GERMAN SYNDICATE REPLIES TO CANTERBURY INDUSTRIAL ASSN.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17865, 5 June 1926, Page 12

GERMAN SYNDICATE REPLIES TO CANTERBURY INDUSTRIAL ASSN.

WILL EMPLOY N.Z. IN MINING REFRACTORY ORES. (Special to the “Star.”) THAMES, June 4. Exception, not unmixed with resentment, is taken by the promoters of the German syndicate to mine refractory ores near Thames, at the attitude of the executive of the Canterbury Industrial Association, which recently put forward the following resolution, which however, was held over in the meantime - “That in view of a report recently circulated that a foreign syndicate lias obtained an Option to work certain lands in New Zealand for the extraction of mineral deposits this executive of the Canterbury Industral Association urges the Government to prohibit any operations covering the export of crude minerals to be refined in countries outside the British Empire.” The seconder of the motion said that it was desirable that the mines should be worked by British labour and capital. If the Germans came to work the deposits it would mean that there would be German capital, German labour and German machinery used. Everything would come from the “Fatherland,” and that was not wanted. Interviewed this morning, the agent for the German syndicate said the statements published reflected unfairly on his country and principals, and did not accurately set out the position. Following on the war, he said, the entrance into the wool-buying market of Germany was directly responsible for the very satisfactory prices paid to New Zealand Sheepfarmers for all grades of wool. No objection had then been offered by the farmers, and none was likely to be offered to selling wool to Germany at highly remunerative rates. Furthermore, it was a fact that Germany had been a heavy buyer of by-products from New Zealand in the last few years. Included in the list were articles which the average farmer had no use for, and for which there was no market in New Zealand. He instanced cow horns as an example. £)n the average farm or station the horns of dead cattle were either left lying about or thrown into a heap in some out-of-the-way corner, where they might or might not be used for manuring purposes. A market had now been found in Germany, and already some hundreds of tons of horns, feet, hoofs, etc., had been paid for by Germany at a price satisfactory to the seller. The ores referred to had lain untouched in the Thames hills for years, and nobody had wanted them, though their presence was known to every miner and company promoter in the province. Germany was the only country that could use the ores on a basis satisfactory to New Zealand. As no other country had any use for the minerals as encased in the rock, she should at least be permitted to offer a price for them. There was not, and never had been, the slightest intention to employ German labour. Not less than one hundred men would be emploj’ed at the outset, and of this number only two, and certainly not more than three, would be Germans, these being technical experts alread}’’ appointed. The labour would be recruited from any source available, though preference would probably be given to residents of the goldfields district. In any case there Avould be no restrictions. The project had aroused great interest, and applications for employment had been received from as far afield as Shanghai.