QUARREL OYER 1/2

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 813, 6 November 1929, Page 1

QUARREL OYER 1/2

MR. W. J. POLSON’S COLLECT TELEGRAMS COUNTY COUNCIL ANNOYED Press Association DANNEVIRKE, Today. The quest of Mr. W. J. Poison, M.P. for Stratford and Dominion president of the Farmers’ Union, for information has resulted in his falling foul of the Dannevirke County Council. The information which he requested was forwarded by collect wire, but Mr. Poison refused to accept it and the County Council later decided to ask him to pay the amount involved, Is 2d. At today’s meeting Mr. Poison wrote explaining that in order to get information to enable him to see that the fair thing was done to his fellow farmers he had dispatched over 100 telegrams at his own expense asking for information, not by collect wire, but at earliest convenience. He had followed his general practice in refusing to receive Dannevirke’s and three other telegrams, because he imagined they had been sent “collect” by mistake. He asked if the council considered it reasonable to charge him for the collect wire under the circumstances. If so he would forward Is 2d by return mail.

The council decided to inform Mr. Poison that it considered the request a reasonable one and that it required payment.

In Che same connection a letter was received from the Dominion serretary of the Farmers’ Union, stating that the chairman of a certain North Island county council had called at his office and had handed him Is 2d in stamps with which to pay the cost of the council’s telegram to Mr. Poison. The giver said he was so angry when he read the Press reports concerning the discussion about the telegram that he asked that the enclosed amount be forwarded to the council. The meeting decided to write to the Dominion Farmers’ Union that the council resented the union’s interference in what was considered a business transaction and to refund the Is 2d to the Farmers’ Union.