A CHINESE PIONEER.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 9509, 4 June 1913, Page 2

A CHINESE PIONEER.

MR CHEW CHONG'S DAIRYING ENTFJEtPRISE. A writer in th-e ffijwcra Star has some gi>od words to say of Mr Chew Chong, of New Plymouth, the "father" of the dairy industry in Taranak£ Says he: —"Mr Chong was not only a pushing merchant, importer and storekeeper, having a business at New Plymouth as well as at Eithani. but showed his great faith in tho dairying business by putting a lot of money into it, and offering to lend suppliers the cash to buy 00-'ws with. At this particular time there was considerable bad feeling (I think it was really race hatred) around this new Elthain factory of Mr Chong'.:. Some sneaky person or persons (I don't think they were any of Mr ('hong's countrymen though) thought to damage his factory, reputation and business, by working up a trumpery case of alleged fake weights at tho factory. Tho outcome of the Inspector's visit was that Mr Chong came out with flying colours; he was actually cheating himself and paying out more than lie ought to his milk suppliers—the farmers. Milk was purchased by weight in those days. The informers wero sadder men, anyway; perhaps sorry financially they made a complaint. I always regarded Mr Chew Chong as a splendid business man. a good pioneer, and a gentleman. Gladstone's statement contained a lot of truth in it when he once remarked that tho "colonials disliked the Chinaman more for his virtues than his vices." I don't, know if Mr Chew Chongr is still alive or not, but I beg to offer one suggestion: it would only be an act of British fair play and long-delayed courtesy to tender Mr Chew Chong some practical appreciation of his pioneering services to the dairying industry—say, at the coming Winter Show at Hawera."'