QUALITY OF TWEEDS

Evening Star, Issue 21517, 15 September 1933, Page 8

QUALITY OF TWEEDS

IMPORTED AND LOCAL CLOTHS TAILORS DECLINE TO PROVE CLAIM TEST UNACCEPTED BEFORE TARIFF COMMISSION Producing samples of English and New Zealand tweeds, a representative of the master tailors declared before tho Tariff Commission this morning that even an amateur could-select the imported from the dominion materials. He was hoisted on his own petard, however, as later he refused to take the responsibility of making a similar differentiation of samples produced by the Manufacturers’ Federation. The commission is: Dr Craig (chairman), Professor Murphy, Messrs J. B. Gow and G. A. Pascoe. Mr A. E. Mander appeared for the Manufacturers’ Federation and Mr F. Waite represented the Farmers’ Union. _ On behalf of the master tailors of Dunedin Messrs Thomas Jenkins. George Alexander Martin, and John M'Crae asked that the duty on British woollen piece goods of 90 per cent, wool and over bo reduced to 5 per cent. They gave the following reasons: — (1) Tho increased landing charges, which stood at 67J per cent, to-day, were having tho effect of driving their customers into buying the lower-grade suits. _ , , , (2) That employment was affected by the tariff. The master tailors had always trained skilled tradesmen for all sections of the tailoring industry. If the better-class business could not train, then all sections, of the trade must suffer. Tailoring being a native industry provided an outlet for youth employment and scope for individual (3) Under present conditions the British manufacturer was handicapped to such an extent that it was impossible for him to compete with the local materials. . ~ . (4) It was essential to the' master tailors that some form of relief should be given, as their customers demanded a larger variety of patterns than that supplied by the local mills. Mr Martin said there were other reasons why the tailors thought duties should be taken off woollen goods. Professor Murphy: Do you mean entirely’ taken off or reduced to 5 per cent. ? , Mr Martin: Reduced to 5 per cent. For instance, trimmings are allowed in free. The Mother Country buys wool from us, but when the manufactured cloth is brought back hero it is almost impossible for some people to buy it. With the present rate of exchange it costs 6711 per cent, to land the material. Professor Murphy: Is your complaint more against the exchange than the Mr Martin: No. I mentioned that, by the way. The exchange is only a fungus of recent growth. Mr Pascoe: How were you able to compete before the exchange was raised above par!’ “We should not talk about exchange, which is foreign to tho question,” said Mr Martin. The Chairman: You must answer the question. . Mr Martin replied that previously they made a little ou their suits, but the suits now had-to bo sold at the same price. Professor Murphy: What is the retail price of suits —eleven to twelve guineas ? Mr Martin: No. Eight or nine guineas for a high-class suit. Ihe tailor has been bearing tho brunt of the exchange and sales tax. Professor Murphy remarked that suits were cheaper in Dunedin than they were in Wellington. Were standard rates charged, or were clients charged according to their appearance? Mr Martin replied that the charge was based on the material. Professor Murphy .asked if there was any significance in the statement that tailoring was “ a native industry.” Mr Martin said that tailoring was the ground work of the clothing trade. Professor Murphy: You say that tailoring is an industry of essential importance? Mr Martin: Yes.

Professor Murphy: You say that, under the present conditions, the English manufacturer is hampered to such an extent that it is impossible for him to compete here. That is rather strong, because I know from my own observations that imported cloth is on the market. Do you mean it is difficult?

Mr Martin: Yes. Professor Murphy: You don’t suggest that imported cloth is being driven off the market? Mr Martin: No. Mr M'Crae; But there has been a big decrease.

Imported materials were really essential to first-class tailors, said Mr M'Crae. One reason was that they “ manipulated ” better into form than the New Zealand-made tweeds. That was borne out also in America, which imported English tweeds. It was absolutely necessary that master tailors should have imported materials, in view of the fact that customers demanded English cloths. Tho result of the exchange, duty, and sales tax had made the prices of imported cloths prohibitive. He thought that the commission would find right through the dominion to a more or less degree that tailors, through circumstances, had been bearing that increase in the cost, simply because people would not pay the increased price necessary for the tailors to niake a profit. The tailors had been carrying the “ baby ” in the meantime so as to retain their customers. Under the present conditions the English manufacturers had no reasonable chance of competing. Even if the duty were reduced to 5 per cent., the tailors maintained that Now Zealand manufacturers would still be given ample protection, as the sales tax was higher on the British goods. Tho Chairman; That is a very doubtful statement. Mr M'Crae: I know that the sales tax on Home prices works out at 9 per cent, as against 5 per cent, for the New Zealand material. It is ample protection to tho New Zealand manufacturer.

Professor Murphy: Would you hold that if the exchange were at par there was no sales tax? Mr M'Crae: Yes. Without tho exchange and sales tax 5 per cent, is ample to hold the field against the Home manufacturers.

Professor Murphy: I rather gather that you do not consider the locallywoven doth to be suitable for highclass tailoring? There was no doubt that locally-made cloth had improved in recent years, said Mr M'Crae, but he did not think that even the local manufacturers would contend that their goods were equal to the imported for tailoring purposes—for form, appearance, range of patterns, and lasting nature. Producing samples of English and Now Zealand cloths Mr M'Crae said that the amateur would have no difficulty in the origin of manufacture. Of course, there ' were 100 years of manufacture behind the Homo

mills. New Zealand cloths were improving, and the tailors found no fault with them.

Mr Pascoc: Do you use dominion tweeds ? Mr M'Crae; Yes. Mr Pascoe: In what percentage compared with the imported? Mr M'Crae: It is difficult to say. I would be surprised if it were 5 per cent. Mr Jenkins said that the local market was so small that one pattern_ would flood it. That was the main objection to colonial mills. _ If the colonial mills could give a variety of patterns and restrict them in the way that the Home -loths were restricted it would be all right. Professor Murphy: Do I gather that that is your only objection? Mr Jenkins: No. It is our mam objection. Ho instanced the feelings of a man who had paid a decent price and saw the same pattern in a lower Trade material in a ready-made suit. He was dissatisfied and thought his tailor had “ taken him down.” Mr Mander: Do you suggest that no vi ■ ’•'! same town or in New

’■-" l ind should wear the some pattern? Mr Jenkins: We find that favourite colonial material was worn everywhere.

Professor Murphy: It became a uniform ! i Mr Mander: Your customers do not require that each has a unique pattern ? Mr Jenkins: No.

Mr Mander: What is the maximum number of suits of one pattern that would satisfy your customers? Mr Jenkins; That is impossible to answer. In reply to further questions, he said there were 60yds in a piece, from which eighteen to twenty suits could be made. Mr Mander: Have you heard of New Zealand manufacturers using only one piece ? Mr Jenkins: No.

Mr Mander: Would you have any objections if only one piece were used in New Zealand? Mr Jenkins: No. A great many importing firms confine a pattern to one town.

Professor Murphy asked if it were customary to stdhk New Zealand materials in rolls like the imported cloths.

Mr Martin: Not the master tailors, There are tailors—and tailors.

Mr Mander: Are you speaking for them all.

Mr M'Crae replied that they represented the master tailors working under the Board of Trade regulations. Mr Mander said the witnesses’ expression of the difficulties of competition was not quite accurate. _ He suggested that the real competition was not between imported and locally-made cloths, but between bespoke tailoring and the factory chart suit. He suggested, further, that the bespoke tailoring business had been decreasing since the war.

Mr Martin: That is true, to a degree. ' If the duty were removed on imported cloths, do you think you would be able to make a substantial reduction in the price charged your customers?” asked Mr Mander. Mr Martin: We would be able to make some reduction. It was ascertained that £3 would cover the cost of material to-day in a high-grade suit, and Mr M'Crae said that, roughly, a reduction of 10s a suit would be made if the duties were removed.

After inspecting the samples handed in by Mr M'Crae Professor Murphy said he could not define them. He was only a layman. Prom his attache case Mr Mander produced a quantity of mixed samples, and .asked Mr M'Crae to select between the English and dominion cloths.

“I am not going to attempt it,” said Mr M'Crae.

Professor Murphy; I think King Solomon’s job might be easier than this. (Laughter.) Mr M'Crae was told by Mr Slander that he bad very strongly suggested to tho commission that it was easy for a layman to distinguish English from New Zealand cloths, Mr M'Crae: In the better class cloths. Mr Mander; But these are quite the best. '

“Can you tell us the difference her tween these cloths? ” asked the chairman.

Mr M'Crae: It is like this—there is a lot of inferior stuff from the Old Country .

“ Answer my question! ” interrupted the chairman.

Mr M'Crae: 1 would probably make many mistakes.

Mr Martin declared that the samples were mostly colonial or second grade English. Professor Murphy; It would be much more convincing if you could tell which were the Home or colonial cloths.

Mr M'Crae said that they had not suggested that all the material coming from the Old Country was high grade. Mr Mander thereupon invited him to select the low grades from the samples. After making one or two selections, Mr M'Crae declared that he would not take the responsibility of selecting the British from New Zealand goods. “ I take it that these samples have been selected to make you scratch your head,” remarked Professor Murphy. “I don’t see how we can.carry this much further. The samples are probably brassed on both sides.” Mr Martin declared that there were no high grade tweeds in the samples. It seemed that the English _ manufacturer was being placed against the New Zealand manufacturer.

Professor Murphy: You don’t suggest that against the commission?

Mr Martin: No, but we all live in this country. Professor Murphy: Mr Mander is an advocate for the Manufacturers’ Federation, and his comment has been quite fair.