DAIRY REGULATION.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXIX, Issue 3737, 11 May 1899, Page 7

DAIRY REGULATION.

; (By Af Crawford, :Miraipar.) ~, In the article’, headed “Dairy Regulation” you seem .to. havo igptj an, erroneousidda Pf "the argument .and. .feeling ’-dis* played by j a’ majority of ; the' members, present at-the-Dairy-Regulations Committee on Wednesday.' ‘ TliO voting was,, firstly, on an'amendment to leave the' regulations ‘as’ they 1 ; are : at present,* whiqh’ was lost; secondly,, to liandyover < the inspection -to the a Government-and" ',- do away Wwith- - the- hommitteo- ;■ altogether, ■which waspish lost*’ * •!- f.''

- ;TJhe farmery Certainly voted/’ agiainst the Goverriihent i carrying :,< / ,thev work, but I; fee| .sure; that, this- was riot through)any., wish! Ito retard jproperLtinspection, but from /a'fear:that tlieiwork' would . not bo closely enough attended ito.‘ To inspect the- "district-- -.smiolying 'WeUingtpn vdth /inillc and, tp sqo that the’ citizens, were 'supplied ./with .a.godd article; wotild take a. really ‘ good man all his time.;-'The Government-;,would; no doubt do ,;their . best by; putting On a .-veterinary surgeon • as inspector for the district,' but it could ’not 'bo hoped ' that he ...would give his time, to the' niilK supply '/of -thq cify:, Hxs dis,triot must 1 naturally-' be 'a, ,mudi. larger ;orie,, t and, his duties require him to he constantly looking into other , work; 'Again, xve are told-that ffhe; cost' would-! mot' be riiore than-.at-present,- but that the'committee would be defunct. This [simply, means that. . the .Government, Srhriln- tax:i each local,. hpdy jip, the extent oi.tlieir. sharp,. in! the. > expenses .of.. keepr. Lug an inspector in the district. ?The faimer is already_ taxed for this in his sheep! rate, (the only; difference being that we would have a veterinary surgeon instead - of' thp ipresPrit;’sheep inspector. > - ,The Mayor warned, us that if the Act was not adopted wo would have . far : mjore stringent measures 'to look ’ forward to, as the Council would take the matter up. Personally I was very pleased tp hear it, and was strongly advocating stringent measures myself. ,I ’spoke very firmly on the subject, and il! think I am correct in saying the farmers present were of; my opinion .when I/said-that ,what .was wanted was power' to .he given to the committee to act in. any ; case of .danger, which it has not got .’now.; that the committee! should have a 1 really good veterinai-y surgeon, specially qualified , for the work required ,of him; arid that he should ho paid a good salary, so that we might ensure getting a-good man. If this were carried out’ something definite arid satisfactory could be done; but in the.present state nothing can be done. . The committee has bfeen in existence for some considerable 'time now, and ,has-been paying an in,specter; but further than requesting a few alterations, and taking tests of milk, nothing has been done,-and naturally money has been wasted. / [As everybody! no doubt Imows, a lot of cattle rounds.about Wellington, were tested for tuberculosis last sparing, but these cattle' were ■ oriljf- donP ; by the Qoyemment .by -request. from; v certain; farmers,- and theko are any; .number of cattle that were not 1 done; ;What protection have oxvners of tested cattle against, contagion, when their neighbours’ cattle have not been tested? A wire fence is no protection. Let us have -thorough inspection, and let those supplying milk to the town pay towards ‘ that cost -by having a license fee; ; the retailers also having - to contribute by being licensed but; let us have a really good veterinary surgeon, who ■w|ill give ’his. whole tiirie’/to’the committee’s and let such committee have full power to see that the , citizens get milk from sound cows and / unadulterated. ~ , ‘ . .