BRITAIN'S BUSY WHARVES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 05, Issue 53, 15 May 1942, Page 2

BRITAIN'S BUSY WHARVES

DOCKERS IN WARTIME (By Jack McLaren, author of "My Crowded Solitude") At a north-western British port J ivatched dockers stowing ship so as to make a level surface whereon they finally ran tanks, Bren gun carriers and: other military vehicles, in another hold the}- were stowing such dissimilar objects as depth charges, rollers Cor steel, mills and -boom defence nets. To get such a difficult cargo stewed in time and prevent the ship holding up her convoy, the dockers were working 24-hour shifts. At some ports the dockers have speeded up cargo handling by 11 tons an hour; they have moved as much as "000 tons of mixed cargo in six days And 2000 tons in 24 hours. They have learnt to work efficiently in the- blackout. To me it seemed it was as much by instinct as by anything else that in the darkness ear•iocs were handled at all. Amid the ''latter of winches, one: "man found a moment to tell me of a; name he had invented for the Australians and Americans fighting in the Pacific as one army under Genera] MaeArthur. "I call 'em," he said. "'Macaussies."' M 7 omcr! play a part in ISic duck work, nolab.'y as mobile crane-driv-ers. Cranes often work in couples one- to each cmi of the load. Among the loads ham:led by these women are such dangerous tilings as torpedo heads. Some women have children !]iat they must wash and fevd before bailing irr work. "Granny niiiids the. kids for me (luring the ''ay," one lo'ci me. Alany men. re-nhi'.-ii'.g yiuiiigt-;- own-, who have been ".•■■iTed up for !lie fores, are midd.'e!\:JX',\. Most are sturdy types. L spoke with a crane-driver. William Buist, ivho worked all night through ;> blizzard loading a siliip. Besides the ordinary blackout difficulties, the storm, prevented his hearing the whistle- or voice of the man who ordered descents and ascents of car(Continucd in next column)

go slings. The temperature was away below freezing point. One man had a hand frozen to the sling wire. But William Buist and his mates accomplished what they had set out to do. They got the ship away: on time.