270 WHEAT PRODUCTION IN NEW ZEALAND 



question during the year, and had worked out carefully 

 the cost of production of wheat, flour, and bread, and 

 other products of the wheat industry. After negotiating 

 with the producing and commercial interests for some 

 time the Board recommended the fixation of maximum 

 prices for wheat and flour, bread, and other products of 

 the wheat industry, and the guarantee to wheat-growers 

 of a fixed price for the next season's crop. The order 

 was Gazetted by the Government on February 6th, 1917, 

 by which the maximum prices of wheat and flour were 

 fixed, varying from 5s. 8d. in February to 5s. lid. in 

 July, 1917, or after. Wheat-growers were also to be 

 guaranteed 5s. lOd. per bushel for the next season's 

 crop. 



By the end of 1917 the policy of the Government had 

 again altered. Instead of merely fixing prices it was 

 decided to effect a more rigid control over the wheat 

 industry. By an Order in Council of December 22nd, 



1917, private dealings in wheat were forbidden ; a wheat 

 controller was appointed, and the whole business of 

 purchasing the wheat crop and re-distributing the wheat 

 to millers was handed over to the Board of Trade.* The 

 prices at which purchases were to be made varied from 

 5s. lOd. in January to 6s. Id. in or after September, 



1918. A critical account of these various measures is 

 given below. We now proceed to discuss the causes of 

 the high prices during the War. 



(c) Causes of the Recent High Prices. The following 

 account is reproduced from an article the writer con- 

 tributed to the Christchurch Press on October 21st, 1917, 

 and it is also the substance of the evidence he gave 

 before the Board of Trade earlier in the year. 



' ' In July, 1914, wheat was selling at about 3s. 9d. per 



*In the original M.S. of this work written in November, 

 1915, as a University thesis, the writer suggested a scheme of 

 Government control of this kind. 



