, though scriptural, only means thac articles on which duty must be paid and articles on which duty need not be paid are stored there.

Yesterday I entered the Albert bond and free stores, and Mr G. H. Cole very kindly conducted mc over the place, and 1, in his company, learned something of the quantity of merchandise that enters Christchurch, and what a tariff' ou staple commolicies means. The building, which is threu sCoreys in height and 180 ft long by 80ft wide, will hold 3000 tons, and there must have been nearly that quantity within its walls. Ie must be remembered, too, that this is only one out of several bonded stores in Christchurch. On the lower floor were bags of Adelaide tan piled ud until they reached the ceiliug, mats of sugar from Mauritius, bags of sugar from Queenslaud, bag? of wheat, flour, bran, pollard, cases of furniture, cases of sausage skins, ale, brandy, whiskey, and packages containing many other things stored by such marchants as Sclanders and Co., Edwards Bennett, C. W. Turner, Wm. Chrystall aud Co., Dalgety and Co., and Nelson and Moate. On the three floors were stowed 700 tons of sugar and 450 tons of tea, quantities which ought to raise our reputation as tea drinkers and denote the advene of the preserving season. The Government have a claim of 6d per lb on all that tea and _d per lb on all that sugar, to find tueamounc of which would mean a long sum in multiplication.

Looking from the second story of the building, it is easy to see its convenience, j It is connected to the main line by a siding capable of holding twenty-one trucks, and goods coming from tbe ships at Lyttelton can be couveycd close alougv side the doors, where, if they are wanted 011 the ground floor, they are tumbled on to trollies, which run on light rails to every corner. If the goods are wanted on the second or third floor they are lifted by a patent h-ist worked by a large gas engine, while bags of grain aud mats of sugar are sent up by a most ingenious arrangement which consists of au endless chaiu belt at alow iucliue fitted with iedges, on which the bags rest. The chain belt revolves and up go che bags in a continuous stream, -hoots, slides and hoists are in every part of Che building aud so excellently are they arranged tbat very little labor is required. Iv fact, besides the manager, Mr Cole, and Mr H. M. Blundell, the locker or the Customs officer lv charge, there seemed only about four men at «ork sliding sugar bates into cart!: and doing similar work, and three out of those were hands who receive Is per hour and are only paid when they work. Of course, when big shipments come in the place is busy enough, and only last week a large number of men were at work.

The huge piles of sugar bags, the tall stacks of tea chests smelling yet of the ships that brought them from the Indian Ocean and China seas are stacked with beautiful regularity, and seem to support the floor above, although the great beams and massive joists do not require such aid.

The exploration of a bond and free store does noc reveal much besides large quantities of valuable products. Still it is interesting to know chac a Christchurch firm of tea merchants, Nelson, Moate aud Co., have to import over 400 tons of tea to enable them to supply their customers, and it is also pleasant to learn chat Indian teas, in which Nelson and Moate largely deal, and which are produced by English growers in English provinces are coming over in larger quantities than ever.

The tea planters of Ceylon and India have erected such costly machinery and fought so hard iv their competition with the Chinese exporters, thatjtbe success of their cleanly methods over the rather disagreeable systems/ in vogue amongst the Mongolians is gratifying. Apart from tbe bonded store is a warehouse used for holding kerosene, but it is now filled with Golding's manures and bags of salt, stcred by Kaye and Carter. The large yard which surrounds the store aud warehouse, and through which the railway siding rum?, is used to receive coal, and from 3000 to 4000 tons can be stored there, so it will be seen that the Albert Bond and Free Stores has more branches even than its name suggests, and thac it is capable of developing many more.