IMPERIAL MEAT CONTRACT.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXIX, Issue LXIX, 31 March 1915, Page 5

IMPERIAL MEAT CONTRACT.

To tho Editor

f Sir '~JIi1 Corj-igau publishes a letter from Mr J. Turton to himself with the view ot proving his charges of diskonesty against the Patea works Mr. Tuiton's figures all will accept T^J t^'l6s^ 1 ' sam° being as under, and I think will prove rather damaging to Mr J. R. Corrigan' s case • £1290 10s; bills ot lading meat, 80,066 lbs; fat allowed. 9331 bs. Wangamii.—Cattle killed, 245- cost (1913) £1021 6s; bills of lading meS, 60,0421b5; fat allowed, 32441bs ' Readers will notice at a glance Patea credits Mr Corrigan with 20,0001bs of meat above "Wanganui, from same number of cattle, and Patea with 23111bs of fat less than Wanganui, and it is just as ridiculous to charge Patea with taking his'fat as it would be to charge Wanganui with taking his meat. Mr Cor.rigan particularly asked Patea to freeze all his meat in quarters, and "132 out of 245 cattle were so shipped, accounting for 80.066 lbs of meat from Patea as against Wanganui meat 60,042. And to be candid with J.R.C., I. will admit the extra Patua meat over Wanganui was made up largely by the bones left in quarters as.well as kidney fat, which is never taken out of beef ~ quarters, but always taken off all boneless jneat> and included wiih the caul fat, as Wanganui did in Mr .]". R. Ccrrigan's account of fat.

Now, if ■Mr Corrigan sent the Wanganui cattle as boneless beef, which he must have don§, as you-will notice he sent on Mr Turton's figures from Wanganui 60,0421bs of meat from 245 cattle, or an average weight per beast it shipped Home in quarters of 2451bs kidney fat and bone included.

As the average weight of bone per beast is about 1301bs, this would leave only 1151bs of meat, sinew and fat in Mr Corrigan's Wanganui cattle, if quartered.

However, I do not for one moment suggest that Mr. Corrigan would sell c.i.f., or forward to the British poor, or Belgians, meat containing such a large proportion of bone and sinew; therefore we will assume the 60,0421tfe of Wanganui meat was not cattle weighing 2401bs each, but boneless meat. & Now, Mr Corrigan knows when cattle are sent Home as boneless meat, all kidney fat, caul fat, and trimmings, as well as bones., are credited to him at this end, as 'Wanganui did. He also knows that all \quarters sent Home from Patea for him, amounting to 132 cattle o\it of 245, contained all kidney fat, which he got paid for. at the other end. So he, with his usual candidness. compares the < fat from the two works under different circumstances.

Mr Cojrigan also forgot to mention that 78 of the cattle sent to Patea were bulls averaging 5031bs at the end of the season, and 69 were sent Home in quarters, and Mr Corrigan knows quite well that such bulls have practically no caul or belly fat whatever. Mr Corrigan might also have pven the dates when he purchased these cattle, as some were held by him for nearly three months before he could get same into any works. Mr Corrigan will remember the pitiable tale he told me when trying to get his cattle into the works, how the bulls were breaking out, and how the qattle. vere going back, and I have no doubt that he was telling the truth, as his cattle plainlyshowed. Every farmer knows how iT-tich. fat a. starving or shrinking beast will throw, no matter what price 3V.tr Corrigan paid for same in 1914, as again ~& Wanganui cattle purchased in 1913.

Hides: Mr Corrigan showed he received £353 12s 9d for hides from-"NVanganui, and only £316 18s from Patea, or £36 14s 8d in favor of Wanganui; but he withheld the fact that 78 bulls' bides were included in the Patea lot, which, he himself sold at 2d per lb less than, for cow hides, accounting for the difference. Neither did Mr Corrigan point out that all mobs vary in hide weights according to the breed of tattle sent. Howeyav, as Mr Corrigan sold all his hides himself to Messrs Wilson and Canham at less than we could have got for him from the same firm, on our season'« contract^ it is little use Mr Corrigan blaming the works for his 1« ss. Some time ago I challenged Mr Corrigan to meet me at the Star Office, when I would produce proof r-f drops in second-class cow and bull beef vnder Imperial contract, but Mr CGrrigan side-stepped and did not appear.

Mr. Corrigan tries to prove.excessive freezing charges against Patea in^ comparison with Wanganui, hut Mr Turton shows Jthat Patea froze 80,0661bs of meat against Wanganui's 60,0421b5, a fact Mr Corrigan carefully forgot to mention when he made his statement. Mr Corrigan also forgot to state that all cattle canned are the rronerty of the works at a certain price per 1001b, the credit going as a set off against freezing charges, hence Mr Cc.rrfgan's Wanganui credit and increased fat at Wanganui works. , ■ ■ Mr Corrigan's charge against the works that they received |d snore for cow hides and 3d more for bull than Wanganui and credited him with £36 less for the same number of cattle, is an absolute libel, for he clearly insinuates dishonesty on the part of the Pf tea works.

Now I challenge Mr J. R. Corrigan to produce any evidence whatever in support of his insinuation, and I suggest that he and I deposit a cheque for £50 each with the Star. Office, they to decide on documents produced,.a decision to he given one way or. the ether, the loser, to forfeit his £50 -co the Ifawera Hospital and publicly apologise. Will Mr Corrigan accept n«y challenge, or will he do a hit of side-step-ping, as usual? ■ * W. D. POWDRELL.

P.S. —Enclosed you will find my cheque for £50 in terms of challenge, with all documents required to disprove Mr Corrigan's statements, as well as report on his cattle killed at, time of killing, also showing what cattle, tongues, tails, etc., were condemned • also Wilson and Canham's original account sales of weights and prices of Mr Corrigan's hides. • ~