THE OAT HARVEST.

Press, Volume LI, Issue 15268, 3 May 1915, Page 6

THE OAT HARVEST.

A SERIOUS SHORTAGE LIKELY;

(SFEfI.W. TO ••'THE TRESS. ,, )

WKLUXGTO.Y. May 0. - In reply to an enquiry about the prospects of tho oat harvest, and a s to whether tho available supplies would. suffice for the country's requirements , th> Prime Minister informed a to-day that there was likely to ho a shortage of „.,<« hi the Dominion this year. "The information which the Registrar- '-• General bus kvn ab!i« to obtain, ,, ij r Massey said, "go-s to show that tie shortage i> likely So be more serious than at first- indicated, though . ■ against this our information j s to the effect that, the .Southland crop, which has only just come i::. is a very good one. Tlie position, roughly, i/ t j, ai . Southland will have a surrtlus of oat*' Canterbury and Oiago will have* very little, if any. mare than enough for their own leqiiironionts: and all tho other districts in the Dominion will heshort. In several of them tlie oat " crop h.i« be-Mi a rnrnnleV failure, co ■ " that v appears th«t naioh the greater part vf New Zealand v.iki, look to Southland for it-> supply. I do not «s<pect to hav(> all the thiv.-hing machine returns from the oat-growing districts * - for a month or six weeks, and untij tliV couio in. it i.< <|uit<> inmosJiblp accurately 10 ascertain what tho position is. This, however, should ho bor:io tv mind: The normal production of oats in Xe\r Zealand i> u<k greatly in excels of requirements, and in the Xorth Island this year tlie supply will ba V vory much short of require- * moms. Kvon now merchants are asking mc to have tin-duty 0:1 oats re- " moved, so that wo may b,-> able to imIV)rt from tlie United States and Chilo. I do not think it '< either necessary or desirable to comply with this requrvst."