THE DOMINIONS ROYAL COMMISSION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15707, 8 March 1913, Page 10

THE DOMINIONS ROYAL COMMISSION.

SITTINGS IN WELLINGTON.

OUR MINERAL RESOURCES. EXPERT EVIDENCE. (Pee United Pbess Association.) WELLINGTON, March 7. • Before the Empire Trade Commission today Mr J. Email Smith (Under-Secretary of the Immigration Department) said that from • 1904 to , 1912 ..' 24,585 agisted . immigrants arrived in New bringing capital totalling £69,000. They cost the Government to assist , them out £91,000, or £3 15s per head.- -Had the Government defrayed the whole cost of their passage it would .have had to pay £196,001},. Out of 24,585 immigrants over 3000 were domestic sen-ants,' and 4662 were farm labourers. Iho Farmers' Union requirements were 3000 farm • labourers, 2000 domestic servants, and 2(X) boys. It, had been ascertained that over 6000 workers were required. ■

To Sir liigar Vincent: Employers could only be assisted in' bringing out farm labourers. He could not say that all who camo out were farm labourers. Ho was personally not quito satisfied with the type of immigrants, believing that they should be selected from tho country districts only. Sir Edgar Vincent asked tko witness if the young people who came out developed irito satisfactory colonists? Witness said that with regard to the boys brought out under tho Sedgwick scheme various reports'had been received, and they w'ero' not satisfactory. To Sir Alfred Bateman: There was an unlimited demand'for do'mestio servants; .in fact, tho four centres could absorb 10,000 domestic servants. '

Mr Wickhaoi, British Trade Commissioner, urj;od the need' of ascertaining t'ne country of origin in. the case of imfprts. ITiero was- no question that preference was given to Germany: and America by the shipping .lines.- He -mentioned ■a■ firm dealing in agricultural implements who questioned why,, when iho freight from New York to Lyttelton, via London, was 28s 9d per ton, they could not' (jet 'a better rate from London dircct than 50s per ton. Other similar complaints had been made, and witness could not gctvany satisfaction from the shipping firms, but it was said that there was a good deal of.compotition-out of New York. Hp thought sufficient trado to justify a direct shipping service between Germany and. New,. Zealand. The. North German Uoyd steamers now traded to Australia, and a largo proportion of our imports was transhipped here from Australia. Instructive facts and figures reading the mineral wealth and resources of New Zealand were'-placed before'the commission bj Mr P. G... Morgan, Government Geologist. Mr Morgan remarked that the. conditions in the. dominion were, unfavourable ,for full mining, and probably only 100,000,000 tons of the 374,000,000 tons of-proved bituminous coal would be mined. Of brown opal there \Vere 513,000,000 tons, but -not more than one-fourth or one-fifth would be' mined.,, The total quantity of proved coal of all classes was estimated at 1,000,000,000 tons, and certainly not more than a quarter of that quantity oould bo mined. Probably the Whole cfuantity of coal in New 'Zealand, including .the. proved area, waa 3,385,000,000 tons, ■ of _ which less than one-fourth, could be mined-. For present requirements there seemed to be a sufficient quantity, but the supplies of good' coal that could be mined limited, and would probably bo exhausted in 100 years. The chief iron deposits were those at Parapara and the Taranaki ironsands. An examination of the Parapara deposits. showed there were about 22,700,000 ton 6 of iron ore, and there was said to be an equal quantity at an adjacent block. Taranaki ironsand made iron of good quality, but thfcre would be great difficulty in transporting it to. smelting works. It was scattered oyer a" great length of coastline. It contained titanium, which .made, it difficult to, smelt. The Taranaki district appeared most promising for petroleum, but tho yield had. not been up to expectations. Oil shale existed-, at tho south end of the South Island, and antimony in Otago.- At present the gold mining industry was not in a - particularly flourishing condition owing to; the depreciation in the value of gold, but New Zealand w.ould -be a gold mining country , for many years. Other metals produced- in small quantities included manganese and platinum, and there were good supplies of limestone- and clay. There: were unlimited supplies of waterpower, but the development' would cost a good deal of money. Peat ocourred in many places, but in no great quantities so far as he-knew

Sir Rider Haggard: Evidence has been givon before ■ tlhis commission which painted in glowing, colours , the ooal and iron resources of this country as of great amounts respectively; I. take it that what you have told us does not bear out these rosy statements?

Mr Morgan: No; they do not bear out the glowing statements. " Sir -Rider Haggard: WW tou have told us is probably accurate as regards future discoveries?

Mr Morgan: As regards bituminous coal there is. very little more tp bo discovered, lhe bituminous ooal in. New Zealand lias already.been explored. ■ The quantity to bo disoovered in the future is probably small there will probably be greater discoveries of brown coal, or lignite. . Sir Rider Haggard: For manufacturing, what coal,do,you use? Mr. Morgan: Bituminous is used "wherever practicable,' In many plaoce there is a supply of brown coal. _ Sir ■Rider Haggard: Can you tell me how long . the ooal at your present rate of consumption is likely to Last? Mr Morgan: I think the bituminouscoal wiU be exhausted in 100 • years. Sir Rid'er Haggard: That is without making any extraordinary' or unforeseen demands?

- Mr Morgan:- Yes. Sir Rider Haggard: It is rather a question whether it ought not to bo husbanded' for national purposes? Mr Morgan: Yes, I think "it ought to be husbanded or conserved in some way, _ Sir Rider Haggard: What about the iron? Is there what you consider.a large supply? . • ,

Mr Morgan: Considering future require'ments the supply is 6mall. Sir Rider Haggard: Then you cannot look on New Zealand as a great mineral country? . Mr Morgan: For its size I would not say it is_a great mineral country. Sir Rider Haggard: Exactly. It is a minoralieed rather than a mineral country? Mr Morgan: Yes. i Sir Rider Haggard: Are there minerals enough sight to . justify the prediction that it will become a country of great manufacturing and industrial activity? Mr, Morgan: Certainly not as regards coal and iron.

To Mr, Sinclair: It was impracticable from the point of view of cost to take out all the coal There was no proved oil in Now Zealand. Taranaki could hardly ■be .said-to be proved. The production was not sufficient to warrant a plant of .any great size.

To uMr Lorimer: There were no large deposits of copper known:'No attempt, had been, .made to utilise tho brine on the Weet Coast,, which 7 per cent, of common Bait. New Zealand imported all its salt, and he thought the percentage of salt in tho brine was high enough to justify the erection of a plant. There was pjenty of brine. The total production of oil. at present was only 689 gallons a day; and somebody was in process of erccting a refinery to- deal with 10,000 gallons a day. At that ra ; te the supply would be exhausted in two months. Flo did not know whero supplies were- to come from for the phnt to deal with 10,000. gallons a day. Deep 'boring and moro extensive • prospecting would be necessary. Already prospecting r for oil was going on at Kotuku.

Evidence was also given by Mr W. B. Montgomery, Secretary of Customs, regarding tho uniformity of invoico certificates and tho need for a better system of compiling trade statistics.

Mr W. R. Morris, Secretary of tho Post Office, recounted the history of reductions in cable charges. Despite a drop from 10s 6d to 5s per word tho earnings hid not fallen off. In 1911-12 tho loss on the Pacific cable was £40,498, of which New Zealand paid £4500. With a steady growth of traffic the'time would comc when the loss would bo wiped out. Tho Pacifio cable could carry 7,000,000 words. annually, but at prcecnt it only took 2,000,000 • words. Proposals had been made by which the charge could be cut down to 2s por. word. Ho believed it possible that even if tho chargo were reduced to 6d tho increased use of the cables would result in tho servico being efficiently conducted without loss. This afternoon tho Hon. E. Bowring ami Mr Garrott inspected tho'woollen mills at Pctono, and afterwards visited Trentham to sec the firing for the King's Prize. , To-morrow tho oommiraonera will bo taken to Levin, and they will visit the Weraroa State Farm. Samo of the members will visit Taranaki on Tuesday in order to inspect the farming and other industries.