WAITING FOR INTEREST.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 76, 23 December 1907, Page 5

WAITING FOR INTEREST.

i o; JV "SHAREHOLDER'S [COMPRINT.::; iMUSKICSTING. GRUMBLE : AT 'FEATHER- ■■'■■■ l'\'-\::.-i : . : ';''^o^- : /''' ;; .-•"■/ ■ A,.point^;of ; psome :; ,iinpprtiance;.,to - sh.are- _ holders in ' "co-operative concerns Was' mcntioriedr'at, the-epening 'of -tho..'Faatherston milkrcoolingi station, on., Friday... '■~'.„; 'Mr. J. G. :Cos, .Chairman .'of ■ tfie-Town Board,',and- locally' known- as '.'the father of i'6atherst'on',"'/said."that:some . years .ago, when money, was. none' too,plentiful, .he took up anumbor of shares in ,th'o Now Zealand Farmers' Dairy Union, 'in "order to .assist ; it to "start;-- although; ho -.was ; not. interested. ; in the .industry, as he was' not .a, dairy farmer.. Ho'thbught it';h6t'a','prdper' proceeding that tne'-profits should, :-year., after' year, be.'.disiribirJtejT m'bonuses'-to'.'thd .suppliers,and' tho other .shareholder's should-have to go.with■out'intbrest on .their..money. ';'"Alrr > J.;S.Cundy, Chairman: of the F?a- ---' ttiefstoh 'Fresh- Milk Supply Association, said -,he ag'reedjwith' Mr.-'.'Cos. • "He .believed; there was about £2000 1 of .Fcatherstpn" money invested in the Dairy Union, and it" had' riot received a fraction, of interest for'he did not know .how,'long. '■ Yet :rccently, he read- a .newspaper,:,, foport 'describing ;,;the'. great amount, of mpney. that 'this' "Union' had distributed • to. suppliers—about : £600,000.'. he thought!';. .There., was,,hardly /'a farmer in, .the Feathorston district-who was'not reprcson- ; ted in;thq|priion by.sums rariging'frq'm.£so 'io:£100; and?they had not received' a - penny benefit,- for, many ■ years' • past.,'■' "• ■•■- •. -' : . '.-ItJiSiiaisingular .coincidence that itho- first ,'• creamery C of, the:, -©airy- Union jtood'onrthe.yery site of the.present:milk- . cooling/station. r '', '; :':'; ■■'■*• \" : ' -. \ ; Ad - Explanation. . \ , . , . 'Discussing the point .raised! at "the-meeting ,with' : ;'a' .Dominion ;reprdsentafcivo.- subsequently, -Mr. ; Wilkinson,/a '-well-known -farmer/ said the .trouble was 'a; natural result of, competition.-.-■■■lf "the;, Dairy .Union, decided to '-pay interest: instead of, the 'suppliers "might be'attracted;'away:to;'rival'"fac.tones.:'■■ This;.dariger •bad • to -be guarded against; in' the' samb-rway, by plenty of other factories; besides*,, the : -Union. ;j Some, years ago the .Union'had to ;go to' London financiers for'capital; and a large number of £500 debentures were"-'issued.- ' Of-those debentures, .all had v - since been'paid 'off,-except he belicv.edj about'£7ooo, and this was being rapidly reduced.; From a business point of view the 'reduction, of; these' debentures was of the -first • importance, hut so soon ■as they-wore all .paid ..off, the amounts that had hitherto been used ,for.' that ■ purpose would be available for interest, and 'probably sis per-cent. . could be expected. , He ; 'realised,, however, that at -the- present-time, it .'■ was rather, hard on non-suppliers that those shareholders who were/ suppliers 'should-: gelr'all ■ the'.profits and those ; ,who. ! were -not-suppliers'Should •• get ■non'e.,':':lt'vwas -encouraging f that' the -turning point .-was ,nearjy, reached. , .;■.' ~ , ... :'.... ■'