THRESHING MILL-OWNERS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18758, 11 January 1923, Page 3

THRESHING MILL-OWNERS

ANNUAL MEETING. AN UNUSUAL POSITION. (From Our Own Correspondent.) OmtISTCIMUHCII. .lumnuy 10. Ail unusual position arose at. tin* annual meeting- of Lite North Canterbury '1 brushing Mill-owners' Association. Air Shcat (chairman) said that the owners on previous occasions had been victimised by the' farmers on account of their statements having been

published in the newspapers. It had been decided to ask the reporters to publish the statements it they wished to. but to suppress the names of the, speakers, 'the reporters present notified the chairman that the names could not be suppressed without submitting the question to (heir editors, and they suggested that the discussions should he taken in committee, 'the chairman said it the meeting went into commit too the tarmers would think the owners were trying to get at them. A better plan was to stand to the position and let it go out to the world wliat the owners thought. It was decided that the names ol the speakers should be published and that the discussions he taken in open meet-

ing. , ihe Chairman, in moving the udoplion of the annual report, said that members of the association no doubt had Itoen unable to interpret the Arbitration Court’s award which was very ambiguous. 'J lie position in a nutshell was that the owners would have to pay on wheal XUs plus 5s lOd, a total of 15s lOd, and on oats 13s plus 5s lOd, a total of lbs 10d. '1 ho court’s view that wheat-growing was a. side line was fallacious. 'lnere was a, prospect of a

drop in wheat prices in Canterbury to 4s or 4s 3d in the coming season. Air Oliver, intimating that he was going" to “fire a bombshell,’' declared that there was a considerable amount of price cutting

among members of the association as well as among mill-owners outside the association. Ihis made things hard lor those members who stuck to the association’s prices. Those people who were looking lor trouble were going to get it, and he intended to fix his price to compote with the price cutters. Air Gillespie declared that. Air Oliver find no cause for complaint, because at tfio lost annual meeting he had said he would bo willing to thresh at a price id lower than that fixed by the association. Air Oliver hud practically started the price, cutting then and therefore lie should not complain when other people cut the prices. Mr Shoal- warned members that they would cut each other’s throats in this matter of price cutting, and the prices would go right down to where they had been before the standard price had been fixed. Air Osborne moved that the prices for threshing this year 1)0 the same as those for last year—viz., for wheat and barley 6Jd in stock and hid in the stack; ostia sid in the stook and sid in the stack, all less 10 per coni, discount. Air Matthews moved us an amendment that the rates for wheal and ’barley only be reduced by id. The amendment was carried by 11 votes to nine. This means that tlie price for oats will remain the same as last vear.