The Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 9306, 20 November 1901, Page 2

The Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING.

GISBORNE, WEDNESDAY NOV. 20, 1901. THE FROZEN MEAT TRADE. So much doubt and uncertainty prevaiU with regard to the frozen meat trade that it is cheering to find one of the many men who have gone to England to investigate the conditions of the trade come back with optimistic reports. We have heard so much of late of the severe competition of the Argentine, and so many predictions that the bottom would full out of the New Zealand industry in consequence of that competition, that it is indeed "refreshing to have someone tell us our trade is only in its infancy, and that we have nothing to fear from our rival. • The fact that the investigator is none other than the enterprising managing director of the Christchurch Meat Company, Mr Gilbert Anderson, a shrewd man of business, who knows what he is talking about, gives strength to the pleasant assurance. Mr Anderson has just returned from" a trip to England, and in an interview at Christchurch on Saturday, a brief summary of which was.telegraphed, he gave a deal of information that he had gleaned. The main fact adduced was that the frozen meat from New Zealand is handled in the worst possible manner. Compared with that of other countries, it is at a great disadvantage. First of all, said Mr Anderson, take the River Plate trade, which is now assuming very large proportions, as it deals with nearly two million carcases a year. The meat from the River Plate is handled direct by the freezing companies, which work in harmony in placing the meat on the market. One of the companies has its own retail shops throughout the kingdom. Another company confines its operations chiefly to one large retail company, which has some thousand shops, and yet another River Plate company does its business direct with the trade. The River Plate companies, in short, control their meat from the time it is frozen until it is disposed of. They send their shipments to the various marj^ts in regular consignments, proportioned to the supplies available and the demands of the Home trade. Their method is very different from the haphazard one adopted by New Zealand, which sends its meat all to the one market, that is, to London. They arrange for portions of shipments to Cardiff, Liverpool, London, Hull and Newcastle, and to Leith for the Scotch trade. The advantage to be gained by this system is a saving of the henvy railway charges on meat, but besides this the companies are able to place their goods on the various markets in a perfectly fresh and bright condition. New Zealand meat, on the other hand, has to be railed from' London, to the different centres, and arrives at a place any distance from London faded and half-thawed. The American people are dealing with the matter in a thoroughly business-like manner. They recognise that this is a trade which specially requires very great care, and they see that their products are placed on the market in the best and the xaost presentable style. Mr Anderson does not think there can be any Improvement in our methods of slaughtering, freezing, and shipment. It is at the othjjr end where reforms must start, and he admits that New Zealanders are responsible for the state of things that has been allowed to prevail. ■ He does not blame the Smithfield merchants for the evils that exist, stating they are keen business men who know their business, and they require to be met by equally keen business methods. The great fault in the method of marketing our frozen meat from New Zealand is, firstly, the fact that there is not regularity in the shipments, and the meat despatched is not sent forward when it is wanted. We should first of all adopt some means of regulating our shipments, and should endeavor to control the consignments, so that they will be sent only to agents of repute who have a knowledge of the requirements of the trade, and the various qualities consigned. If we did that we would be taking, the first step towards obtaining regular prices, and towards a knowledge that we were getting the full value for our goods. But so long as the fanners insist on having their meat sent forward to London, whether there is a glut in the market or not, so long as they will send their consignments to irresponsible agents, probably to small men in the market who have to realise a draft as soon as it is presented, and so long as they will send through films who have not proper market salesmen, we must expect the present condition of affairs to continue. Mr Anderson finds that it takes only a very few hundred carcases, sold injudiciously on the Smithfield mar-ket,-to bring down the price of the market. The market is exceedingly sensitive, and while, unfortunately, there is on the part of the Smithfield buyers a natural organisation which closely studies the interest* of the buyer, there is absolutely no combination or organisation amongst the agents of the different companies handling meat. A marked difference between colonial methods , and those of America is that . the American takes every care to market his goods/ no matter what they are, m the very bestand smartest manner. We have an infinitely better article, wo prepare it as tnill as the Americans, yet we do not seem to have the genius for business and the personal force that the Americans, includiug the River Plate people, import into their business. Mr Anderson stated that he had made rarangements with the shipping companies to load vessels for other ports in the United Kingdom than London at no additional expense. London is, unfortunately, one of the very 'worst port* in the world, both as regards expense and the antiquated methods adopted. There are none of the facilities for handling cargoes that we have at any of the principal 'colonial ports. He is assured there is ample storage accommodation elsewhere. It was a revelation to him to find since his previous visit to* England the extraordinary growthjjf cold i storage and ice factories throughout the leugth and breadth of England — not only in all the large centres, but right up as far as Aberdeen. In Leith and Dundee there are magnificent cold stores, capable of holding very large quantities indeed, and they have taken up the question of cold storage throughout Great Britain on a very wide basis. So, then, by direct shipments there- is the saving of delays and costly storage at. London, the expense and injury of double handling and long railway journeys, which cause the meat to deteriorate, and the advantage of landing the meat fresh with the bloom upon it at the door of the consumer, with the greater advantage of keeping the stocks out of the sight of the. London salesmen. He is certain there will be a good market at these

ports, and does not fear River Plate competition, stating : "The River Plate meat, although vastly improved, and though it is improving every year, does not compare with the average of our New Zealand meat. Undoubtedly, during the time I was in London it was running the North Island meat very close, but this wus more due to the fact that it could be delivered to the batchers in a brighter and better appearance. But with regard to Canterbury meat, we do not want to sell to the River Plate customers. The River Plate people are perfectly satisfied to sell their meat at what we would consider low prices, and to cuter for the poorer class of trade. There is no doubt, that the working man and the poorer classes of laborers have derived immense advantage from the opening of the various River Plate shops in the large centres of population ; but we, with our better class of meat, want to get at the middle-class people, a very large number of whom are outside London. There is only one tiling we can do, and that is to get our meat into the very best markets, and I hope the ability of our meat sellers will mean that we will divide the profits." Mr Anderson has no faith in Government grading, which he does not think would benefit shippers. The worst meat that is put on the market is from the Government works of Australia. Government graders mean that the personal responsibility for quality is withdrawn, and this is totally opposed to the American ideas of business, where the personal element is brought into direct contact with every branch of the business, and the meat is graded, classed, and put on the market in the very best possible manner. He did not find even that our Government veterinary certificates were of any value. There is, he concluded, a market for all our meat, and with careful working there is no reason why good prices should not be obtained and kept at fairly level rates. We have virtually only commenced to do the frozen meat trade, and when the meat is properly distributed, and the fullest advantage taken of the various markets throughout the United Kingdom, the trade will still further extend. He is also inclined to believe that it will not be very long before we will be sending Canterbury lambs into New York. There is no American meat with the exception of their beef that compares with our Canterbury meat, and there is no meat product on the New York market in any way equal to our Canterbury lamb.

Tlie Fire Brigade meet for steam practice this evening. Constable Keenan, from Reefton, arrived by this morning's steamer, having been transferred to Gisborne. A very large area is being sown in linseed in this district this year, we understand close on 3000 acres. Madame, Mr Herbert, and Miss DeCosta returned to Gisborne by the Mararoa this afternoon from a most enjoyable pleasure trip to England. The dynamo required to complete the installation of electric light at Messrs. Nelson Bros.' Taruheru freezing -works has arrived, and is being placed in position. The Waiapu County Council's announcement with regard to the Tapuwaeroa loan will be found on page 4. A meeting of ratepayers to consider the loan proposal will be held at Waipiro on November 27. There was a large muster of the East. Coast Mounted RifleS to hear Dr. Craig's ambulance lecture last evening. Unfortunately, Dr. Craig was called away into the country, and was unable to fulfil his intention of delivering his first lecture. A commencement will T>e made! next Tuesday, and will be continued fortnightly thereafter. Several valuable trophies are included among the prizes to be competed for at the cycle sports to-morrow. In the Half-mile Novice event Messrs. Allen Bros., of the City Buffet, have kindly presented a pretty silver medal, ■ with gold centre, for competition. The design and workmanship reflect credit on the local maker, Mr W. S. Collins. Mr Tunbridge, Commissioner of Police, returned to town from his visit to Tolaga Bay last evening, and leaves for Napier by the Mararoa this evening. Whilst at Tolaga the Commissioner located a site for the new police station, authorisation of which appeared upon the Public jyorks Estimates. It will be built adjacent to the old building. At the meeting of the C.E. Society last evening it was decided to hold an annual picnic, the date being left to the discretion of the Social Committee. The subject of the evening was "India," with reference to its need. Several brief and good papers were read by members, and Mr H. Lang, late of the Poona Mission, .addressed the meeting upon the difficulties a young Indian missionary has to contend with. On the Victoria Domain to-morrow afternoon the Thursday Cup match between the Whataupoko and Kaiti teams will be continued. Whataupoko have six wickets down for 79. The captains of the West End and City elevens have arranged to finish their match the following Thursday before the commencement of the other fixtures. West End have 13 runs to get to win, and the game will be decided one way or the other in a few minutes. There was a pretty display jn the western heavens last evening", when Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn were practically in conjunction. Venus, which was 74,000,000 miles distant, appeared brightest. Jupiter (538,000,000 miles away) was next m brilliancy, and Saturn. (1000 millions of miles), which could be identified by its pale green lustre, was the faintest of the trio. On November 26 Jupiter Saturn will have approached so closely that they may be viewed simultaneously in the telescope for several nights in succession. "More Light" writes : — "Sir, — lf there is one thing wanted as much as drainage and a water supply (which, by the way, seems to be forgotten until the fever breaks out), is is the oetter lighting of Gisbonie. There are many streets with several inhabitants living in them which Tiave no light at either end of .the street, which is a serious matter when, there is no moon, and various obstructions have to be avoided, such as tences out of line, stumps of trees, wandering cattle and horses, etc. If only alight till 10 or 11 o'clock it would be of service." r The Poverty Bay Cycling Club hold their first sports meeting of the season on their grounds, Childers road, to-mor-row afternoon. The riders who nominated for the various events have accepted, with a single exception, through illhealth. Big fields will therefore be the order of the day, and exciting contests are predicted. There is no more interesting spectacle than the modern "bike" race, and although peculiarly native to the last decade, it has gained a high place in popular favor during the last few years. -Good sport may be anticipated at the meeting to-morrow afternoon. The Club have arranged for refreshments on the ground, and their efforts to. cater for the public amusement should be rewarded by a monster holiday crowd at their gathering. We acknowledge- receipt of the ninth annual report of the Department of Agriculture, which is a credit both to the Government Priuting Office and to the Departmental officers responsible for its production. The report, which comSises some 450 pages, is .admirably ustrated, and. affords, an immense amount of information, that agriculturalist*) should appreciate. lliere are reports from the Secretary for Agriculture and from, all the heads of the various departments, such as the dairying service, the inspectors of stock, experimental stations, the poultry division, veterinary surgeons, chemical division, produce commissioner, biology and horticulture ; in each of which a great deal of useful knowledge is imparted. 'Every fanner should get a copy of the work. Mr John King, harbor engineer, received the following advice with regard to the new dredge from Messrs. Anderson and Co., of Christchurch, this morning: "We beg to report that the bulk of the tnachinory is on board the dredge, boilers in position, and the work going forward'. We have some 15 to 25 men working on the. job. We would have had the main crane fixed up by this time, but when we came' to put it on to the centre mast we found that it would not fit. The fact is that it has never been put into Ha position in the Old. Country. We had to take it back into the workshops and put it in the lathe. Some of these English manufacturers with good reputations are very careless. With regard to " the leaks, there is practically nothing troubling us. We think of putting tUe boat on ti^e sup immediately before despatching her to Gisborne, to- have her cleaned,, scraped, and painted. Probably we would like you down at that time to satisfy yourself that everything is in order."

There were about twenty pressmen engaged in reporting the Palme'rston Show. A South Canterbury farmer says that >wiiig ti> the depression in the frozen meat market, and the low price of produces, lan I there will not bring within £2 an acre of the high prices of a year ago. Mr L. A. Cuff, the old Canterbury and New Zealand cricket' representative, was married on October 15th to Miss E. MadSox, daughter ofi Dr. W. G. Maddox, of Launceston, Tasmania. The receipts for the four nights' season of the Palmerston North Operatic Company total £243. "The. Mikado" and "The Gondoliers" have been staged. The former is being played to-night, when the season will close. At the annual meeting of the National Insurance Company at Dunedin, Mr Ritchie, chairman of directors, said the fire waste in -.N ew Zealand of late was notorious. As a consequence, one important company withdrew from the colony about two months ago, and it was an open secret that several others had lost money. The green gooseberry season is here, and wiih it the usual fatalities. The Elthim correspondent of the Hawera Star writes:— l regret to state that the little son of Mr S. B. Hunter died here yesterday aflerrioon. The boy atel a number of green gooseberries a few days ago, and this brought on colic; and, though the best medical skill was brought to bear, the little sufferc could not survive. The Dunedin Evening Star has issued a very attractive Christmas number. Both the illustrations and the letterpress are excellent. A specially interesting article, with illustrations, is supplied by Mr T. Mackenzie, M.H.R., the subject being "The Clinton Valley and Surroundings." The valley is full of beautiful scenery, which is well represented in the Star's publication, which, besides affording interest to its readers, is a good advertisement for the southern part of the colony. The troubles of musicians. — At the meeting, of the Wellington Orchestral Society on Saturday night several members spoke of the "dead-and-alive attitude of the Wellington public to classical music". Another member said there was a. great amount of "iciness" In the Society. Members met each other, and some would not condescend to speak to others. Mr Maughan Barnett's withdrawal from the conductonship. of the Society is final. >>■ The Daimevirke correspondent of the Hawke's Bay Herald writes:— Mr John Parker, who has baen carrying on the business of butcher in Dannevirke for a good number of years, has sold out to Mr Snell, and has bought a farm near Gisbonie, where he proceeds shortly permanently to reside. Mr Parker was a member of the Borough Council for some time, and is a settler who •will be missed from amongst us. We wish him good luck. The Christchurch Cathedral tower was presented by the late Mr Robert Heaton Rhodes, and the spire by the family of the late Mr George Rhodes. At the sitting of the Diocesan Synod in October, 1880, the Cathedral Commission, in their report, alluded to the fact that the tower had been undertaken solely by Mr R. H. Rhodes, at a cost of £5160. * After the 1888 earthquake it took £800 to restore the spire, and it will cost another £800 to again restore it after Saturday's shock. The experience of the residents at Petone yesterday (says Friday's Wellington Post) was extremely varied. One ofl them sends the following extract from his diary:— E a.m., shaken out of bed, concussion, big guns, lovely morning; 7, rain ; 8.45, hail, gutters blocked, fruit and flowers suffered ; up to noon, cold, light showers; afternoon, bright sunshine ; 6.15 p.m., more guns; 6.38, earthshake, clocks stopped, crockery rattled up; 7 p.m., "Sychtm," hail, tons of it; 8 p.m., calm, starlight— and all along of those blessed Navals, drat 'em." A recent visitor to Palmerston Show describes the land agents in that district as being very hungry to do business. If you loiter near the office entrances you are pounced upon, spider-like, taken ,to the innermost recesses of - the den and torced t> do business. If the unfortunate victim insists that he is poverty stricken and unable to acquire property, the energetic agent whips his pony into his gig and drives him round the various properties on hand with a view to the indirect business likely to accrue as a result of his victim's descriptions to his friends afterwards. — Hastings Standard. The Government is evidently beginning to pay oui to the volunteers who attended Wellington during the visit of the Duke and Duchess of .Cornwall. The Palmerston Riiks got their cheque this week. The amount received was £2 11s. This sum is at the rate of 2s 6d per man per day, less 2s 2d per day tor rations. * The magnificent sum of £2 lls is the balance due, which represents about one penny per man per day. When it is remembered that the colony had to pay over £100,000 for th? fortnight's Royal visit, it seems somewhat lvdicrous that the men . who really made the display only get about one penny per (!.iy.~ Pahiatua Herald. The' marvellous success Mr J. Jarvis, of Rongotea, has made of the pig-breeding industry may be gathered from the following list of prizes taken by him during the season 1900-1901 : — Haiwke's Bay Show, 1 champion, 4 firsts, 1 second; Carterton, 7 firsts ; Hawera, 3 champions, 5 firsts, 3 seconds; Palmerston North, 2 champions, 5 firsts, 3 seconds, 2 thirds ; Wanganui, 1 4 firsts, 3 seconds ; WoodvQle, 2 cham pions, 3 firsts, 3 seconds, 1 h.c. ; Masterton, 2 firsts, 1 second, 1 third ; Hastings,. 9 firsts ; Carterton, 12 firsts ; Palmerston North, 18 prizes, including the points prize. A laughable incident occurred at the Show Grounds (says the Manawatu Daily Times) in connection with an animated picture taken "of an arranged fight between two men. Sergt.-Major Ramsay and Constable Crozier were unaware of the arrangement made, and, at a critical moment, rushed in and separated the contestant's in a most effectual manner, the Sergeant -Major at the same time declining in most energetic fashion to listen to any explanation on the part ofl the management of the apparatus. Needless to state' the operator of the machine had kept quietly at work during the scene, and the picture is likely to prove one of the most amusing of the many taken yesterday, u total of 1200ft of film being used altogether. ' - The London correspondent of the New Zealand Herald writes under date October 12:— "1 hear from Mr E. M. Smith that he has discovered yet another use for Taruiiiki irorrsand. He says he has had for years an idea that it would make a splendid burnisher and polisher, so when he was in Sheffield, where there are mills for grinding emery, he got a sample of ivonKas-i ■ "put through" and ground to an impalpable powder. The result exceeded his expectations. In my presence he polished the case of a gold watch, and there was not a scratch perceptible on the gold cover after he had finished. Used as a covering for the bottom of ships, tho'-e wH be no corrosion, said Mr Smith, when telling me of the newer discoveries regarding Taranaki ironsand." Ihe following is an extract from a scathing article in the Brunner News on the Chinese opium hells of Greymouth :— Among those who frequent the Chinese dens are young girls scarcely out of their teens, old women who'havd spent the best part of their lives wallowing in vice of every description, and men and boys who have become infatuated with the gambling table, aud who are bringing ruin and desolation on their homes and families. While the gambling tables are in full swing, thefumes of opium pervade the air, and, most revolting of all, young girls are being drugged and defiled amid the devilishyells of a horde of eVil-smelling -Chows; In the morning young girls emerge from their haunts looking pictures of misery, and young men, with protruding eye-balls and weary step, follow in quick succession. All this, and worse, exists at present in Greymouth. The Premier tells a rather good story of an old friend down the West Coast who recently departed to that land where the politician ceases from troubling and the elector is at rest. It referred to the days when Mr Seddon was rather a don at the "collar and elbow," or the style of wrestling which was the- faehion in the part of England he came from, and, in the favorite bouts of the miners, he seldom bad to play second fiddle. On one occasion, when he thought he had his opponent safe, and was' about to give him the finishing touch, he found himself the conquered party instead. His fall was most mysterious, and the only conclusion he could come to was tha# his foot had caught in a depression in the ground, and had thus given his opponent a momentary advantage. The other day, however, an old West Coaster told him in a veiy mysterious ' manner that he had a dying message from a mutual acquaintance, who desired him to inform the Premier that the reason he lost the bout which had taken place twenty years before was that he had caught hold of bis foot and upset him at a critical moment!

The infant that was drowned on the Petone Beach last week was named "Baden-Powell" Pierson. The total takings at the Manawatu Agricultural and Pastoral Show for the three days amounted to £1200. Government are being urged by Northern fruitgrowers to place a duty on oranges during September, October, and November, on lemons all the year .round, and on lemon peel in brine. A hard frost at Cambridge (Auckland) in the beginning of the week cut down early potatoes for the fourth time, and ruined them. Tomatoes, pumpkins, French beans, and even dahlias were similarly affected. The larrikin evil is said to be growing to an alarming extent in Ashburton, and the Borough Council has resolved to ask the police to enforce the by-law against loitering in the_ streets— a fruitful source of the evil complained of. "We all gamble. I don't say it ia wicked. But Ido say it is infinitely harmful. It causes much, ruin in innumerable cases. Yet we all gamble— ladies as well as men." — Bishop Julius in the course of his sermon at Christchurch the other Sunday night. It is understood (says the Post) that steps are to be taken to relieve Mr W. T. Glasgow of a portion of his duties which he now discharges as Secretary for Customs and Secretary for Marine. It is probable that he will retain the former position ,and that some one else will be appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Marine Department. A shockingly sudden death occurred, on Monday afternoon at Royley's dental surgery, Timaru. A young woman named Annie Morris was put under the influence of chloroform to have her teeth extracted, the operation going on all right. Then the patient suddenly passed away, and all tue efforts to restore animation failed. A doctor was present. It is supposed that death resulted from shock. The Roman Catholics of Karangalrake had a great gathering on Sunday, on the occasion of the Pope's jubilee celebration. The procession to the church was a nioßt interesting sight, fully 200 men taking part, as well as a large number of women and children, marching four abreast. At the church Dean Hackett gave an excellent and interesting address, tracing back the history of the jubilee.