UMPIRE COMMITTEE

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXV, Issue 3263, 5 February 1931, Page 3

UMPIRE COMMITTEE

mortgage difficulties. FARMERS TAKE ACTION. The opinion- that every endeavour should be made to offer assistance to farmers overburdened with land charges or meeting difficulties as mortgagors, was expressed at a special meeting of the South Taranaki Farmers’ Union at Hawera last week, when the question was discussed for three hours. The result was that a committee is to be formed of a competent farm valuer, an accountant, a solicitor, a Practical farmer, a banker, the president of the Farmers’ Union, and the members of Parliament for Patea and Egmont electorates; The object of

the committee is to be to consider disputes and difficulties which as a result of the present depression are arising between mortgagors and mortgagees. Numerous instances were quoted in which men were forced to take possession of properties encumbered or to exercise power of sale by auction on impossible markets. The scheme was adopted for the formation of a committee as far as possible disinterested as mortgagors or mortgagees, sufficiently competent and trustworthy to consider confidentially the difficulties of both mortgagor and mortgagee, and to bring about, if possible, the settlement of difficulties and disputes between parties without putting them to unnecessary expense.

A story is told about a resident of a country district a few miles from Hamilton. He wanted to get to town, as he explained, “on business,” but as his car was out of order he told his troubles to the country storekeeper, who, with characteristic good nature, actually offered the farmer the use of his own car, saying he would not be using it that day. The offer was accepted, benzine was put in the tank, and the farmer drove to Hamilton. Late in the day he returned, pulled up at the store, and said he would drive home, attend to the milking, and bring the car back in the evening. When he had gone the storekeeper’s son asked his father had he supplied Mr. Blank witn a bag of flour. The father denied this, and investigation showed that the farmer had actually borrowed a car and drove to Hamilton, where he phi-chased flour and other household supplies. What the country storekeeper thinks of the affair is unprintable.