BEER BOYCOTT: BUT PLENTY WAS DRUNK

Chronicle (Levin), 10 January 1948, Page 4

BEER BOYCOTT: BUT PLENTY WAS DRUNK

GREYMOUTH, -jan. 9. There are irtdications that the apparent stalemate in the West Coast Trades Council's boycott of the sevenpenny beer, may not be allowed to continue much longer. Officers of the Westland Timber Workers' Union have publicly announced that as soon as the mills resume work next week, they wiu address meetings at Ross, Hokitika ancl Ngahere "witii a view to liaving the beer boycott further strietlv adherea to. " Con^iderable interest attach.es to these meetings as the sawmill workers, as a whole, have not been conntecl really enthusiastic boycotfer? although officially supporting the Trades Council move. Hotelkeepers in Grevmoutn claim that they did not "feel the pipchj' over the Christmas and L'ew Year holidavs but an impartial survey shows that the boycott is still having some effeet. There was, however, a lot of beer drunk over the holidavs. Three aew workingmen's clubs at Greymouthj Runanga and Brunner got fullv'into their stride by Christmas Eve and big business was also done by booths at holidav race meetings. The glasses ; were much below the ten ounce size but the price, as always on a racecourse, wf}.s sixpence. It is reported that at one district mine mild warnings were. isgued to some union members who haci broken the boycott over the holidays "•biit'n'b' iiistances'' 6f draktic action sucn as " wahi. taken in December, havp beenreported. '