JUTE AND HESSIAN IMPORTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13866, 28 September 1908, Page 6

JUTE AND HESSIAN IMPORTS.

HARBOUR BOARD CHARGES. ' [BY TELEGEAPH.— COBEESPOITOENT.] • Dxtkedk-, Saturday. , . At the last meeting of the Harbour Board »i letter war. received from the manager of Messrs. Joyce Bros', calico and jute bag "making establishment, in Bath-street, asking for a reduction in the harbour improvement rate on hessian. The' writer stated -; that.a large ■ quantity -of this material was imported by his firm for the manufacture'of sacks, and that the high charge on it imposed by the Board (5s ■ per ton)' practically precluded any chance of the*industry being carried out at a profit. He suggested that the charge per ton be the same as on jute, viz., 3s. The Board ,;ave the application short shrift. It' resolved, "That the writer be informed that the Board had already considered the matter, and did not propose to discuss it further." -_ ■ Seeking information, a reporter had a conversation, with Mr. Murray, the local manager of Messrs. Joyce Bros', establishment, and from him gleaned some interesting facts relative to the industry. Hessian, it appears, is only a finer form of jute, and both articles are;-' obtained from Calcutta. They are used principally in the manufacture of all kinds of sacks and bags, and in many varieties of- coarse cloths. This practice for many years has been : to import the bags direct from India. They come in at 3s per ton, being made by coolie labour. Within the last decade or two business people have commenced to import the raw material direct, and in their own factories employ labour for the : manufacture of the different articles required. The industry has grown to considerable dimensions in Australia, but has not been exploited to any extent in New Zealand. That there is an opening for svich an industry is evidenced by the fact i that the veiry articles that are made from jute—grain;sacks, frozen meat bags,etc, are articles that are extensively used by New Zealand farmers in the handling of their produce. " !