DOMINION INDUSTRIES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 15821, 19 January 1915, Page 5

DOMINION INDUSTRIES.

THE LEATHER TRADE.

FUTURE POSSIBILITIES

STIMULUS TO MANUFACTURE

"he effects of the great war bare been. 1 nd will continue to bo, felt in a variety a if ways. The Dominion of New Zealand i i.'.- ■me through practically unscathed 1 ip to the present, and in some respects a * :ain is anticipated. From the hour that i Jreat Britain declared war on Germany, c in August 4, all trado with that Empire t eased. It is regarded as beyond dispute t hat that trade will only be resumed, if J it all, in a limited form. British firms t vill gain from the change, as also will a i lumber of industries in New Zealand. £ ):ie of the most important of these latter ' s the leather trade. Inquiries made by < i Herald representative yesterday showed 1 ;hat factories are working at high pressure, and in several directions prepara- ! .ions are being made for new business. , Export Duty on Rides. "At the present time." said Mr. Rich- ' ird Warnoik, " the leather trade is very- | busy. It has very much increased since ' the war broke out. If we only had an axport duty on hides, we could then da a very large trade in leather with England. Ihere has been a steady demand at increasing prices for all colonial leathers in England. For wool and leather, the demand is increasing every day, and prices have gone up very much. With an export duty on hide*, we could then ship leather instead, and thus give employment to a far greater number of men than are at present employed in New Zealand. Indeed, the trade would probably be able to accommodate an additional thousand men, following an alteration in the law in the direction indicated. " Keeping the Enemy Warm." 1 " I will just show you how things are • at present. The Americans are taking away our raw hides and shipping boots Home. The Americans are bidding to a large extent, but if they sell live cattle to hngland. they specify, before the cattle leave the States, that the hides shall be returned to America. They won't sell any hides, but come here and buy our raw materials. "Our present policy is a suicidal one. For two years a German farm has been buying sheep's pelts in New Zealand for coat lining. What we have been doing in effect has been to help keep the enemy warm. The tanneries throughout New l Zealand are employing about 600 less men than they were in 1900. The hides that were tanned in the Dominion are shipped elsewhere. The war has put up the price of leather, but we expect it will come down when the great demand ceases. But that is not likely yet, and the process will be a very slow one. Hides are scarce and leather is dear. I should like to point out that the exportation of less hides would mean the increasing, and not the decreasing, of our exports. The farmers would receive just as much from us for their bides as if they continued the exportation." Manufacturers Busy. The fart that all the British bootmanufacturing concerns arc working at high pressure at present in order to coe , with the orders for millions of pairs of i boots for the British. French, and Rus- ' sian troops means that there will be very i little to be sent to the New Zealand I markets. The result of this is that the 1 manufacturers of the Dominion will have lan extremely busy time. There will be lan increased manufacture of boots, and it is considered that there is no reason why the local man should not permanently hold the trade thus gained. __ This, in substance, is the view of Mr. i R. Walton, an Auckland manufacturer. The boot trade, he continued, had received very little from Germany except calfskin goods, and a very small line came from England. A certain amount of boot machinery had come from Germany, but this would before now have been stopped. Machinery required in future will be purchased in England or America. German and Swiss boots did come into New Zealand, but Mr. Walton thinks that none hae come in recent times. The New Zeaj land chrome leathers were looked upon as superior to tho ovtside product. A cerI tain amount of aniline dyes were used in i the trade. They came from Germany, but ! the loss was not of much consequence. | In the opinion of Mr. Walton, the English I dyes suited as well. The war meant greater business in New Zealand, but there was a difficulty by reason of a scarcity of | men. a number of whom had enlisted. New machinery might make up the deficiency to a certain extent, but the men would probably be called on to work overtime. A New Industry. It does not seem likely that the saddlery trade will be affected to a very considerable extent, but those dealing in allied lines, such as leather bags and trinket*, will have an opportunity of increasing their business. Mr. Frank Wiseman stated in regard to ladies' handbags that New Zealand makers could extend their businesses. Practically all that are sold here come from Germany; a few come from England and France. The firm was now going thoroughly into this branch of the industry, audit would eventually mean the making of most of tho handbags sold in the Dominion, instead of importing them. The trade would also be supplied. The work was of a somewhat special character, and would undoubtedly give employment to an increased number of men. In regard to prices, Mr. Wiseman thought the local manufacturers should ho able to. compete easily with the imported article. Additional machinery would be required for the purpose of making the bags.