A. AND P. ASSOCIATION.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 205, 5 September 1910, Page 6

A. AND P. ASSOCIATION.

The usual monthly meeting of the HVlarlborough A. and P. Association was held in the board room on Saturday • afternoon. ,Mr H. D. Vavasour presided/and. there were also in -attendance Messrs >J. ,<3v Armstrong, J. Dick, T. Morrin, D. Bishell, R. J. Bell, G. Boyce, R. McArtney, H. Lankow J. S. Storey, W. D. Pike, P. Meehan, and A. McKay.

MOUNTED RIFLES.

The Marlborough Mounted Rifles applied for the use of the Show Grounds for their camp from the Bth •bo the 15th.October.

This application was granted on ihe usual terms.

WELCOME

v Mr A. Mackay was warmly welcomed to the meeting after his absence, and replied congratulating the chairman on his election. He also thanked the Association for electing Mm in his absence.

FREEZING FACILITIES

The following letter and statement were react:—

Sir, —We represent the sheepfarmers of Marlborough and are deputed to interview your Company regarding certain matters with, which they are discontented concerning the management of your business in Marlborough. We will lay before you some of these causes of discontent, and we will ask you to consider them, toi;,point out to us where we are wrong, and to rectify them so .far as you can if our contention be just. To ; begin with:—''That the value of your works at Picton is, roughly, £45,000. Annual interest and depreciation must be taken into account. This will be a large sup. Here we must point out that the site of the works was purchased and the scheme undertaken contrary to the advice of the Wairau Freezing Company (represented by Mr Teschema^er). That it was conceived in ignorance and carried out with extravagance. That the site (the top of a narrow ridge) bristles with difficulties. That the boilers and machinery were discarded plant at Islington. And that an expenditure of £10,000 would haye L done all that your Company, required to do ,more effectively and with much greater ©oo'nomy'than with this'expenditure 'on these works. - > - COMPARISON AS AGAINST CAN- . TERBURY. £ Extra cost of freezing, oneeighth per lb. Less if exceeds 100,000 carcases, l-16th. l-16th per lb addition say on 125,000 carcases, and • average of say 2-|d per head .-•• 1300 Fat: A difference between Picton and Canterbury, average £2 per ton on 125,000 sheep _' and lambs, say 3£lbs average, say 390 tons at £2 780 Pelts: Picton rates paid this year by Canterbury Company lambs 6s and 9s per doz. -off the beam. Picton pelts «ent to Islington and cured have been sold, cured, at Islington, all round as follows: > This season: lams 14s per ' doz., less 3s curing, equal to Us, net (forwarding to Islington) or a profit of from"-^ i 2s. to 5s per pelt. , I Canterbury charge sliping wool, ' Id per lb. Picton charge slipmg wool, lid per lb., or a supercharge at Picton of id on 125,000 ' lambs going, say 31bs of wool, equal to «=>" Wool Packs: Price wool packs 2s 2d. In Picton 3s, or a supercharge of . ••• 52 Boating wool to ship: Picton charge; Is,per bale. 4d per a | bale would be a full charge based upon coastal boating charges, or a supercharge ot 31 •Cost of .shipping and railage on meat from Islington to . ship is say 8s per ton, whilst at Picton, the cost could not be more than 2s, giving a ' balance in favor of Picton of say • - - 600 Coal: The cost of coal at Picton works is probably 6s per > .ton less than at'lslington in Canterbury, say in favor of Picton, v ■•• Sheepsking: Owing to want of conveniences for drying sheep or lambskins' the Company are only buyers, and therefore have a monopoly offering 30 per cent, less than the skins sell for in the South. These, sir, are some of the over--charges and disadvantages, entailed •on the Marlborough! district through -the extravagant and ignorant undertaking of your Company in the first instance. And now we desire to represent to you the great want ot ipace in your W4>rks. The present space is so inadequate that it is impossible for your works to handle 150,000 carcases, which would enable us to be placed on the same level as Oamaru or Dunedin as regards charges, which was promised by you. The sellers are placed at a great dis.advantage and incur great loss ' through the inability of your works %o receive th,e stock in the busy time ■of the season. In many cases stock ■has been held after application for «pace for some two or three weeks. We need not point out to you the consequences to the sellers. We have considered that the better way, under the circumstances, is,to place these matters before you on paper so that due consideration can be given to -our contentions and so that we can ~be> corrected on any point where we are wrong or mistaken point by point. We are, your obedient serS^DE VSITESCHEMAKER-SHUTE, €. F. MURRAY. • Representing Marlborough Sheepfarmers. The President moved, and Mr Bell seconded, that a vote of thanks be accorded to Messrs Teschmaker-Shute and E. F. Murray for their action. Mr Armstrong said that it was a totally wrong statement, and these two gentlemen were simply grinding their own axes. He was in Christchurch at the time the deputation met, and was .not asked to attend, although the understanding was that all able were to form part of the deputation. He thought the Committee should repudiate the statement in every particular. He would move as an amendment: That the Christchurch Meat Company be written to and informed that in regard to the complaints put before them by Messrs Murray and Teschemaker-Shute, the only thing this Association are concerned in is in providing more space, and that they repudiate the rest ot the statement. . , Mr Storey seconded the amendment. Mr Meehan agreed with the amendment. They had been promised at

the time tile company tool? over the works certain concessions, which were given. The deputation should not have gone beyond the question of freezing facilities. The statement read was an insult to the Meat Company. ' ' ' ' -| , ' ■ •Mr Bell-said -it'appeared to-pe ,rough on their delegates, to censure -them. They should awaits the result pf^he delegates' ~work/before, doing aiything like'that. They should in the meantime thank the delegates: for their work. They should stick to their deputies. Mr Dick thought it hard to pass a vote of censure, but the delegates had gone rather too far;in the matter. They had overstepped the mark. Mr Armstrong held that the statement was a direct insult to the Meat Company, and they all knew" they were in the hands of the Meat Company. He did not think that the manager was telling an untruth when he said that the works did not pay. They should repudiate the statement right away. The matter was held over till next meeting. HORSE PARADE. It Was decided to hold the annual horse parade on. the 24th September. Messrs Storey, Bishell, Dick, a-nd Mackay were appointed, stewards for the parade. The discussion on the Quibell Cup controversy is reported elsewhere.