S.S. MAORI'S FIREMEN.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1588, 4 November 1912, Page 5

S.S. MAORI'S FIREMEN.

*-—-4 • WERE THEY TO BLAME? MR. W, I. YOUNG IN THEIR '• DEFENCE. Concerning tho -statements made by the Christchurch "Press" on October 81) iu regard to the Conduct of some of tho fin> men and trimmers 011 board the Maori, Mr. W. T. Young makes an exceedingly lengthy written reply, tlve essential points of,ivhicli are as follow"That facta- go to prove that both drunkenness and desertion. have been reduced fitimo 30 per ceiit. during tho past eight months, and that has keen brought about by the warnings of the Seamen's Union and the infliction of fines on members misconducting themsetve.9 on board ship. . . lie the Maori's articles on October 25—"It is asserted in the press report that the. signing was not completed till 7 p.m. This is absolutely incorrect. , . . When, tho Maori left the wharf thero was not a full head of steam on the boilers, as there had not been timo to raise 6ame. It is stated that many of the firemen were drunk on leaving Wellington on Friday night. /Phis I know to be quite untrue. The ship carries fifteen firemen, nine-, trimmers, aljd three greasers—total 27— and olit of that number • three were' under the influence of liquor. . . ' t It was. further stated that the fifth.' .engineer manipulated all tho furnaces in the fore stokehold. In answer to -thte it might be stated that the Maori hast' twelve furnaces in that stokehold, ant it would be a elwer impossibility for any. ono man to oporato more than six furnaces «&<L keep steam on the boilers. . . J j "Whilst adverse references aro mado to J tlie men on the 12 to 4 watch, it is as peculiar coincidence that the men on the.. 8 to 12 and 4 to 8 watches were apparently capable of performing their duty, and did sp, and it is equally a ooincidcnco that the adverso comment on tiro 12: to 4 Watch covers the run from Wellington to Lyttelton, and dow not apply to tho time they wero on duty at the Welling': ton wharf, from 0 to 8 p.m. on tho Friday'in question, when the liquor, if they liad any, would be more conspicuous than it would be between midnight arid 4 a.m. 011 Saturday." : . ... No mention is made olf the. return trip from Lyttelton to Wellington. ■ Tho Maori, sailed from Lyttelton ,it" hef usual time—S.3o p.m.—and was alongside Wellington Wharf at 7.25 .a.m. on Sunday' (10 hours 55 minutes), which is equal to her ordinary steaming time. ' "Regarding the excursion on Labour Day, tho ship, was advertised to saQ from Wellington at 7.15 a.m. At 6 a.m„ on Monday there was a full head of ■steam pn tho boilers, and the engineer then gave the.order to 'closo up.' At 7.55 thero was again, a sufficient head of steam, and the engineer on duty ordered tlie men. tu cease firing. At 7.45—ad-, veijtised time of sailing—ail hands were on board, and the ship sailed at 8 a.m. A point is made of the fact of the Msbi<i being fifteen, minutes later in tawing than, the advertised time, and tho inferences are. that tlie inen were to blame, but the records of Picton excursions go to show that in nine cases out of ten the ship does not get away till, about .fifteen or twenty minutes. after tho advertised timo.' ''It-is admitted that four of tlie men, Wero under thi> influence of liquor .at the ,: timo of leaving Picton. On tho return ' journey two men oii't of eight on the 12 to i watch did not turn to, tlicir places .being-taken by two other men, and therefore all.' the men 011 <faty woro eobei\ .. . .Regarding the 8 to, 12 watch,- it majf bo stated -that out of .five firemen and three trimmers, four of tho former and . two of tho latter are temjierivto men, who hardly ever touch intosicaitjng liquor. Ono fireman and, ono trimiaer, on this watch were more or less intosieajed, and did not turn to, and tlwir places wero filled -by men from ■ th» other watcJios. If the ehi|> made a lengthy Tun over of hours, it could, not be attributed to tho ' four intoxicated icon, because* tlwy we'ro not on duty;-and the remaining 23 men were all. 6ober, It is also alleged, tliat some' of tlie men - made ■ thetnsdves objectionable to passengers on the foredeck on the run from Picton, and that somo of the firemen took a truyulent atti- ■ . tudb, flourishing bottles of etc. J', am advised by the union, dclcjpte 011 tho Maori' that sobei' Members of the crew were on the ■ foreileck conversing witlr ■ passenger'friends from Picton to Welling.-' ;. ton, and none of them witnessed any ok • jeotioriable. ponduct. 4 It is also. alleged- that owing to her lata arrival from •Piot6n-= ; 7.'5 .p,in.—the. ship was forty minutes late, .in leaving for Lyttelton, \sas forty minutes late in arriving at that port, and, us a result, missed tho-first south-bound express. 'I'll* ..cause of this delay was that racehorses wero being shipped, and this, was. tiqt completed till about 8.30 p.m. On the run down she averaged 16 miles per . hour." ; Reference is also mado to the wages tlie men earned for the day, and Mr. Young, states that .the 27 men in tho engineroom and stokehold wero paid a total of JE-19 165., as against the Union Company having received <£250 for the trip—looo ■ passengers at 55,-eachi "As to coal,' the meit who liad to handle it and get eteam state,. without., hesitar tion, that it was the worst the ship hf» h.ad for soine- time. Ekiyond this the coal in the bunkers was a long way back, wiili the result that tho tximmers coul'd not trim sufficient into tTbp stokehold, . * "In connection with the Maori epi.scide, I have- received a letter from tho genqral manager 01 the Union Company, dritctl Eunrdin, October 29. iu that le'ttei;, which 19 tlie result of telegrams s.erit to him from their Wellington and.LylVoHoh oificis, lie puts forward three. poi Ats of Complaint only, and they are. these,:— "1. Action of men in claiming additional day's pay. . "2, Ship, detained forty minutes at Wellington Monday night through alleged trouble witit firemen. , "3. Ship forty minutes late arriving at Lyttelton on Tuesday morning through alleged drunken firemen. "There i 3 tlio head man of the concern involved speaking as tlie result of pfficial advice tendered him, and lie has no complaint against, the men except those three items, which have been dealt with."