21

H.—2

422. Is there any amongst the employes here ? —No; they have not had time to develop it. 423. Is there not another factory started, or proposed to be started, in Dunedin ?—Yes ; but it is only a small one. Ido not think their wages list would come to £500 a year. They are only makingone class of vestas. Even the material for the boxes is being imported ready to put together. 424. Does the factory here make its own boxes ?—Yes ; but they import everything else —their printed matter, and in fact everything that can be imported without any payment of duty. They simply get the whole benefit of your tariff, ft is not a local factory, but the whole of that money goes into a London company. The proprietors are an English company, and they propose to have no resident representative in New Zealand. 425. Mr. Tanner.] You stated the present duty on matches is Is. 4d. Is it not a varying duty ? —Yes ; the tin boxes pay ss. 6d. per gross of boxes —nearly id. per box duty. 426. The Chairman.] I understand you propose that this inequality should be removed at once ?—Yes, because the present duties were put on some time ago, when a small factory was being established in Dunedin. That collapsed, and the duty on matches is from 25 per cent, higher than in Victoria. Bell's have started a factory in Victoria, where there is only Is. duty. Here we have Is. 4d. 427. Do you think a lower rate of duty would still enable the local factory to pay?—l think so. 428. What amount of reduction on the present rate of duty will have to be made— i.e., to make it effectual?—l can hardly give you a definite answer on the spur of the moment. I shall be pleased to send it in. 429. If you could tell us the amount of profit per cent, these people make upon the manufacture after paying expenses we could answer the question for you?—l could approximate that. 430. Mr. Hutchison.] What is the name of this Wellington firm ? —R. Bell and Co. It has no connection with Bryant and Bell, or Bell and Black, simply the firm of R. Bell and Co. 431. Did I understand you to say that these fifty-eight girls are paid at the rate of 6s. to 9s. a week?— There are fourteen receiving 6s. a week. It is notoriously the worst-paid industry in the world,- and only a very bad class of labour goes into it. The size of the building here is, I should say, about 50ft. by 15ft. 432. Mr. Tanner.] Have you made Mr. Tregear acquainted with these facts?— No. 433. Mr. Hutchison.] I shall move after this sitting that it be brought under the notice of the Labour Department. Why do you object to your evidence being published now?—My business is a very general one, and it might arouse personal feeling on the part of those merchants who had made large contracts for the particular lines given. It would be inadvisable for me to be mixed up with people who are doing a large business with me in this direction. I prefer that it be not published for the moment. 434. The facts you have given us will obtain wide publicity provided they get known ?—The figures I have given you the Factory Inspector will have, and any inaccuracy in my statement will be corrected at once. 435. The Chairman.] What do you think the duty should be?— The duty, I consider, should be as follows: Plaids, Bd. per gross of boxes; No. 4 squares, 2s. Bd. per gross of boxes; No. 10s, 2s. Bd. for first 200 vestas, after that Bd. per 100 vestas contained in the box. (9.) J. Lachmann examined. 436. The Chairman.] What are you Mr. Lachmann?—Manager here for P. Hayman and Co., general importers. We are the sole agents in New Zealand for Bryant and Bell's and Bell and Black's vestas. I agree with what Mr. Kernot has said, and I think this little factory ought never to have had the support of the Government. It will take the whole of our trade, and do very little good to the general public. The wholesale price of Bryant and Bell's vestas landed here is 3s. lid. to 4s. Id. per gross, according to the quantity imported, inclusive of everything, duty and c.i.f. This vesta is sold in the market here for 6d. to Is. a dozen, and if this factory is kept on the Government will simply lose some £14,000 per annum in duty, and gain the eternal support of perhaps halfa score of children. Mr. Kernot's figures are perfectly reliable, and I consider the only way to stop this monopoly of R. Bell and Co. is to reduce the duties all round. I had a hand in fixing the last duties. At that time the country was in want of money, and I helped the Government to make money. 437. What reduction would you propose ?—At the very least to about Bd. a gross for " plaids " and 2s. 6d. a gross for " squares," No. 4. The No. 10s should contain 850 vestas, but since the Government placed on a duty of ss. 6d. a gross for the first 200 and 2s. 9d. every additional 100 we have been obliged to put false bottoms in the boxes in order to make it pay. The present duty is too much, and I should suggest 2s. 6d. for the first hundred, and Bd. per hundred on any subsequent hundred. I think it would be advisable to make it ad valorem, because Mr. Kernot, who represents a Belgium firm, can bring matches in far and away cheaper than we can the English match. I should keep the present duty on wooden matches, because they are not made here. The Customs have made the following concession to the local factory —they are importing the paper boxes for nothing, and I fail to see why they should not pay tariff. 438. Mr. Hutchison.] What should they be charged under ?—Paper boxes. 439. The Chairman.] What would you propose ?—I leave that to you. I wish to point out that they have a concession in getting them in free. 440. Do you know what they cost at Home ?—I do not know exactly, but their boxes are brought in free of charge, filled with colonial matches, and on the back is put on " R. Bell and Co. London." I have taken this parcel of matches [produced] out of a case of R. Bell's locallymanufactured vestas. 441. How do these match-boxes arrive? —I will refer you to Mr. Glasgow. I have to pay 20 per cent, on jewellers' boxes.