THE STAFF OF THE COLONY.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXII, Issue 2629, 30 January 1868, Page 4

THE STAFF OF THE COLONY.

(TO THE EDITOR 0? THB ''ITOBW^iOT^;,;^^*:" Sir,— l venture to ask the favor of a little 1 spade If in your valuable and widely circulated journal, that I may express what I am sure are not alone; my own thoughts, but those also of many in .this. . colony at present, on the subject of that , which forms the staff or staple of our trade, and. therefore of our very existence as a communifcy-rf our flocks and herds. How is tho present dead-lock -"' in our commerce to be removed ? I answer, by looking at the cause of it, and seeking by all means in our power to remove, or at least modify the operation of that cause. No doubt much of the depression at present felt throughout New Zealand has arisen from the frightful commercial convulsions in London a year ago, but nowne who reads attentively the reports of the wool market from home, and who knows, how carelessly. our wools are got ready for shipment in most places here, can fail to have observed that a deal of our non- prosperity at present as a colony has flown » directly from the carelessness of runholders and even merchants, who ought to know better than to cram ill-assorted wool into the packs any way, and then bundle the bales on board ship to find a market at home as best they may. In the latest wool report it will have been observed that • whereaß inferior and carelessly got up fleeces have become much depreciated, scoured wool on .the contrary is represented as being " sought after," let us then by all means turn cleaners and scourers. Notwithstanding all that has been said and done to prove the superiority of tho English sheep in its various breeds and races, it ib well known that after all there is no wool to beat the merino, and if our flock owners, encouraged and backed up by the merchants, would but set about preparing it for market in the style most adapted to secure its acceptability to the British and Continental buyers; the mercantile barometer of our colony would soon go up again, money would begin to flow back into its old channels, and serious difficulties or even disasters would thus be avoided, . The Australians, who have of course far larger surplus stock than we in New Zealand, have wisely, and with almost Amencau alaar*£y 7 sfcm-fcect a. ' Joint Stock Company for the purpose Of utilising their beef and mutton, by not only boiling down the fat into tallow, but by preserving the lean in tins for exportation. It was stated recently in the Melbourne Argus that a deputation of Australians had waited upon the Duke of Edinburgh requesting that they might be allowed to put some tins of this preserved meat on board the ' Galatea, and, that, should the contents be approved of on trial, his Royal Highness i would write to the London Times expressing his, opinion ' of the new article. It is needless to say that a certificate of merit emanating from such a high quarter would have immense effect in opening up a market at home for Australian meat; now what is to hinder us in New; Zealand from following the good example set us by our Australian i neighbors ? Our climate being cooler is more favorable than theirs for meat preserving, and if our influential men aud leading merchants would take the matter up and set to work to form a company like the Australians, a great additional stimulus would be communicated to trade by this means. To cure our meats for exportation rather than preserve them in tins, would of course be a much lesa expensive and more readily adopted process, but if the difficulty be how to do this effectually, the inducement of a pecuniary reward for the discovery of an effectual process of curing meat for shipment, might call out latent talent, and hit the nail on the head. With proper attention paid to the scouring and placing of Our wools for shipment, and with the initiative fairly taken for utilizing in a manner likely "to prove remunerative, our surplus flocks, renewed prosperity would soon again be felt throughout our adopted country. — I am, &o, ' Pro Bono Publico.