The Hawera Star. THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 1925. THE PORT OF PATEA.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 27 August 1925, Page 4

The Hawera Star.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 1925. THE PORT OF PATEA.

Delivered every evening by 5 o'clock -o Hawera, Manaia Normanby, Okinawa, Eltbarn, Mangatoki, Kaponga, Alton, Hiirleyvilie, Patea, Waverley. Mokoia, Whakamarn, Ohangaf, Meremere, Fraaer Road. an Ararat*.

They are arresting and convincing figures which we publish on this page to-day, showing the saving to the dairyindustry of South Taranaki by export through Patea; and they are figures which, linder the new railway tariff, will be increased this season, if the quantity of produce handled be no more than maintained at its present level. Land transport is notoriously more expensive than sea. carriage, but those who have the option of using either—and of course they use the cheaper—do not always realise how fortunately they are situated. Farmers in Siberia or the Canadian Middle West, measuring their distance from the seaboard in thousands of miles, may easily be more fully aware of the benefits of carriage by water than are farmers within an hour’s drive of Patea. Of course New Zealand’s competitors who produce butter in Siberia or cheese in Alberta escape harbour rates; but the probability is they would gladly pay these in return for the facilities of a harbour. The port. of Patea has its critics; but then so have San Francisco, and Rio do J'aniero, and Sydney. A river port can never be wholly satisfactory, aiid the limits upon its development are obvious; but an artificial harbour guarded by a breakwater is almost equally insecure. The port of New Plymouth, which is South Taranaki’s alternative to Patea, save that it can accommodate, overseas vessels —and load them when the watersiders are agreeable —offers no advantages to dairy exporters at this end of the province; and the figures we quote show how much more costly it would be had factories in Smith Taranaki to ship by way of New Plymouth. If Patea had no other trade beyond exports of dairy produce —-no meat shipments, no tallow, no wool;- and not one shilling’s worth of import trade, it would still be worth close on £IO,OOO a year to the farmers of South Taranaki. For the total amount contributed in rates to the Harbour Board last year was £G2OS, while, as we have shown, the saving on railage of butter and cheese in the same period was close on £1(5,000.