FARMERS' UNION.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXII, Issue LXII, 6 May 1911, Page 8

FARMERS' UNION.

——— * . . THE OTAGO CONFERENCE. Bt rELEGBAPH—PBESS ASSOCIATION. DUNEDIN, May 5. The annual meeting of the Otago branch of the Farmers' Union was held to-day. The chairman advocated an expenditure of £100,000 annually on treeglanting, referring especially to Central •tago. Touching on the immigration question, he said that unless they populated the country with the white race, they did not expect to keep it with "the millions at their doors on the northern side. Remits as follows were adopted :■ — Crookston branch. That "while appreciating what had been done in the alteration of the Crown Suits Law, the Xlnion feels that the State should be put on the same footing as private employers in compensation claims. Kaitangata branch.—That the Union «ndeavor to have stock sold by liveweight, this being in the opinion of vendors the fairest method. The following remits were also adopted:—Seeing that the Government cannot see its way to cut the Canadian thistle on Crown lands adjoining .private property, thistles be taken out of the first schedule of the Noxious Weeds Act; that the Conference supports the Gisborne and other executives in their endeavours to have the present unsatisfactory system of handling New Zea-. land produce in England altered; that while the Union should advocate that lessees of the 999 years' leases should have the right of purchase at the original value, all other leaseholders should have that right only on payment of the present market value. At the annual meeting of the Farmers' Union Fire Insurance Association/ the Chairman, in moving the adoption of the annual report, stated that the total amount of insurance was now £152,000. The directors recommended the reduction of rates on some risks, and also that a proportion should be re-insured. The retiring directors' were re-elected.