WOOL-GROWERS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3333, 30 January 1918, Page 8

WOOL-GROWERS.

DEPUTATION TO PRIME MINISTER. ' WELLINGTON, January 22. A deputation of farmers waited upon the Prime Ministers to-day to state their grievances regarding th'e price being made for inferior wools. Mr G. V. Pcarce, M.P., said that when the conference was held at which arrangements were made for commandeering the Ne\v Zealand wool a condition of the purchase was that the growers should get 55 per cent, on pre-war prices. As the scheme was working out, it was not quite satisfactory to the farmers. They were satisiied with the prices they were getting for fleece wool, but not with the prices paid them for crutehings, pieces, and seedy wools, for which they were certainly not being paid 55 per cent, more than the prewar rates. At a conference of. farmers, of which the deputation was the outcome, the suggestion was made that they should be allowed to send any seedy wool to be sold at their own risk in any country where they could find a market. He did not think any member of the deputation favoured that proposal. Another suggestion was thai' any farmer who thought the valuation of his wool very low should be allowed to hold the wool for a free market at the end of the war. A further suggestion was that the farmers should themselves put up a carbonising plant, to cost about £20 ; OO0, and that the Government should assist. Mr W. S. Bennett (chairman of the Wool brokers' Association) said_the chief valuer had stated at Napier that in no instance had a valuer been instructed to take into consideration the cost of cleaning seedy wool. , The buyer's practice was to make a deduction only on account of the amount of seed in the wool, and the actual I iterioration of the wool consequent upon the presence of seed The valuers contended that the values being made were equivalent to 55 per cent, more than the pre-war prices for all kinds of wool. The Right Hon. Mr Massey said he wished the members of the deputation to get rid of any impression they might have that the Government wished to get the better of the producer in any way. In this he could speak for the Imperial as well as the New Zealand Government, because he had been in England, and was a party to the negotiations when the bargain was made. Ho was of the opinion that the bargain had worked very well. It had been pointed out that the only deduction made in the value of seedy wool was on account of the deterioration that actually took place because of the presence of seed, and he hoped, as a result of the deputation, that no more would be heard of the grievance. Another grievance raised lately was with regard to the draft on wooL He did not believe the deduction was a fair one, but It had existed for at least half a century, and naturally when the Imperial Government made arrangements to purchase the the purchase* were made upon the existing trade customs. The custom ought to be removed,

but ho thought it unfair that the farmers should try to get rid of it by bringing pressure on the Government. He would have no objection personally to the farmers being allowed to hold seedy wools, but it would have to bo understood that no export of wool could be allowed. He promised to consider the suggestion that the Government should assist in the erection of works .for cleaning wool. There were plants in existence for the extraction of seed from wool by mechanical means. The charge made was 4d per pound of clean wool. The Government had had quantities of wool treated at these works, and it would-be open to the farmers to have their wool cleaned before offering it for valuation.