FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 1886.

Otago Witness, Issue 1812, 13 August 1886, Page 21

FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 1886.

The New Zealand Refrigerating Company is' one of the few undertakings that can show a good balance sheet and pay a satisfactory dividend notwithstanding the bad times. The balance to credit of profit and loss, after writing off £1623 to depreciation, is £2024, which allows the directors to declare a dividend of 10 per cent, for the year on a capital of £18,500, and to carry forward £209 ; and this notwithstanding sundry drawbacks, such as a considerable reduction in receipts from offal, reduction in charges for lambs, and payments for interest on account of the cost of the Oamaru works, as pointed out by the Chairman. The works at Oamaru cost £9900, besides land, &c, against an estimate of £7000, the main difference being that the cost of the freezing machine had (somewhat singularly) been omitted by the Chairman in 'his estimate. The total cost of these branch works, including land, abattoirs, (fee, is £14,029 ; and the [ Burnside works, which have been largely written down by credits for depreciation, only stand at £13,330 in the books of the Company The only unfavourable feature in the balance-sheet is the large amount of £7000 at the debit of the Company under the heads Overdraft and Advance Accounts, but the Chairman anticipates no difficulty in wiping this sum off within a reasonable period without making fresh calls on the shareholders. The number of carcasses frozen or slaughtered for freezing was at Burnside 78,110, and in Oamaru 24,216, the latter only representing four months' work. For the previous year the number at Burnside was 90,173, but no doubt the opening of the Oamaru works will mainly account for the difference. There is rather a remarkable falling off of 121b in the average weight of carcass, which the Chairman attributes to the bad season, but which may be perhaps partly due to younger sheep being killed for shipment. We hope the quality is being kept up, as it is important we should not lose our good name in the London market. The average return, including skins and fat, has been 2|d per lb ; and if we mistake not the freights for a part of the year were higher than at present, so that at the present freights the average would be about a farthing per pound better if the Home prices keep up. It is unquestionable that these meat shipments have been an immense relief to the market, and what is most surprising is that in spite of the large shipments the number of sheep in the Colony has increased during the last two or three years by a million/ and a-half. The most sanguine estimates of three years ago of the extent to which the trade would grow have been almost justified by the results. The number of sheep and lsmbs frozen

during the year reached the astonishing figuresof 606,883 carcasses, of which Auckland contributed 24,500, Napier 147,000, Wellington 135,817, Canterbury 141,000 (besides 37,185 from Timaru), Otago 121,381; besides a certain quantity of beef. The increase from the North Island for the year was 87,446 sheep and lambs, and from the South Island 12,009, showing that the North is now rapidly taking the lead in the trade.

The estimated number of sheep and lambs available for next year is 700,000, but at present the available tonnage is at the outside only equal to carrying 600,000 if the 11 steamers and 10 sailing ships at present fitted with refrigerating machinery were filled to their utmost capacity. And here comes in the serious grievance of which shippers have to complain as against the Shaw, Savill, and Albion Shipping Company. The first is as to the monopoly of the Haslam and Bell-Coleman patents secured by the two Companies. It will be remembered that the head office of the New Zealand Shipping Company in Christchurch refused to ratify this iniquitous agreement entered into provisionally by their branch office in London, together with the head office of the Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company in London. But the latter Company either could not or would nofc withdraw from the agreement. The same Company have now been tempted by offers in the North to advance their rate to If d, as against l^d charged by the Australian Companies and l|d by the New Zealand Shipping Company. The old ruling .rate for both Companies, it will be remembered, was 2d, but it was recently reduced to l^d, and the piesent increase means an advance of -Jd. Whether the New Zealand Shipping Company will follow the example of their competitors remains to be seen. The places where refrigerating machinery is now in operation are as follow: — Auckland, Napier, Wellington (2), Christchurch, Timaru, Oamaru, Dunedin, Port Chalmers, and Bluff; and there can be no doubt that our shore equipments are now somewhat in advance of our freighting facilities. The suggestion made by the report of the gentlemen appointed to consider the proper working of the trade at Home, that the very complete agency of the Nelson Bros. Company (Limited) be utilised to concentrate the trade as much as possible, is apparently wise ; and the only difficulty seems to be one whichisnot insuperable — viz., thesecuring to agents their legitimate profits on the shipments, which we have no doubt will be accomplished in a great measure by a system of return commissions. This is an instance where a species of monopoly will lead to beneficial results, both in the way of regulating prices and in reducing charges. We congratulate Messrs Brydone, Roberts, and others, to whose enterprise the starting of the trade is largely due, on the measure of success which has so far attended it, and we do not believe it has yet reached itsmaximum. It cannot grow without the breakdown of the Haslam-Bell-Coleman agreement to which we have alluded ; but we trust wise and liberal counsels will yet prevail to prevent a deadlock, and allow for the expansion without which there is no hope of satisfactory profits to the grower. It will be exceedingly hard if, when a good season comes, (as in ordinary course it must every two or three years), it only results in a surplus that cannot be shipped for want of vessels, and a consequent glutting of the sale yards. We believe New Zealand can feed twice fourteen million sheep (our present number), to say nothing of • cattle, if only we can find a reasonably profitable outlet for them as they are ready for the market; and what we require is an additional number of ships available during the summer months when — especially in the North — supplies are most plentiful. In the South, by the use of turnips, we can keep up a good winter supply, which they cannot so well do in the North. We believe few trades of so much importance have been established so quickly and with so few hitches. We may now fairly hope for its growth and permanence.

Mr C. O. Taylor was unanimously selected by the Lawrence Borough Council to act as mayor of tho borough during the remainder of the current term of office, Mr Peter Miller having resigned in consequence of his removal to Dunedin.

Mr Colin Allan has written to the Government to say that he will in all probability bo able to send out a, number of Skye crofters to New Zealand. There is some probability of the crofter settlement being formed near the mouth of thp W.afeawa river,