THE Otago Daily Times.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 226, 10 September 1862, Page 4

THE Otago Daily Times.

\ ri:iTHKtt tlie Provincial nor the General Governments of New Zealand seen at all conscious of thj serious effects tint arise from food being allowel to reach famine prices. History should teach them that almost all revolution*, rebellions and disturbances, have owed their origin to the scarcity or dearness ■>f food. More than one statesman has laid it down as an aphorum, that to keep the people i:: good humour, it is only necessary to feed them well. Kings have been unseated, dynasties overthrown, fro:a causes of a le« degree of the same character, than are permitted to exist unquestioned in New Zealand. To young colonies oienitiirally luoks to find the price .if provisions cheaper than in the older countries, where the press of population has absorbed tfielmd, which whether by cultivation orbygrazi-ig is made the sjurce of the supply of the necessaries of life. It wants no political economist to lay down the theory, that with boundless tracts of unoccupied hnd, and wkh a mere hnndlul of population, food should be cheap, but it wants one to explain how in the face of thes? conditions food should r^ach to prices which would suffice, even in orderloving England, to unseat half-a-dozen ministries, and perhaps peril the throne itself. NewZealand has been called the Great Britain of the Southern Hemisphere, but certainly its early career in the price ofprovisions, is not like that of its prototype Seven centuries back, the broad lands of old England hid not on; !:ead of population to the square mile where they have now ten. The people then knew what is was to procure food cheap. About the year 1130 Burton's Annals mention that the price of a sheep was fourpence, and of wheat, sufficient for one hundred men for a day, one shilling. Stowe records, that in 1299 the price of provisions was fixed by the Com- | mou Council of London at two pullets for three half-pence, and a fat lamb from fourpence to sixpence according to the time of year. In l.'H.'J Parliament fixed the price of j £2 Bs, for a fit ox, and ss. for a shorn sheep, ! and later still, in 1.53-3, beef and pork were j fixed by law at a halfpenny the pound, and I veal at three farthings. But in the modern Great Britain, whilst yet owning a smaller population to the square mile, beef is only to be purchased at Is. 3d. per pound, and bids fair to rise fifty per cent, higher. Tell to the toiling artizms of the old country, who hear o! the New Zealand Islands as a land of plenty,—tell to them that we have already to pay three times as much for beef as they have to do where they are, and perhaps some of their murmurs of disconcent may subside, and they be reconciled to less earnings with less cost of living. We say it reluctantly that, with meat at such a price, it is almost sinful of the Government to invite an increase of population. Assuredly there is room for thousands more people, and profitable employment for them, but ifnothingistobedone to lower the price of meat, and with the prospect of a further rise, they had better stay away. To say that the people of Otago are able to pay Is. 3d. for meat is to say that they are enjoying extraordinary prosperity. But let that" prosperity subside, let the earnings sink to the average of other countries, and then alUraine will be theresuit. The Provincial Governmsnt should ask themselves this question,—ls it possible to count on a continuance of prosperity sufficient to allow people to pay Is. 3d. per Ib.for animal food; and, if not, should something not be done to lower the prices, or to warn off a further addition to the population?

But, even if that prosperity were to continue, it is equally unjust that the people enjoying it, should be subjected to so fearful a tax on the results of their industry. Grant that they are able to pay a famine price, there is still no reason why it should be imposed. The man who is lord of a revenue of thousands a-year, doe 3 not submit to pay a higher price for the same article than he whose income is only to be counted by hundreds. However liberal he may be disposed to be, he shrinks from his liberality being imposed on. The people of Otago may be earning pounds when the inhabitants of other places are only earning shillings, but they none the less should not be taxed unnecessarily for the provisions they consume.

But wa will be aY-ed wherein lies the remedy. What are the causes that make the price of cattle so high ? We answer in very plain terms, —restrictions on any trade invariably increase the price fur beyond the nominal amount of the restriction. The cattle trade in New Zealand is restricted, and the prices of cattle and meat are artificial. The imposition of restrictions invariably up3Cts the laws of supply and demand. The whole of the trade in meat and cattle in Otago is in an artificial condition, and, as we will show directly, as unprofitable both to the grazier and butc'.er as to the consumer. True, a-j is ahva)s the case with artificial and disorganized trades, speculators have afforded them bpportunities We have alreadj', on a former occasion shown that the number of cattle in Otago was^ not so s:nall as to justify the prices to which they had attained; and we :nay add that the arguments then employed apply far more cogently to New Zealand as a whole. The number of cattle in the two Islandsshowa a very fair average to the number of the population. Applying thb to Otago, we can further say that, if the trade were

thrown open, we believe that cattle couH be imported from Wellington cheaper than from Victoria. In other words, the Wellington grazier could afford to supply this market sufficiently, in addition to the stocks already in the Province, to materially reduce present prices. We thu:! come to the conclusion that the high price i^ more the result of the abuses, that spring from the restrictions than of the restrictions themselves. As we have said, this is the effect of nil prohibitory measures. The very soul oftraleis its unfettered condition. Whatever the minimi amount with which you seek to control it, the actual result will far exceed it. Thus any step which went towards removing the restrictionl!, would have a far more lieneficial result, than might readily be attributed to it.

Admitting the danger of introducing Pleuro-pneumor.h, and the advisability of i exerting every means to keep it cut, we would at the first remove the restrictions to a limited extent. That I*9 to say, we would try what would be the effect of relaxing the restrictions only so far, as to permit cattle to he slaughterci in floating abattoirs, and the carcases j landed cold. By this, there could not possibly be the smallest danger of introducing i tlie disease. The skins cou'.d, if necessary, jbe re-shipped without landing. This | course would at least permit the Dunedin ! market to be supplied much cheaper than at present, and would free a great deal of stock for the up-country trade. Above all iv relaxing tho restrictions, it would throw open the trade muc'i nv.Ke than at present. The abattoirs might be con^tructe-1 by Government, and the importers be chirge:! a fee for their u<o. We suppose no one will deny that it is a legitimate tiling for Government to interfere when food Is rising to famine prices. If this did not do, another course would have to be tried, one which involves we may say the minimum amount of danger of introducing the disease. We allude to the importation of cattle from Gipp's Land, Victoria. The district of Gipp's Land is divided from land communication with the other parts of Victoria by almost impassable barriers of scrub j and forest, but it possesses in Port Albert a good harbor. The disease has never shown | itself in Gipp's Land, and the country abounds in cattle. By an act of the Legislature, cattle from the infecfed districts are not allowed to be driven into Gipp's Land, and in short, so far as is known, no trace of the ravaging disease has shown itself The proposal has been m-ide to allow the importation to Otago, of cattle from Gipp's Land, end failing the success of the floating abattoir plin, we think the exigencies of the case-^the famine price charged for meat—would fully justify the slight risk of introducing the dncase that the inportation of cattle from Gipp's Land would entail.

In the course of our previous remarks we incidentally hinted that the introduction of foreign cattle wouM not have so injurious an effect on the butchers and cattle breeders, as at first glance might be conceived. This is a consideration which we should be told has nothing to do with the question. It will be said that the restrictions are not made to benefit the breeders or butchers, and therefore their loss or gain is not an element of consideration. Theoretically this is all well enough, but in practice it is'different. Prohibitory restrictions are always regarded by the person, benefited by them, as prescriptive rights or vested interests. There are many who would resent as a personal injury the opening of the meat and cattle trade and to them we would point out, that what to their superficial judgment seems injurious, may on tlie contrary prove very beneficial. It was not until the year 1842 that cattle were allowed to be imported into England on any conditions Sir Robert Peel substituted for the absolute prohibition a moderate duty Great was the outcry, and serious the fear, of the dmstenms ruin that was to overcome the breeding and grazing interest. But nothing oi the kmd was experienced, and in 1846 the duties were entirely removed. In this step again Sir Robert Peel encountered immense opposition, but the result justified th* expectations of the great statesman. Writhe six years afterwards, M'Culloch, tlie best living authority on mercantile economy, thus

Its operation has however been most salutary It has re. ueed the prices of butcher's meat in this <* uu . It °ffeSt leVd J aml ifc *■ doae tbis without compr.nming m any way the interests of the farmers a»d gnmera. On the coutrary=.it has, by incr^Sg

their supplies of lean stock, bean peculiarly advantageous to them, and it is admitted on ail hands, that at no former period, have the sto^k and dairy farmers and graziers been so prosperoj3, as during the last half-dozen years TheimporU of fat cattle, though they were trebled, would not do our graziers the smallest injury, and the Importation of lean cattle, far from being injurious, would be highly for tbeir interest. The great existiug desideratum ia our agriculture at this moment, is, in truth, the want of markets, whence wo might import lean or half-fed stock. s

H ore we have an exactly analagous case to the present, always' excepting the effects to flow from the introducing of the disease. But this we are not arguing with, we as much dread the effects of pieuro -pneumonia as any one. We are simply combating tlie prejudices of those who seem the restrictive conditions applied to the cattle trade a source of personal profit. We tell them they are mistaken. That, if their object is the legitimate pursuit of cattle breeding, without speculation, it is for their interest that cattle become cheaper. Their profits now are heavy, but their returns small. The profits would be lessened, but their business -would be increased tun fold They would be able to buy larger herds of store cattle, and to bring more fat stock to market. The principle of small profits and large returns scarcely requires elucidation The vendors of tobacco and tea make larger profits in the aggregate now-a-days then when those articles ruled, as they once did, at ten times their present price. Not only would the consumption of meat increase annually, but the grazier would be enabled to increase his business immensely. Ota~o should not require to import cattle, and°if these were brought within the limit of the means of the breeder, they would be reared in such quantities, that instead of being imported they would be exporteJ. Thus for suppliers and consumers a remission of the restrictions would be alike beneficial, and we earnestly urge the Government to lose no time in taking the subject into consideration. If the floating abattoirs be found sufficient to reduce meat to within reasonable limits let that remission suffice, but if not, the Gipp'sLand expedient must be resorted to. The people of Otago will otherwise have to think that the remedy far pleuro-pneumonia is worse than the disease.

The "latlyof Lyons" was produced at the PnnuMs Theatre last night, before a very good auJxence. This noble play Jias <Bch jj^ merits, and is so universally known and admired hat it never fails to command a good reception it only respectably performed. In putting ion the .up last night, considerable care liad evidently been taken, but the piece was hanilv adapted to the capacity of the company. Mr Cias. Wang, as Colonel Damas, was cartful and correct; and, as is usual with hun, played with nniib, and attention to the minutest details but it wa evident that the part was not so'well suited to han as many that he assumes. The other characters were played with fair ability Ihe screaming farce of the "Lottery Tic'-Pt" with Mr. Charles Young in his inStaS TL personation of Wormwood, concluded the even ings entertainment.

tJln e7r-V, nt- athe drc^^ances attending lie to*, ot the Pj Jlng Mist at the Bluff Harbo? has been concluded, and resulted in the discharge of the chief mate. The Court expressed their opinion that no case had been Jde o« gainst the defendant^ that the captain of Z living Mist had not exercised all.the precautions he ought to have done iv coming i ato P poft crew, u-no had dcssrted from the ship, , vere - ward, brougnt up. The charge of desertion was at once admitted by the whole of ! he»n-!, 1 T but they pleaded in extenuate harsh t^S on toe part of the capraiu-his having p re^ a revolver at one of them, struck anorfer &c lue captam admitted bavin* px^te-1 a re^ volvor but & uJ it was ia self-defence-prisoners and others of the ere,v having coma up toh^ in a mutinous nunner because the^Jwd bou3 Wuge andcaessive overwork were also preS IT" 51 CdptaiU ' Who denieJ «»»«». and sUojeJ that one of the complainant, had li fa h.s bunk forty-eight hours and refused todoa stroke of wo*. The Court told theprwoneS *£ excuses availed nothing, for if thej had any r^ ground of complaint agkinst the captain SJ caused the loss of the vessel t'i P

buadnin l'dkiOa isbdng maasto^eCourt-ho tlS e

commend ,he c.x- a ,up.e to ,h e mimsters of oflLr denomination?. otner

A meeting of the Lancashire Relief Fund w<« held at the Commercial Hotel vesterdav J noon, Mr. Lewis Samson in the c t* It resolved chat the secretary be ins'rt^ £ W ward through the branch of the Bank of V South Walesat London, to the clu^u VZ central committee, the amount to thn7r r* r the fund at the departure of the Ci y of S , and that the Editors of the drilr \ °fi*°bart > nested to notify the sani ft^S, * solved that the thanks of the 1^ Fe" be conveyed to the lessees of the Cf t^ and Princess' Theatre, for tl c U se of spective house, for the benefit of Z l& the customary vote of thanks to the oh • the meeting adjourned to TtaelyV^T 0; o clock. J 'iv-xr, at 4

Paul, and 10 , fraiu A Fri^° f *«J *». receded a somewhat stninge doaatLa for same purpose, in the shape of a. ,;t ' the chain. The donor signed t L leU W&tch *"* the commits would be abl* t , Ope lhat pH-ftrlt Lco^/^sStr^T 4 handed it over to the Ilonnro o c have doubtless will be prep^ "*> offer for it We shouKe^t: & "^ close our subscription li st a T t r cQ d f and hand the money over to h e If ? W Wfltk of the OUgo Committee, for tf S:Cretar^ Kngland b 7 the mail w , ieh ° cI o oa week. We would gladly see tl,7] . J P'6Xt additional donation^ a/d w e ' n^^ attention, of those who have no ? the their mite, to it. Since the a w bestowed we have to acknowledge the T lf Writtenis. from Mr. J. p Jj,^ °f Uo9*&> *nd