HOMILY FOR WATERSIDERS

Chronicle (Levin), 14 November 1946, Page 5

HOMILY FOR WATERSIDERS

"all sfffer when ships are delayed licci'ix cd Weilncsday, 7 p.m. LdNDON, Nov. 13. Tlie " nbt nwt i\ e ta«*ti>*» o'i wutersilc in Ni*w Zmilnud and Autia!i:i" worc ct'fcn'cd to by Mr, .). K. .lioopcr at tlio laiim-lii ng of tlie stcamct I'oit Napier. Mr. itonper, who is a maua.itiiig diroetor of tlie 1'ort Linc, -aid it was a melam-lioly tliouglit tliat ships iittfil with inodcrn eont rivaiiccs for the nipid haiidling of cargo, were di-l-i j ed, t lu'ir time wasted and cx-pee-dve iniprovemciits nullilicd by such 1 a 1 ies. M t . Koojn'r said : " Bv some mistakon idea wharf labour'-rs Indicve they are liiiting only at i ii «• l>o>s who jircsiiinabl v is the lype nf poi i Iv individiml por trayed in eartooii.--, wliercas tlio lioss now ndays is till oi' us— the ordinarv pi'ople iiieludinu the w at crsider himstdf - -aml all of us. ineluding thc wharf kibourer, liave 1o s'uml the rackct when >h i ps are ilelaved and unneccssary ex-p'-n.-e iiieurrcd throngh work rcslrielioiis and minor dispatcs. " M r. \V. Donald, thc other managing din-etor, referring to liigli eosts, nrgcd -hiiib'.iildeis to be more cxpeditious 1 3 1 ft ti reeeiitlv though he realised delays '.■ "iv due to eatises. ineludiiig a shortage of si!|ipiies. which were beyond the iiu-hiers' rontrol. Three or four moiitlis'dela v in delivering a vessel liieant a lo-s of food for Britain equal to 250,01111 carcases oi' mutton. The 1'ort Napier is tlie sixtli sliip v 1* ii-it the 1'ort Liiie has added to its fleei sjnce tlie end of the war, thus loi'iging its earrving capacity to what it was liefore tlie war though with a lower itumher of shi]is. Tlie 1'ort Napier which is 56(1 fVet long with a 70 feet hoata, has iu-ulated cargo ajiacify of 5:15.iioii cubic feet and uiiiiisulated s]>ace of 2](i.oii() cubic feet. Mr. Donald said another vessel of siinilar dimeiisioiis t> the 1'ort Napier w o ( i i 1 1 be laid down carlv in 1917.