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
