224 Groivth and Develojyment of the Trade in Frozen Mutton. 
In a series of interesting notes on the British farmer and 
his competitors, Mr. W. E. Bear inclines strongly to condemn 
as unprofitable the frozen trade. His confidence in its neces- 
sary failure I confess I hardly share. He seems to antici- 
pate great restriction, if not extinction, of the export, unless 
the values of 1886 improved. The Otago Witness was cited as 
maintaining that shippers, after paying for freezing, freights, and 
charges, had no margin left over the local boiling-down price, 
and that early in 1886 some of the largest exporters had an- 
nounced that it would not pay them to send their mutton to 
England. One case was mentioned where no less than 40,000Z. 
liad been spent in preparing for the trade, and where it was 
nevertheless given up because the sale of the mutton here at 
only 4f?. a pound could not pay. Individuals may doubtless 
have suffered in this way, but even the still lower prices of 1887 
have, it seems, by no means checked the growing volume of the 
trade itself. 
Low prices only provoke new efforts at reducing the cost of 
freezing and of freight, and there have been very recent attempts 
to secure continuous contracts at extremely low figures. 
The Wellington Company Ihave alreadyreferred to announced, 
I believe, last July, that they were prepared, owing to the satis- 
factory year's working, to reduce the freezing charges from ^d. 
for mutton and ^d. for lamb, to ^d. for all ; and this, with the 
\d. reduction on freight obtained at an earlier date, makes a 
saving to shippers of over 2s. per sheep. 
In a recent number of the Si/dyiey Mail (January 5, 1889) 
I find, in an account of the New Zealand mutton trade, it is 
asserted that the Frozen Meat Company of Christchurch had 
actually entered into an arrangement for a term of years, 
giving a guarantee to the colonial grower of a minimum price 
of 2ld. per lb. f.o.b. frozen — a far higher return than that 
above referred to, and one considerably above the level shown 
in the market reports of the same province. 
My own information leads me to believe that the contract in 
question was not ultimately accepted by, although offered to, the 
company named. But, if this were so, it affords all the stronger 
evidence of the confidence of the shippers in the future of the 
existing trade ; and, as the details given illustrate the position 
and possibilities, I quote the figures here : — 
"On this basis a 60-lb. sheep would realise to the grower, after deduct- 
ing the freezing charges, l^d. per lb., or Os. 4(Z. net ; the skin would average 
3s. 6d. ; the fat, say, Is. 3d. — or a total of 14s. 9d. per sheep. This, it is 
pointed out, is the lowest price which the colonial grower could realise for 
his sheep. The various items are as follows : — 
