Chamber of Commerce.

Southland Times, Issue 12771, 2 December 1893, Page 2

Chamber of Commerce.

Friday, Ist December. A meating of the Chamber was attended by Messrs M. Instone (chairman), Gilmour, lothill, Carswell, Froggatt, and Tucker. A communication was received from the Christchurch Chamber with regard to Colonel Fox’s report on the defences of the colony, enclosing a newspaper report of a meeting at which they were waited upon by a deputation, and asking the Invercargill Chamber to co-operate in urging that the volunteer force should be placed on a more effective footing or disbanded altogether.— The opinion was generally expressed that the recent discussion of the matter all over the colony might have the desired result, and and that if any steps were taken towards improving the volunteer’ force the Chamber would concur. ’’ ’ f The Department of Labour asked to be furnished with intelligence interesting to commercial men for publication in ..their journal.—Left in the hands of the secretary. Mr Tothill said the matter of the rates of freight charged by the ’ lyser . line from London to the Bluff as compared with those charged to Dunedin had been brought under his notice by. Mr McNeil, of Dunedin, who had found that the goods he got consigned to the Bluff cost 4d per ton more than those sent to Dunedin. Taking the railway freights into consideration goods brought to Invercargill via, the Bluff would, instead of costing 4d per ton more than via Dunedin, cost 4s 8d less, if the same rates were charged by the shipping companies. He therefore moved “ That the secretary write to the agents for the Tyser, Shaw Savill, New Zealand, and Shire lines stating that it had come under the notice of the Chamber that the rates to the Bluff are higher than to Dunedin and the other chief ports, and as this is prejudicial to the interests of the trade of the port, the Chamber would be glad if the companies would make the rate uniform.”—Seeonded by Mr Froggatt and carried unanimously. ‘ Mr Tothill moved : “ That the secretary write to the District Traffic Manager at lnvercargill, asking him whether he could see his way to alter the hour for booking goods by the afternoon trains from 1 p.m. as at present to 2.30 p.m. as formerly, to enable merchants to execute orders received by the morning mails in time to be forwarded by the evening trains.” He pointed out that the present arrangements gave merchants very little time to attend to orders received from the country in the forenoon.—lt was agreed that the matter was an important one and the motion, seconded by Mr Gilmour, was carried unanimously.—On the suggestion of Mr Gilmour it agreed that the Chairman and Mr Tothill should personally present the resolution of the Chamber to the District Traffic Manager.