Chinese Gardeners - Auckland 1878

As the object of the meeting of market gardeners at Newmarket the other evening is but imperfectly understood, more especially in relation to Chinese labour, it may be well to recur tu the subject. Somo short time back a pirty of thirty Chinamen, working on the cooperative syatem, resolved to embark in the speculation of market gardening, and supplying to the city of Auckland and suburbs. With that object in view they selected and leased three pieces of land —the first, at Khyber Pass, of five acres, from Mr. Neceombe the second from Mr. Thomas Morrin, at Remuera; and the third, of ten acres, at Archhill, from Mr. Fielder . The localities, it will be seen, are admirably chosen for the purpose in view. I'rom Archhill, they supply Newton and Ponsonby; from Kyber Pass, Newmarket and the city and from Remuera, that district and Parnell. Large quantities of vegetable produce are brought from these market gardens in carta to depots at the outskirts of the city, where they are met by parties of Chinese hawkers; who, after filling up their baskets, eoour the adjacent-neighbourhood. These indefatigable purveyors are fast driving the European competitor out of the 'field, and it was scarcely a rhetorical figure of speech, when Mr. McGarry (a retailer) remarked, at the-Newmarket meeting, that go where he would with hie vegetable commodities, the irrepressible China'man was sure to be-ahead of. him. The gardeners propose to remedy "this evil—which causes inequality of prices and dissatisfaction to grower, retailer, and consumer alike —by making it compulsory to take the produce to the Auckland market in the firat instance, prohibiting hawking until 12 o'clock in the day, and then only on a half-yearly license. By this method the Chinese and European grower, it is held, would occupy a perfectly equal position, and the struggle between them would be left to the operation of the commercial law of supply and demand, and that legitimate competition, which, in the greengrocery line as elsewhere, resulte in the "survival of the fittest." The retailing shoDkeeper would have a better and more varied selection of produce to choose from, the supply to the consumers would be fresher and less irregular, and the indiecriminate hawking carried on by grower and retailer alike would be stopped. An impression has prevailed that the Chinaman was the bite noir of the European market gardener and that the meeting at Newmarket was convened for the purpose of going for him." One of the speakers, in his remarks, gave colour for that belief, but the great majority of those who addressed the meeting accepted the principle that "they must live and let live," and testified frankly to the industry, agricultural skill, and business management of the Chinese gardeners. As was remarked at the meeting, not one present would have taken up the land leased by the Chinese or given the rental they were now paying for it, and yet from such plots these men were now flooding the town with vegetable produce. Any one who will look at their market garden opposite the Captain Cook Hotel (Kyber Pass), every yard of space in which is carefully utilised and stocked, and contrast it with the heaven-forsaken plot of big and mire which formerly existed there, will have a good idea of what Chinese industry and patience can accomplish. The rental paid would be regarded as a rack-rent by a European, and yet the lessees make a handsome profit on the transaction. At Archhill the same story is repeated. The land taken up there was first leased by Mr. Cole, the basket-maker, on which to grow osiers, but a short experience determined him to give up the venture. It has now passed into the hands of the  Chinese who are fast bringing it into order by trenching, draining, aud working the soil. As a matter of fact, it is stated, that the vegetables produced at their market gardens are of the very best quality, and that in the growing of French beans, especially, they wholly excel their European competitors. There was no complaint made at the New market meeting as to their undercutting the current prices, for it wa9 admitted that they sold their produce at the fair market value but a very general protest was made against the indiscriminate hawking now practised, which it was hoped the remedy proposed to be adopted would' entirely suppress in the future. Mr. Hall's solution oT the dilKculty—namely, au opea market at Newmarket—did not receive any favour, for as Mr. Gardiner cogentlyobserved, "the market gardeners, in the first iustance, were too weak to promote aud maintain such an institution in that locality and in the secoul, they would have little prospect of obtaining the solicited co-operation of the City Council, if they intended eventually to raise up a rival to the Auckland market." A correspondent writing on the subject, brielly condemns the idea of stopping the hawking of vegetables by the Chinese whose visits are, he says, very welcome to many householders in both city and suburbs, being a great convenience. You might as well stop the baker, the butcher, and the grocer from bringiug their portions of the commodities in daily consumption. The greengrocer is as necessary as any of them and to stop hawkiug until noon, would stop the production of many a dinner. If vegetable hawking is to be stopped, why not prevent the visits of the milkman New Zealand Herald, Volume XV, Issue 5071, 16 February 1878, Page 2