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Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 59, 16 April 1914, Page 6

Professor Edward Prince, Canadian Commissioner of Fisheries, who has come to New Zealand under engagement to the Government to report and advise on the matter of the fish supply, will find ample scope for his activity and experience. The seas that girt these islands teem with a great variety of fish, but, unfortunately, for various reasons, the conditions of supply have

hitherto tended to make this edible something of-a luxury. The New Zealand cities are not alone in this respect. At intervals the Press of« Melbourne and Sydney, aroused by the complaints as to the scarcity and high price of good fresh fish, descend among the fishermen and retailers for enlightenment. The solution of the problem has not yet propounded—at least, none has as yet - been successful in quite relieving the vexed question. The establishment of a municipal fish market in Wellington has proved a step>ih the right direction. Prior to the City Council going into the" business of retailing fish, citizens cried out unceasingly against the extra vagent prices eharged. There were rumours that in some cases the retailers were sending large quantities of the product, grown too stale for consumption, to the .destructor. The "Wellington Corporation, moved by the appeals, immediately arranged for the erection of a small depot containing the necessary.adjuncts of a fish mart, and opened up in competition with private retailers'. The result was to the eminent I satisfaction" of housewives in the capital.city; Fish from Nelson and Napier, and from. the seas beyond the Heads, was received at the municipal market and sold, direct over the counter at prices which made it possible for the consumers to indulge in a change from meat at a reasonable expenditure. The public was notified overnight of expected supplies, and itwas an unwise citizen who ieft his marketing until late in the morning. The Canadian expert should be abl« to a'ssist materially in ensuring a regular supply of fish for household purposes at a reasonable rate." There is something between the fishermen and the consumer which should be looked into seriously.