LYTTELTON STOPS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1894, 31 October 1913, Page 9

LYTTELTON STOPS.

. CALLED OUT BY FEDERATION. (By TeleirraDli.—Prosi Association.) / Lyttelton, October 30. At 2.30 the position at Lyttelton was unchanged. Hain is still falling. Only the Warrimoo is working. Tho Lyttelton Municipal Gasworks has six weeks' supply of coal, and is increasing its stock. The shopkeepers have come to no decision yet regarding credit. Some debts from the 1890 strike aro on their books still. A demand for cash is probable if there is a strike. ' Christcliurch, October SO. The Federation of Labour called out tho Lyttelton watcrsiders by telegram at 4 o clock. They aro now on strike. Tho ferry steamers WahiM and Maori will bo kept running, carrying passengers .and mails, but if tho coal ports shut down it will bp a matter of a fow days only before local bunker.eoal supplies aro exhausted, and both ships will bo compelled to stop running unless a • settlement of tho trouble is speodily reached. There is a fleet of oversea liners up north with cargoes for Lyttelton -amounting to over . .7000 tons, but they will not reach this port until after tho Wellington trouble is settled, and if other ports close down there will bo no ships left in Lyttelton' to bo affected by tho strike. Already the men aro feeling tho pinch very badly owing to tho small amount of work offering; in Lyttelton. A very largo proportion of tho men haro been idlo foi' days, and they will bo in a very bad position to faco a strike. Tho news regarding the declaration of a striko was received very quietly at Lyttelton. The Warrimoo and Kairakf had just finished loading when tho call camo. The ferr.y steamer Wahine completed taking iu bunker coal, but an effort that was being inado to ship emergency supplies in tho forward hold was nipped in tho bud. The Kini from Greymouth and Timaru had discharged several truck-loads of timber when the men were called out. Tho'Kamo, with a quantity of Wellington, cargo on board,- was sent on to Dunedin. It is probaulo that tho which has a good deal of Lyttelton cargo still, on board, will bo despatched to Timaru early ill tho morning.