A PLEA FOR PROTECTION.

Inangahua Times, Volume XI, Issue 1685, 31 March 1886, Page 2

A PLEA FOR PROTECTION.

Writing in the Duuedin Star " A Noonday Brilliant Gem" uses the following arguments in favour of Protection for the candle industry : — " Our manufacturers, in seeking Protection, do so for this reason ; they are swamped by the. consignment sent out here. Not by orders sent home ; for if they had only to compete against such orders they would not ask an increase of duty. But our merchants are flooded with consignments, and must get rid of them ; therefore the foreign candle is pu shed on customers in preference to the local article. Auother 'thing is that our merchants, in buying from onr local makers, demand a cheap article, and buy a class of caudle of the third quality, at 4£d per Ib. These inferior, candles are retailed at 9d to lOd per lb. The public- are led to believe that these caudles are. the best that the local makers can produce, whilst, the best candles our makers can turn out are second to none. The best candles are sold wholesale from 6£ to 7d per lb, but they are not pushed by onr merchants. Now, according to your showing, candles cannot be imported under B£, but they are as a tule sold at cost, and often under cost, in order to close consignments. Take, for instance, th* candles landing just now ex Loch Fleet, from Germany. They must be sold in preference to our local candles. Our merchants will not keep them on their hands, therefore our local iwakers suffer. Such consignments as the Loch Fleet, are what the local manufacturer suffers from. I would like to know what Germany will take from us in return for the cargo she is landing upon our shores. In conclusion, I would ask our working men what benefit they derived from the £70,000 sent out of the country last year to buy candles with. I hope that they and their wives, when buying candles, will see that they get the best locally made article, and encourage by their purchase our local industries, in order that the latter may be enabled l>y iucreased output to give employment by raising coal, and felling timber, and doing other work required by the factories.