WOOL CARRIAGE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12777, 22 October 1919, Page 5

WOOL CARRIAGE.

FIXING THE FREIGHT RATES. i 'Hie following letter over the signature of Sir Walter Buchanan, M.L.C., is from the Loudon “Times” of > August 7 Sir.—For nearly twenty years I have been a director of a settlers’ shipping company in Neiv Zealand, known as G. H. Seales (Limited), whoae_ shares, j under their .articles of association, can j bo owned only by sheep-owners and i country settlers, and whoso aim has consistently been to secure shipping . freight,to England for wool and other] unrefrigerated produce at reasonable j rates. _ j The company owns no shipping, and, carrying on its business entirely by chartering steamers in the open market, is well known to have annually saved to the producer during its career many thousands of pounds by maintaining freights at a reasonable level. The advent of the war, however, unfortunately compelled the commandeering of all ships (including liners) by the Imperial Government, who henceforth controlled the allocations of all the available tonnage. At the same time, however, they appointed the liner owners tneir sole loading agents in New Zealand, on a commission basis—in spite of the fact that ordinary cargo vessels, as well as liners were included in the allocations. Thus the effect upon the Scales Company was twofold—-they were unable to continue chartering, and were not allowed to act as loading agents' even for steamers not owned by the liner people. A later early this year, which became known only after the event, was the letting by private contract to the liners of all the wool carriage from New Zealand, without any notification whatever to Messrs Scales or to the public generally. Late in May, Mr Massey—the Prime Minister of New Zealand—and myself became aware of the matter, and we waited on Lord Inverforth to remonstrate against the injustice with which the New Zealand Settlers Company was being treated, and' 7 on May 30 Mr Massey received a letter, of which the following is an extract:—“ Four or five months hence the time will come to make arrangements for the 11)20 wool freight requirements. We shall notify the agents of the Scales Company, Messrs Lawbher, Latta and Co., in due course.” Judge of my surprise on returning from Scotland a few days ago to ho handed a notice by Messrs Lawther, Latta and Co., dated July 10, from Sir A. H. Goldfinch, of the Ministry of Munitions (Supply), that tenders were" closing—if not already closed—for the carriage of the 1920 wool referred to in Lord Inverforth’s letter as to be dealt with in four or five months from May 30. I waited next day upon Sir Arthur Goldfinch, and was given till five o’clock on the following day to put ] in a tender. In vain I pointed out I to him the absolute impossibility of tendering without first cabling to Scales (Limited) in New Zealand, who could not possibly reply within the time allowed. Next day I secured an interview with Lord Inverforth, who, j though unable to come to an immediate 1 decision, was, in manner and courtesy, j just the opposite to his icy suhordiu- i ate, and consented to see Mr Latta | next day, who offered him two first-class ' ships for the latter half of next year to carry 60,000 bales of wool on the same terms and conditions as the liners. Lord Inverforth states he has the matter under consideration, though I have a shrewd suspicion that the contract : was pretty well fixed up before he even saiv me. m Summed up, the position therefore is that the action of the Imperial Government, if persisted in, will have the result of securing to the shipping com- j bine the entire control of tho only means by which the Now Zealand’ producer can reach the markets of the United Kingdom. In view of the assurance that four or five months would he allowed for the consideration of 1 the terms of the new contract, it is distinctly disquieting to find it being rushed through in favour of the ship- ■ ping companies without n day’s delay, i directly a personal representative of! the settlers appears on the scene to put I forward their legitimate claims; but, very significantly, there is no move for a similar contract in respect of frozen meat and dairy produce, because the Settlers Company neither owns, nor * can it charter, refrigerated tonnage, I ■which is not in the market. J At the beginning of the war the New | Zealand settler was urged ta assist in ‘ feeding tho Mother Country with his » produce, and lie was proud to do so— I at a cost which compares more than ‘ favourably with that from any other { possible source of supply. In* other < directions, too, New Zealand las re- J sponded to the call of Empire, and ad- j mittedly has done her duty. Doubt- I less she will continue to do so, hut in 4 return the people of the Dominion ask I that the Mother Country shall con- 4 sider her just claims and deal sympatli- f etically with all' questions affecting her welfare. It is on those grounds I f that I urge the necessity of tho recon- I'Jj eideration of tho wool freight contract, r If this is concluded in the interests L of the shipping combine, the effect- will r be to discourage the settlers and cause L dissatisfaction and discontent. The >4 watchword of the Home Government throughout tho Avar has been “Unity - of purpose and co-operation with the Overseas Dominions ’’-—whereas their action in this matter tends in an entirely opposite direction and is calculated to imperil'that unity and good feeling which have hitherto subsisted in the relationship hetAveen New Zearland and the Mother Country.—-I am. w v . ■ ’ W. O. BUCHANAN.