The system of paying State bonuses to encourage production received a severe shock at a sitting of the Butter Inquiry. Evidence was given by an officer of the Agricultural Department that daring. the ten F hepa the system was in force they had paid away over £100,009. Nobody would have minded the amount seeing to what importance the dairy industry has attained. It was only when the astounding admission was made, that £76,000 of this amount had been paid to city firms engaged in the export trade, whilst £26,000 only went to direct producers that the public opened their eyes to the way that successive governments had been hoodwinked. A butter expert in the service of the State admitted under cross-examination that th Fresh Food and Frozen Company had annexed most of the cheese bonus, the reason being that they knew six months beforehand that the bonus was to be granted. and made their purchases accordingly. Pressed as to how the company obtained this knowledge, the witness stated that the then Minister for Agriculture was the company's managing director, whilst a State dairy expert was al-o a shareholder and director. Since the inauguration of the produce trade frequent complaints have been made in London thst inferior goods have been landed which bore the Government stamp of inspection. Evidence has been given at the inquiry that an oficial stamp had been russed some to or three years ago. here wera only two of these stamps, and when one of them was report ed missing no inquiry was held, neither was the matter rep roe ty the police; the department simply ordered another stamp tobe made. It was lo, the witness said. that the brand might' have found its way into private stores, and have been used for marking inferior goods with the official stamp of inspection. After these statements there is mo room for expressing wonder that many consignments of Victorian produce hare been wonounced "fishy" when delivered in don markets.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.