THE UNLOCKING OF THE PORT

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1902, 10 November 1913, Page 8

THE UNLOCKING OF THE PORT

CAPITAL WORK: ATHENIG NEARLY FINISHED. All day Saturday the members of the now Arbitration Union of Waterside Workers were busily engaged, Working tho cargo of the Athenic, Willochra, and Moana. Tho union is gradually growing in strength, and on Saturday ii number of new men. signed on, bring;, ing the membership up to about .260, So well havo the gangs engaged 011 tho Athonie performed their duties since they commenced on Thursday afternoon, that the whole of tho 100 trucks of checso have bceji emptied, aiid tlioir ■contents. safely stewed in the vessel's holds, The gang commenced 011 Saturday aitoriiooii to place flax oil board from the sheds. The loading of the , big White Star liner is now practically completed, and she. will probably be ready for sea, in a few days-, Unless , she sails shortly she will not reach Lon- 1 don before Christmas, as was hoped, : On Saturday the' mails wero plnced on board, and to-day the vessel will probably be coaled by her crew. Tho Tillett threat. . There Was considerable discussion on board the vessel with regard to the. cablegram received by the Strike Committee from Ben Tillett, to the' effect. that London dockers would refuso to handlo tlio Atlienic's cargo. Members of the crow were not inclined to take the threat so seriously as tlie strikers. One member of the crew stated to a reporter that the London dockyard hands had not yet recovered from their disastrous strike of a year ago, and would not be likely to take any action . now which, would lead them Into aftother conflict. New Zealand was a> very great distance away from Londoji, and the workers the.row Wild not trfko any great interest-in the industrial affairs of the Dominion. The watersiders of the Dominion were inclined to Idol? oft their body as greater than it. really is. At the Tilbury Decks alone there were five or six times as many wharf labourers as in the whole of the ports of 1 New Zealand. The cluinco of trouble in London was therefore slight. Trouble on Moana. • Things did not go so smoothly on the Moana. Her orow had come out on tho previous evening, and there was no ono on board to get up Bteam for the. winches but tlie ship's engineers. They declined to do this, although they wero willing to supply steam for tlie refrigerators, so that .perishable cargo Would not Buffer, After some delay, a number of Arbitrationists went into the stokehold and did tho work themselves, The handling of the cargo was then proceeded with. A very large amount of Island and Californian fruit was. landed from the Willochra, nnd ■■stored, 111 .the sheds. The fruit is so far -in good condition., but Some cf it must bo disposed or without delay, iet- ■it : ' will ' ,: spe'i.i. / Most; of the'bananas are still green, 1 and will' keep' for-■tt.'-'week, but thero are also; some cases of ripe fruit; Should tliej bananas, apples, oranges, and pitied . apples which comprise the shipment go had, many thousands of pounds will be lost by the merchants. _ One firm alone has £6000' worth now in the sheds. In aiij' easfe—eveft if the fruit is -iSimedK ately taken off tho \vharve.s-*-thero w'illj ■possibly be some considerable loss, as', pi'iees may suffer through tho desire of the vendors to get the fruit eft their, hands. Five gangs wero employed on tho Willochra on Saturday, and the success of their efforts was amply evidenced by tho huge stacks of fruit cas.ea in tho sheds. A quantity of general cargo Was Stlso landed. Work proceeded all day on Sahirdav, 110 half-holiday being observed.' When the mcfi ceased work at o p.m.' thoy were token out to the Mnr.iron for tho' night, and the three vessels on which they had been engaged; moved cut to their ti;siial anchorage in the stream.