CORRESPONDENCE.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 130523, 27 January 1906, Page 6

CORRESPONDENCE.

V W« are not responsible fox the opinions expressed by correspondents. The writer's name as a guarantee of good faith, must be enclosed in the letter J.

DAIRYING INDUSTRY.

(To the Editor.)

Sir,— The letter 1 wrote whm (j'jik since drawing attention to the differences 'between the English 1 estimate of our second class butter and that ol our expert graders has drawn iuu?ii attention to the subject, and I have received from many directions rt-p.j»ir, confirming the statement that Mh, Jiorris's was not an isolated case ;' ueither is it a casual thing for butter to be classed second' grade an'J yet realise a 'high price in England, fn my first letter I made no comment or comparison on the position of t!ir industry at present with that which existed prior to the Government instituting grading. .Of okl much bad butter was made anid left the couir try, and it was not till it was founl that butter would freeze without «leterioration that much improvement' took place. With the advent oR frecz: ing 1 came co-operative dairying companies, and later on Government grading, each tending to #iipro\'i butter for export. Whether Govern ment grading assists the price to rial is, another matter. It is like the oh co-operative years ago ; during winter, when batter was scarce, tIW article was always first rate, but when the cows 'began to calve, o.m the supply became plentiful, the c 6 >vs were said to have taken to eating "raupo:" Any excuse was made U account for the lowering of the price. Now, at Home, with an excellent demand, butter, whether first or second., dairy or store, is all- good. Tin point I wish to make is that, firstclass butter fit for export, capable of realising a price equal to> factory can bei made bjy private makers with out expensive freezing, and healing ma chines. Returns prove the grader' estimate of privately-anade butters ti be erroneous. Am 'l this has noth'in. whatever to do with the questioi whether the -grading has placed om butter in a Jii-gher step on thte soah than Australian. I als o contend thai the 'question of first or second grade is at times determined by the foldiag of- the paper or a smear or two o the outside of the box, and therefor* the marking should never leave th< works. As far as Co-op, factories, o: even priva/te •makers are concern©!, the grader's work is of great -benefit, in that toy the grading notes director: and owners &ye able to sez at onc> whether anything is going" on which requires looking into. Am here their work should cease. Thero are now employed in our factoi'ies a large number of able and intelligent men, who have devoted time and attention to becoming proficieni in their work, and I think it is thcii exertions, aided by a little ju-dicious-overlooking on the part of chairmnr) and directors, and by their attending a course or -two at dairy sohoofs, which has enabled our butter f o supercede Australian ; to say nothing | of our climate and our sown grasses. I still maintain the Department lias something yet to learn,' and thai some officer should visit the En-glisr markets to learn what butter fetch -.-s the highest price when openly competed for.— l am, etc., JAMES Ji. ELWtN.