DAIRY COMPANIES AND TRADING.

Northern Advocate, 14 August 1935, Page 10

DAIRY COMPANIES AND TRADING.

:(To the Editor.). Sir,—l read with mingled feelings the report of the annual meeting of the Ruawai Dairy, Company as it appeared in your columns. I felt in a way that the trading department, was being fun on too .big a scale, but dismissed the thing from my mind with the thought that it was a matter for the shareholders of the company themselves and nobody else’s business. r ’But, after reading your leading article in Monday’s “Advocate,” !• have awakeped to the fact that there is a dangerous principle at work, one Which, if ; to its logical conclusion, will squeeze me out of my little business, as well as hundreds, if not thousands of others: who have been making a living out of trade. I am dead against monopoly of any kind, and I think that the monopoly which dairy companies create when they cast their trading nets as wide as the Ruawai company is doing is the most pernicious of all. What is the use of the primary producer talking about development of a local market for his butter, if. for the sake of making a few more shillings for himself;’ he deliberately sets out to kill the business people of the country, and with them, their employees and dependants? I think it j is a good thing that you should have pointed out in a subtle manner what a serious hurt may be done to this country if the dairy farmer persists in the policy of “grab everything.” I think I can read into your editorial the old story about the dog whicn dropped the substance when trying to catch the shadow.—l am, etc.. CITIZEN. (To the Editor.) Sir, —In theory, co-operation is a splendid thing; in practice it has serious limitations. Carried out to its limit, everyone in the country would be absorbed in one big co-operative movement. Then what would happen? Initiative, enterprise, the desire

to accomplish, would disappear, and sloth, laziness and indifference take their place. No, sir, rob the people of’ entex’prise, and you rob them of self-respect. Invention, investigation, and research have contributed and will contribute, to the well being of the people. Under extreme co-opera-tion. these would vanish, and each individual would expect the other to bear his burdens. I am not sure that co-operation has not already gone too far in New Zealand, especially with the dairy companies, which were formed originally as manufacturing concerns to convert the? farmer’s raw product into a marketable article. But, since they have started as general traders, they are damaging ordinary business concerns. When business men are forced to close their doors through loss of business they will have to join the ranks of the dairy farmers. Then the output will be increased, and the price reduced, and what the farmer now saves on his trading account he will later lose on his production account. The tad or to his bench, the cobbler to' his lest, and the milker to his stool, is sound, both in theory and practice. I hope your leader will have the effect of directing people’s thoughts along these lines. I lam, etc.. MODERATION. I Kaikohe.