A QUESTION OF BUTTER STORAGE

Dominion, Volume 23, Issue 45, 16 November 1929, Page 17

A QUESTION OF BUTTER STORAGE

♦ (To the Editor.) Sir, —Taking a line through a discussion at a meeting of the Wanganui Chamber of Commerce, held on November 11, Mr. Patterson, the representative of the Wanganui Harbour Board, is extremely annoyed over the storage contract of the Raetihi Co-operative Dairy Co.. Ltd. Firstly, he suggests that the directors of the Raetihi Co-operative Dairy Co., Ltdare foolish enough to pay a freight of £4 10s. a ton, and send their butter to Wei lington for storeage. instead of sending it to Wanganui stores at a cartage cost of £2 10s. per ton, via the Parapara Road. As a matter of fact, the freight to Welllnton from Raetihi had been up to the time of the visit of Mr. Patterson £2 12s. 3d. a ton. which is considerably less than Mr. Patterson’s figure. I must point out that the Railway Department, when making its offer, had no knowledge of any other offer made, nor did Hie representative of the Wellington cool stores know that anyone else's. offer was, as tire directors considered it would be unfair to disclose to either party the offers made by the other. Does Mr. Patterson think the Raetihi Co-op. Dairy Co- Lid- has any grudge against Wanganui? Does lie think that the directors are foolish enough to throw away the suppliers’ money?. I can assure Mr. Patterson that, taking everything into consideration, the Raetihi Co-op. Dairy Co- Ltd- lias made an arrangement with the Railway Department and the Wellington cool stores by which tJie company will benefit considerably more than if it hud accepted Mr. Patterson’s offer. One report suggested that in order to assist Raetihi the Wanganui Harbour Board had lent the Raetihi Borough Council the sum of £lO,OOO upon debenture mortgage. I am not aware thut the Wanganui Harbour Board was ever asked for any assistaice. IVlien the debentures were offered to the public they were such a good investment that the amount was oversubscribed, and it is fair to assume that the Wanganui Harbour Board required an investment for its funds at tlie time, and in any case the amount of debentures applied for. mid taken up by the Wanganui Harbour Board, was not £lO.OOO, but £3200. It is difficult to see where the suggestion made in certain quarters of want of gratitude comes in. Wanganui, of course, pushed for the •’l’ 1 ’ 11 ' ing of the Parapara Road, but their efforts were for the benefit of Wanganui, which is quite natural. The reriiarks referred to can only tend to create bad feeling and cause irritation. I might add that the Raetihi Co-op. Dairy Co- Ltd- is in reality a company which is solely supported by the inhabitants of the Waimarino County, and not by the citizens of the Borough of Baetihi, mid even if the said company could be held to be ungrateful (and I submit that it cannot be so), such fact should not be in any way attributed to the citizens of Raetihi.—l am, ctcJ. C. RIEPER, Secretary, Raetihi Co-operative Dairy Co- Ltd. November 14.