CONTROL OF PRICES.

Northern Advocate, 8 November 1934, Page 7

CONTROL OF PRICES.

— Sir,—ln the final analysis, the ownership of property is a responsibility of service in return for the consent and support of the-people. Where property owners ignore this responsibility, pr use their position as a means of exploitation, the people have every right to withdraw their support. In fact, if they continue to give their support where it is not merited they are guilty of a moral crime against humanity. The efficient service of the farmer is beyond all doubt, and it is honestly his due that we should give him the utmost support. At the same time, we should not lose sight of the fact that the genuine farmer is frequently a sharemilker. Now, if we owe a responsibility to the farmer, Who is simply a labouring man, it must surely follow that he owes a responsibility to us, and other labouring men in different parts of the world. Butter is an everyday commodity, like a postage stamp, and it is possible to keep in touch with the price right up to the time it reaches the hand of the consumer, but with’many other commodities this is not so. When business men unite for the purpose of holding out for high prices, they are keeping scores of labouring men all over the world out of a job. Quite apart from the fact that this obstruction of trade re-acts on the farmer, surely the responsibility of citizenship must urge upon him the duty of seeing that others besides himself get fair spin. Perhaps one of the main causes of all our troubles today is the delusion of self-importance so fondly cherished by the business man. A little over a month ago I had the opportunity of attending a meeting of the Whangarei Chamber of Commerce, at which members of the Rotary Club were in attendance, I admit that there was fluency of speech, or at least a continuity of words, but you can get the same effect any time from sounding brass or tinkling cymbal. A delusion is always a falsehood, and those who strive to uphold a false value of themselves must be of unbalanced mentality. “By their fruits ye shall know them.” It seems deplorable that sych an important service as the distribution of commodities should be left entirely to the discretion of those who seem totally unconscious of their responsibility to their fellow-man, and attach so much importance to snobbery. However, the onus rests on ourselves. The business man cannot support even the delusion of his. selfimportance unaided, and if we give our respect to those who are unworthy, we have only ourselves to blame for the consequences. The question of controlling prices is now being taken up by the workers with a good deal of enthusiasm, and if the farmers, individually or collectively, wish to cooperate we will be only too pleased to discuss the matter with them.—l am, etc., A. F. LONG.