The Taranaki Herald. PUBLISHED DAILY. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12,1891.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XL, Issue 9185, 12 September 1891, Page 2

The Taranaki Herald. PUBLISHED DAILY. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1891.

It will surprise many people to learn that Taranaki exported more butter to the London market during the quarter ending June 30th than the whole of the other districts of New Zealand combined. Such is the sUry told by the Government Gazette in its quarterly return of the exports from New Zealand. Whilst Taranaki has kept steadily in view her great mineral resources, such as coal and iron, and neglected. no reasonable opportunity to derelope them, she has in the meantime, while patiently waiting for the time when the harvest of her mineral treasures was ready for reaping, occupied her bush lands and converted them into productive grazing farms. This has been achieved mainly by opening up what was inaccessible country by roads and railway, thus making the industry of dairying possible. The work of the dairy involves good roads for it, means a comparatively dense occupation of the land by families in order to make it a success ; but unless roads are provided, neither Liberal talk, the ballot box, manhood suffrage, or even .woman suffrage, will extend the area of prosperous settlement. The.whole scheme of ordinary society is involved in good roads : nay, the very prosperity of the country, and even the education of the people. Having made such a grand advance by obtaining the premier position of butter production, the question arises how can it best be advanced to that magnitude to which, owing to the large tracts of suitable waste lands in this district, it is capable ? The answer to this question is practically not an easy one, owing to the many difficulties by which it is surrounded : but it is possible to point out the general direction at which che producer should aim. First, with respect to the industry itself. It is not in the ordinary commercial aspect of the question a payable one at the prices the producers receive. Looked on as a manufactory^—if the butter producer charged rent for land or interest on money at current rates for the value of his farm and plant and ordinary wages hr himself and family for the long hours occupied in the production —the making of butter would show a heavy loss. On the other hand, with a just proportion of the price received in the London market,' an industrious family engaged in butter making in Taranaki can live in comfort and respectability. The industry is, therefore, one that ought to meet the sympathy and encouragement of all types of Government, because it settles people of small means on the land, and thus makes possible good schools, churches, roads, and other civilisiug and humanising influences. The Government cat) do utuvli to advance settleweut apd

production, but the producers themselves cau do more. The difficulties which now stand in the w y of the producer j receiving his fair share of the piofit of , liis l.xhrmr is tint too many percentages i are levied by the far too many individuals who have the handling of the article between the producer and the consumer. All the world is now protecting its own interests. Tho professions combine, commercial agents, combine, financial institutions combine, public carriers combine — in fact, all commercial interests combine to protect the interest of their special craft. With such examples of astuteness, surely the dairying interest cannot remain uninfluenced by such forcible examples, and combine to protect their interest, which is really the interest of the community. Union is strength. An individual speaking to, say, the Railway Commissioners would receive very scant attention ; neither would the steamship companies be easily influenced by his representations, however urgent. Even a Liberal Government does not go out of the even tenor of Jts^way at the instance of ©ne man, who has only one vote. If, however, the one man spoke with 10,000 at his back,, how very different the attention he receives. If the Railway Commissioners are told that the question of reasonable charges involves a large quantity of paying freight, or no freight whatever, and the Steamship Company that it may mean new rival modes of communication, and the Government that it means thousands of votes, the aspect of the question is changed, as by the rod of a magician. What was ! before impossible becomes perfectly I easy ; what before was an absolute ' ; denial of justice, assumes the shape of a previous misunderstanding, and all things in reason are possible to combination which before were looked on with maddening indifference. The same principle applies to butter and cheese production by means of the factory system. The true principle of manufacture is. by association of producers working for their own interest. Such a system does not necessarily exclude outside capital. We see no reason why persons other than producers should not also join in the industry, provided care is taken that the producer had a commanding vote in the control. The industry is in one sense too precarious to afford large profits to capital and fair play to producers, but we think capital at seven per cent, might be admitted with advantage to all concerned. The first step to take would be cheap freight to the London market. The American plan ought to be sought for, by which an association could quote the freight, including all . cost on our produce, from New Plymouth to London. Until this is done, batter producers in Taranaki cannot reap the true reward of their arduous labor.

The Wellington Evening Pott contains a strong article condemning the Government for their conduct in connection with Judge Edwards' petition ; and which vre will try and find room for on Monday. Captain Edwin telegraphed at 1.10 p.m. to day :— " North-east to north and west gale, with rain and hoavy sea after ten hours from now ; glass fall within that time." -* The work of planting a native shrub plantation in the Recreation Grounds has now taken a definite form. The site for the shrubs is in the gully leading up to tho raceconrse. On Monday next Mr Kidd, of Inglewood, who will superintend the planting, will make a selection of shrubs for the plantation. As showing tho amount of interest that has been aroußed in the appearanco of Mons. Leon Driver, we quote the following from the Wellington Port:— "Mops. Leon Driver, the great bolo pianist, finished his treason here yesterday, and it is no small praise when we say that he played all the numbers opposite his name most exquisitely, and he was accorded the greatest applause ever received l>y any instrumentalist who has ever visited these colonies." A peacock and peahen, which were presented to the Recreation Grounds by Mrs Holford tome time ago, have been missed from the Grounds. As a dog was seen on Wednesday last pursuing the birds, it is presumed that the animal killed the birds or drove them away. The practice of Sjraons taking dogs with them into the rounds was prohibited by the Board long ago, but despite the caution of the Board dogs were often since then taken into the Grounds by personß. Now that further damage has been done by a member of the canine race, the Board is determined to prosecute the first person who is found in the Grounds with a dog in his following. A four' furlong race took place on Friday afternoon between Mr Smith's Petroleum 11., and Mr Calgher's Moonlight, for £1 aside. The race which was run near Mr Gus Sole's property resulted in an easy win for trie latter, who was ridden by C. Biley. Petroleum waß steered by C. Neilsen. Mr Sole acted as starter, and Mr J. J. Russell as judge. The result of tho Taranaki-Auckland representative football match was a great surprise to many people, as the game was considered by them to be a soft thing for Auckland, and speculation was indulged in as to how many points the Aucklanders would win by. Those who were spectators of the match state it was a great one, and worth a long pilgrimage to see. Mr W. Courtney writing from Wellington Bays :—": — " On Monday I was in Nelson,' and saw the Mayor and some of the leading men, and urged on them t y c importance of doing something for themselves, in the matter of advertising Nelson at Home. It may have some good effoct. On Saturday night 1 speak at Wellington, and hope to succeed in getting tho Government to do something towards advertising New Zealand in Great Britain. A la-ge number of members have promised me that they will attend my meetings. By the Takapuna, Mr Whatnall and Mr Leech (both .of whom came by Ruapehu, and booked through), come to settle in Taranaki." Some strong language was used at a creditors' meeting in Napier the other day. One tradesman twitted the bankrupt with taking a contract at a low price in order to get money to pay his lawyer to enable him to file his schedule. lie also hinted at extravagance on the part of the bankrupt, saying thut some working men with large families went in for sardines, lobsters, jams, and other delicacies which thej could not afford, while others in receipt of more wages, perhaps, lived more economically, paid their way, and wer • better oS. The bankrupt denied the insinuation, and retorted that his questioner was talking "beautiful rot." This brought forth » reply that tho debtor was a so and so (the words really used would not look nice ii. print), and then the Assignee stepped ii and called the meeting to order. Übo your intelligence god buy only Wolfe'i&ohnappj