EVEN VOTING.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11391, 10 March 1930, Page 2

EVEN VOTING.

FARMERS’ UNION AND WOOL BOARD. The AA'airarapa Provincial Executive of tlie Farmers’ Union discussed the following proposal sent out to all branches by the Dominion Executive: “That the Government he asked to draw up legislation during the recess governing the export and marketing of wool on lines similar to the legisiat.on of the New Zealand Meat Producers 3 Board and of the New Zealand Dairy Producers’ Board. This Union is strongly of opinion that the personnel of the board should he bona fide sheep farmers only.” Mr H. Morrison said he was directly opposed to the formation of a board which would take over the whole of the wool in New Zealand and sell it. 'Phis would mean compulsion. The position was bad enough now, but this proposal would make it much worse. Many farmers were financed by the stock agency firms. Where would they go for finance if these firms were cut owtp The proposal had been turned down in Wanganui. It would be a very dangerous thing to ask Parliament to sanction such a scheme. Meat and dairy produce were sold practically in one' market, hut wool was a world commodity. Attempts to control wheat had resulted in huge accumulation of stocks. He thought the Farmers’ Union should enter a strong protest against the act’on taken recently by the wool buyers with reference to the . Wellington snTe. Mr .J. H. Bremner said that at the last Dominion Conference he heard Mr Bowen, of Gisborne, speaking on wool control and was much impressed. He thought there should be some control and a controlling authority to meet the machinal ons and moves of the men they were dealing with. Mr Morrison had used' the old arguments that were used eight or ten years ago against the establishment of the Meat and Dairy Boards. The action of tlie buyers the other day showed that they needed a controlling body. Mr W. Column considered that a wool board was greatly needed. Growers, as matters stood, had no one to speak for them and were sat upod.

Mr E. h. Rayner considered that a »board which would control sales ic some extent, seek to reduce commssions, and so forth, would be worth while, but he was opposed to the creation of a board to control the whole marketing of wool. Mr R. Pattison thought the creation of a wool board unnecessary and uncalled for. Mr A. Ross asked whether Mr Pattison and Mr Morrison intended to take the slap in the face they got the other day lying down. Mr Morrison said they always had the opt on of shipping their wool Home. He thought the action of the buyers in holding up the Wellington sale impudent and there should be a strong protest against it. M: Ross: “Do you realise how futile that would be?” Mr H. Cotter said he thought i they needed a wool hoard of some ’ sort. The buyers had forced tlie wool down to the lowest possible point. Mr Column said the buyers had come out here with instructions to force the price down to ninepence and they had done it. Mr -1. L. Heckler said the wool buyers regarded the sales out here ns ;t screeching farce. A wool board here would do no good. The buyers could get .all the wool they wanted from other sources. The world position would right itself in time. A motion support ng the formation of n wool board was rejected on the casting vote of the chairman (Mr C. O. Jacksonl, eight votes being given for tlie motion and eight a gainst.