COLOURED SEAMEN.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 235, 27 June 1908, Page 5

COLOURED SEAMEN.

LASCARS AND CHINESE. LABOUR APPLAUDS MR. CHURCHILL". AUSTRALIAN ASPECT. »r rßLEcnira—pbbss association—corTniam. Sydney, Juno 26. The Soamcn's Union adopted resolutions complimenting Mr. Winston Churchill; President of tho Board of Trade, on his rccent action against tho employment ef Chinese on British ships. Tho secretary of tho Union says the encroachment of Lascars and Chinese in tho Australian trade is becoming a very disturbing element. Ships engaged in the Pacific trade find a way of signing oh in the East and coming here with Chinese crows. He also complains of the competition of Norwegian vessels, with Norwegian crews paid at lower rates than are paid in Australia.

BIG INCREASE OF CHINESE SEAMEN. The number of Chineso sailors engaged _at the ports in the British Isles has, according to Mr. Havelock Wilson, Labour M.P., risen in ten years from 1000 to nearly 10,000. White sailors are very much excited at Home, and scenes of violence have occurred at the London docks. "Boardinghotises (says tho "Express") are not allowed to supply crews, yet it is an open secrot that all those Chinamen are rakea up by the boardinghouse-keeper, who draws a polltax for his services. The shipowner or • his agent will telephone up to Ah Yong or Sung Yeng and ask him to supply a crew by a given date. Ah Yong or Sung Yeng has his 'crimp,' or runner, who acts as a middleman, and gathers the orew together. He takes them to the shipping office, persuading the officials, by 'cramming' tho men with a fow English phrases, that thoy are British subjects or can speak the language." , In reply to a question asked in tho House of Commons last month by Mr. Havelock Wilson, who quoted certain cases, the Presidont of the Board of Trade (Mr Churchill) said that Chinese boardinghouse-keepers had not and would uot be allowed access to Board of Trado premises for tho purpose of supplying crows of Chinamen to British ships. "I have nothing to prove that tho crews in these cases were supplied by Chinose crimps," added Mr. ChurchiD, "but iif any evidonco of an infringement of the Merchant Shipping Act is forthcoming, tho question of instituting legal proceedings will bo considered." ,

The Merchant Shipping Act, 190G, enacts that 110 foreign seaman shall ba engaged unless lie knows sufficient English to understand the words of command. It is stated that this provision is evaded. Tho othor day Mr. Churchill said he had prepared a circular imposing a language tost. If that was unsuccessful ho would look to othor methods,

Mr. Courtman, the London district secretary of the National Sailors' end Fireman's Union, told a reporter that he had received a letter from tho International Transport Workers of Germany notifying him that large numbers of Chineso wero being shipped to tho Gorman owners, who wero dumping the surplus Chinamon in London.

A labour official having declared that the present stato of affairs- is an international movement on the part of tho owners to cut down wa<*os, Mr. Cuthbort Laws, of tho owners' Federation, denied this absolutely. "Chinamon aro npt cheaper," ho said, "but they are bettor as firemen than Europeans. Thoy neither drink nor dosert."'