Manawatu Daily Times FRIDAY, JULY 10, 1925. A Discreet Deputation.

Manawatu Times, Volume XLIX, Issue 2728, 10 July 1925, Page 4

Manawatu Daily Times FRIDAY, JULY 10, 1925. A Discreet Deputation.

Although the dairy farmers were told definitely after the meeting last February that the “Dairy Council” had ceased to exist, this body is evidently possessed of the proverbial nine lives, and is still going strong. In introducing a deputation to the Minister of Agriculture last Wednesday, Mr J. R. Corrigan ,the worthy member for Patea, disclosed the startling news that the Dairy Council at its meeting last February, instead of dying of old age, had appointed a sub-committee to consider the method of electing the members of the Dairy Control Board. First Come—First Served? As a' result of the deliberations of this committee, the aforementioned deputation made its representations to the Minister of Agriculture on Wednesday. The deputation, which was evidently arranged in order to forestall a deputation that waited on the Prime Minister yesterday, is said to have represented thirty-five per cent of the New Zealand export of butter and cheese. Although the deputation advocated the Ward System of election, it proposes to take the vote from the Individual dairy farmer and make the dairy factories the voting unit. In other words the factory-directors would possess the voting power, such voting power to bo calculated on an export basis. Apart from this, the deputation suggested the election of a “Dairy Council of thirty members” to be elected on similar lines, but independently of the Council Board. The system suggested by the. deputation is clearly a compromise between the various actions represented by the sub-com-mittee. While the committee was opposed to any ward system, based upon the present method of voting, it was evidently also opposed to the election of a dairy council, giving the latter the power to select the members of the Board, Why the dairy farmers should be asked to support a Dairy Council as well as a Control Board, a National Dairy Association, and a host of smaller kindred associations is somewhat of a problem. Another Deputation. The second deputation which waited on the Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture yesterday is also urging the Ward system with the difference, however, that the individual dairy [farmer shall retain his voting priviliege. This is the system which has been advocated for the last twelve

months, and which was almost unanimously adopted by the recent conference of the National Dairy Association It is .a well known fact that a number of the influential leaders in the industry are making every effort to restrict the voting privilege to a selected few, viz., the dairy factory directors. It was on account of this reason that Mr Grounds, at his last meeting in Palmerston North was asked his opinion on this matter, and ho then made the unqualified statement that he was in favour of the Ward system of election. As this bald statement would hardly find the approval of some of his colleagues in the Waikato, Mr Grounds was much more guarded at Hawera, where he made a statement that may be regarded as an attempt to retrace his steps to a certain extent. This statement was made good use of by Mr Goodfcllow in the “Herald,” where he quotes the chairman of the Board in'a way that can only be interpreted to mean that Mr Grounds is not in favour of the Ward system. No Council Scheme. It may bo regarded as a certainty that legislation will bo introduced at an early date, and it will be interesting to watch events. Whatever happens, Mr Goodfellow’s scheme of electing a Dairy Council is sadly out of the running. Whether the members of the House can be induced to take, from the individual producer the privilege of electing the men who claim confiscatory powers over his produce remains to be seen.