THE FIREMEN AND THE MAORI

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 218, 9 June 1919, Page 4

THE FIREMEN AND THE MAORI

DEPARTMENT'S VIEW. Tho Secretary for Labour (Mr. W. F. Bowley) stated on Saturday that his Department had been investigating the recent hold-up of the ferry steamer Maori, in order to see whether tho men responsible for it appeared to have rendered themselves liable to proceedings for breach of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. Tho history of tho trouble, as the Department had learned it, was briefly as follows: About the time for eaiting about six firemen and trimmers were still required to make up the complement of fifteen. Tho firemen already engaged refused lo sail' until their number was augmented, and it was then ascertained that in the circumstances the vessel might leave with the reduced complement of twelve. Tho twelve men were eventually obtained, but apparently one man was somewhat the worse for- liquor. On this ground, the engineers refused to sail, though, according to the Department's information, the intoxicated man was not required to go on duty till midnight, and was fit to go on soon after eight o'clock. So far as the investigations' had gone, said Mr. Rowley, they had not, in the view of tho Department, disclosed any grounds for proceedings against either the firemen or tho engineerb.