STATE COAL MINES

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3068, 2 May 1917, Page 5

STATE COAL MINES

THE OFFER TO PURCHASE.

Some doubt has been, expressed as 'to the veracity of the statement published in. The Dominion on Monday morning, that two Christchurch business men had'made an offer on behalf of a group of financiers to take over the State coal mines. "The statement was absolutely true. The gentlemon (concerned were Mr. J. B. liaurenson and Mr. R. Wilson.

The Minister of Mines (Mr. Mac Don who is also Minister in charge of the State Coal Mines, was asked by ». Dominion reporter yesterday whether lie had received the offer. Mr. MacDonald said that he had received a poinmunication from the two gentlemen, regarding the State mines, but he lad not considered the communication himself nor had he consulted his colleagues upon it. Mr. Laurenson, when approached on the subject, was most emphatic in his Ueclaration that the offer made to tho Government was a genuine one. "So Jar from the report being a canard," ihe said, "it is a cold, frozen fact. We are the representatives of a group of some of the most influential financial men in New Zealand, who are satisfied that they can run tho State mine as a private enterprise successfully. ■They havo submitted the following offer to the Government:—(l) To buy the mine outright at valuation j (2) to take a sis or nine months' option over the mine, and to work the mine during, ■the period of:the option; (3) the syndicate's engineer and the Government's engineer to agree as to tho amount of ,edal in sight, and the syndicate to pay on that amovmt. As another alternative the syndicate would agree to work tho mine and to pay to the Government a royalty on the amount of jcoal won from the mine. The syndicate would agree to. man the - mine fully, and to turn our more coal per man than had been "turned out since the mjno was opened."