WHEAT SHIPS WANTED.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13909, 21 May 1909, Page 4

WHEAT SHIPS WANTED.

The difficulty which, according to Mr Buxton, the grain merchants have in obtaining ships to convey grain to London', must surely be great if it really necessitated an appeal to the Premier for assistance. Where is tho Chamber of Commerce ? Where the Minister of Commerce? The iact.that such an appeal has been made points to a weakness in the- commercial machinerv. This, however, is not much to he wondered at, because for some years past Canterbury has had very little grain to send to London, and our merchants, or some of them, have rather got out of the way of securing vessels for the transport of their purchases. There must be plenty of ton* nage available in Britain, for not long ago there was a large number of steamers laid up, and more recently a. good number was employed in carrying wheat from Melbourne. It is a curious thing that the High Commissioner's cabled reports on the London markets have not until quite lately made any reference to the wheat market. Has no one taken the trouble to inform him that Canterbury, North and South, has a quantity of wheat to spare for London? It would seem, to be a reasonable thing, and likely to be a useful thing, for each Chamber of Commerce, or for neighbouring

Chambers having like interests to st»rvo, to keep themselves in regular communication with the High Commissioner, and make the fullest possible use of his services. It would proliablv afford him an agreeable variety to he badgered about wheat, while giv.-n a rest about frozen meat.