The Southland Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING, Luceo Non Uro. TUESDAY, MAY 9, 1922. THE GREEDY PORTS

Southland Times, Issue 19510, 9 May 1922, Page 4

The Southland Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING, Luceo Non Uro. TUESDAY, MAY 9, 1922. THE GREEDY PORTS

Although the Hon. W. Downie Stewart professes to see “politics” in the objections to the new statistical arrangement, by which exports are credited to the port of shipment, it is becoming clearer that the protests made by Southland are being endorsed by other people who trade through ports other than the four main ones. The fact that the new arrangement has placed Wellington above Auckland in quantity of exports may bring to the smaller ports an ally, who otherwise would have little sympathy with them, and this seems to have been in the mind of Mr A. E. Rankin,, of the V/anganui Chamber of Commerce, when he urged the need for a “good fighting committee” to handle the question. Mr Rankin contends that the whole thing is engineered by Wellington. That may or may not be so, but the fact remains that Wellington has received all the advantages accruing from this new arrangement and there is on the Wellington Harbour Board a well-defined and by no means weak movement in favour of cutting out direct shipments to all ports other than the four main ones. If Wellington can show that her port handles the greater part of the overseas outward cargo and that the smaller ports can only boast coastal trade, the chances of getting the direct shipments limited to Auckland, Wellington and Lyttelton (Dunedin may suffer in the arrangement) will be greatly enhanced, while those who live in the distant provinces will be asked to assist in adding to the Wellington Harbour Board’s revenue, while paying increased freights on outward and inward overseas merchandise. We already know that Southland is suffering heavily; losing business and paying heavily for what it does get, because the ocean-going vessels do not come to Bluff as frequently as the port’s importance warrants, and unless we are prepared to join with other provinces ia fighting this statistical arrangement, on political or on other grounds, we will soon find that we are suffering more heavily than we are at the present moment. Southlanders need to be very vigilant and active on this subject of direct shipments.