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Show AUSTRALIA FACING SERIOUSPROBLEM Lack of Ships for Export Trade in Meats Proves Big Handicap. SEEKING A WAY OUT Loss to Stockmen Seems Certain From Every Point of View. SYDNEY, Australia, Aug. 20. (Correspondence (Cor-respondence of the Associated Press.) As the Australian live stock Industry depends de-pends upon the export trade, and as the war exigencies, including German submarine subma-rine operations, have brought about the greatest dearth of tonnage the Antipodes have ever known, cattle men in the commonwealth com-monwealth have become alarmed regarding regard-ing the future of their business. The prime minister, William M. Hughes, speaking in parliament recently, conceded conced-ed that so far as he could see there was no solution of a problem confronting live stock owners normally engaged in producing meat. Weekly the gravity of the situation increases. Under ordinary conditions Australian supplies of meat far exceed domestic demand, but thanks to refrigeration abroad there is virtually unlimited trade. Hut war time want of vessels has resulted in closing overseas markets and the filling of domestic refrigerating re-frigerating plants to repletion. Good Holding Season. As regards this state, New South Wales, there is usually a heavy Increase ; in the supplies of live stock sent to Sydney Syd-ney about October and November, when the sheep shearing season is over and cattlemen are preparing to reduce their herds and flocks. If this course is followed fol-lowed this year, a reduction in values is inevitable. On the other hand, present prospects are that the coming summer will not be droughty and it will, therefore, there-fore, be a good "holding" season. Mr. Hughes advised pastoral is ts and graziers to "adjust their business by maintaining their flocks and herds for some time on the hoof." But if the summer sum-mer is favorable and perforce the prime minister's advice is taken, serious losses will be entailed, especially in view of a recent decision by the commonwealth arbitration ar-bitration court at Melbourne increasing the wages of ranch hands by about $2,-OOU.OQO $2,-OOU.OQO in the aggregate. Even More Perturbing. In the adjoining state of Queensland, the foremost cattle state in the commonwealth, common-wealth, the situation is even more perturbing. per-turbing. The Queensland packing plants, some of which are American-owned, are full and it is upon their operation that the live stock owners rely. Moreover, the presence of cattle tick in some border bor-der districts of the state and the plentiful plenti-ful supply of meat in New South AVales preclude an outlet in this direction. In general, cattlemen are worse off than sheepmen because the latter have a potential market for wool. In this connection con-nection Premier Hughes recently furnished fur-nished parliament with statistics showing show-ing that the large sum of $180,000,000 was realized for Australia's wool during the wool season which ended June 30. The premier reviewed the operation of the scheme by which the British government govern-ment commandeered the 1916-17 clip. The acquisition was a war measure the extent ex-tent and complexity of which, he said, would have staggered the trade in any but these abnormal days, but it worked out most satisfactorily. Large Amount Controlled. The total value of the wool actually controlled and brought under the scheme amounted to $126,700,000 and the wool catalogued and sold by auction and private pri-vate arrangement in the chief markets of the commonwealth, Sydney, Melbourne, Mel-bourne, Geelong, Brisbane, Adelaide, Ho-hart Ho-hart and Perth, from July to November or a total by sale and appraisement of $178,3-10,000. In addition some wools were shipped to London, which did not fall within the acquisition scheme or appear in the supplies catalogued and sold in interstate in-terstate markets. The acquisition accounted ac-counted for approximately 1.144.6SS bales at about $110 a bale. Such benefits to woolgrowers during a time when embargos ordered by the British Brit-ish government operated against exports to neutrals and when German submarines militated against shipping facilities to the United Kingdom and allied countries, are considered remarkable. |