PROSECUTION OF BUTCHERS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26176, 12 June 1946, Page 6

PROSECUTION OF BUTCHERS

COUNSEL’S ALLEGATIONS

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, June 11. “ Political hooey,” “ political eyewash.” and “ political considerations ” were alleged by Dr O. C. Mazengarb, when defending butchers on charges of breaches under the Rationing Regulations and the Price Tribunal, which were continued in the Magistrate’s Court to-day. The hearing, which was before Mr W. F. Stilwell, S.M., was not and will be continued to-morrow afternoon.

Dr Mazengarb said that as a result of the operations of the butchers it was alleged that the rationing scheme for meat had been frustrated, but the Minister, Mr D. G. Sullivan, knew full well that it was the permit system which had resulted in the consumption of a larger amount of meat in Wellington than before the introduction ?*f rationing. “The prosecutions are just political hooey,” he said. “My letter was written to the Minister, but he had replied in the morning paper that he preferred these prosecutions to continue. If the Minister and the Government are sincere in their efforts to save meat for Great Britain, they would hear what the butchers have to say and examine the position. Why should the Minister strain at a gnat and swallow a camel? ” The magistrate: This court is not concerned with the political aspect of the matter. “ Iniquities of Department ” Dr Mazengarb: The butchers are being made to bear the iniquities of the department. This is just political eyewash. The magistrate: My task is difficult enough without going into the political issue. “We are not saving meat for Great Britain: we are consuming more meat to-day than before rationing,” said Dr Mazengarb. “ The housewife is rationed, but a leakage is occurring (counsel was reading from a trade bulletin) through supplies under permits to manufacturers, hotels, restaurants, Government and local authority contracts, shipping companies, agents, and others who manage to get ‘ authority to acquire ’ from the controller.” Dr Mazengarb said the Government was using these prosecutions to make it appear that the rationing of meat was being frustrated by the butchers. “This is a most important part of the case for the defence," he said, when cross - examining Murdo Morrison McDonald, manager of the abbatoir at Kaiwarra, in answer to a question by the magistrate. McDonald said 28,000 more carcasses of sheep and lamb had gone into consumption in Wellington and 3500 more carcasses of beef in the year 1946 than for the year 1939-40, leaving out the war years because of extra consumption through the extra temporary population. These figures amounted to 1,598.0001 b more mutton and 1.858 2501 b more beef than in the period before rationing was instituted. Angus Duncan, an employee of Walter Joseph Barrett, butcher, of Faremata, was charged with supplying meat to a consumer other than against the surrender or cancellation of coupons, while Barrett was charged with aiding him in the commission of the offence. Trickery Alleged

After Keith Fergusson Parker, inspector of rationing, had given evidence. Dr Mazengarb said that as for the fact that meat was sold and the appropriate number of coupons not tendered there could be no doubt, but it was hotly contested that the shop man had a fair opportunity of seeing the coupons before the inspector left the shop. This was an instance of obtaining meat by a trick. He asked the court not to enter a conviction when trickery of this sort was resorted to. Barrett, in evidence, said it had been necessary often to rely on the honesty of the customer without great inconvenience to the public. To Mr W. R. Birks, for the food controller, witness said it had always been his practice to rely on the customer. He had never been let down. The magistrate: You don’t suggest that this practice is authorised. It has just grown up? Witness: Yes. “I ought to say here and now that counsel’s suggestion about a trick is not justified,” said the magistrate, entering a conviction against each defendant and reserving his decision on penalty. Hugh Douglas, a butcher, of 50 Kent terarce, appeared on two charges, one of supplying meat not in accordance with the number of coupons tendered and the other under the Price Tribunal regulations. Convictions were entered. The magistrate reserved his decision on the question of penalty. After evidence had been heard, Dr Mazengarb said he could not carry the matter further than to say the butchers had to suffer by a price order which had been fixed by political considerations which enabled the cost of living statistics to be kept down.