RECENT COAL CRISIS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 7, 3 October 1919, Page 8

RECENT COAL CRISIS

LACK OF FORESIGHT ALLEGED STATEMENT BY MR. A. S. COLLINS An interesting statement relative to tho coal situation, which led up to tho railway "cut" was put in at yesterday's sitting of the Railway Commission by Mr. A. S. Collins. deputy-chairman of tho Wellington Coal Trade Committee. Mr. Collins, who was unablo to appear before the Commission on account of indisposition, remarked as follows in the course of his statement "I would like to point out that, as the work of the Munitions Department and the Wellington Coal Trade Committee was 60 interwoven, it would bo impossible to say where tbo functions of. the one besran and the other ended, so if any reflection was passed on the Munitions Department it would of necessity reflect on the AVellington Coal Trade Committee. It has been said that if the railway Department had control of the ; coal no 'cut' would have been necessary. Tho answer is that the right to find coal for themselves was never denied the Railway Department. Further, to assist the Railway Department, tho Wellington Coal Trade Committee in 191S made a regulation which the Minister • in charge approved, .making it necessary in certain cases for householders to take an equivalent quantity of slack with an equivalent quantity of screened (tho kind the railway mostly use). This regulation must have given hundreds of tons of coal to the Railway Department." Mr. Collins went on to point out that it was incorrect to say that tho railways had been deprived of coal because of household wants. As a matter of fact the householders had had loss coal of the kind used bv tlio Railway Department, namely, screened, tTinii in pre-war times.

"Eifina Up tha Reserves." After detailing the circumstances leadinj; up to the shortage of railway stocks, Mr. Collins stated:— To mv mind the railway "out" was not so much occasioned by shortage of coal as bv lack of foresight by those responsible (n) in eating up coal reserves, and (b) in not chartering tonnage, or taking advantage of cargoes offered, on account of cost. It is as well to point out here that, as far as coal supplies are concerned', there has never been' any shortage of the kind of coal that the railways mostly required, viz., Newcastle. but a shortage of tonnage to brinu it across to New Zealand. The coal has been there—it only wanted lifting. With regard to eating up reserves, the Railway Department was warned not to run extra trains during Christmas, 1918, nor put .011 special trains for races, or shows, nor for Easter traffic. These trains were in the nature of a "luxury" service, and were not entitled to receive coal, as compared with essential industries. If the Eailway authorities had run the normal traffic they would have had—to my mind—sufficient coal to carry them over till 'Newcastle shipments began to arrive. The refusal in February last by the Eailway Department to entertain the offer of the cargocs by tho Georgiim Rolph and tho Melbourne was a grave error of judgment, beuauso it precluded further offers of tonnage at the same rate.. When the armistice was signed shipping people found it a little difficult to place tonnage, owiug to the unsettled conditions, and if the Railway Department had seizod tho opportunity of taking the two cargoes I have mentioned. there is not the slightest doubt but that they could have got further supplies. The refusal to accept these two cargoes showed that the Eailway Department wanted: coal freights at Union Steam Ship Company rates. The Union Steam Ship Company's rates fioni Newcastle to New Zealand aro only possible because of the I owners' special knowfledgo of the trade, and of the fact that in the main tho ships aTe only mutable for coal-carrying for short voyages, and not for foreign trade, their carrying capacity not being sufficient. It must also be borno in mind that the Munitions Department had to contend with the change after several of the Union Company's larger vessels had their registration ports altered, and the New Zealand Government had no control over them. If control could havo been exercised, and conditions warranted it, they would have been placed in the Newcastle trade. In refusing the tonnage offered— the Georgina Eolph and the Melbourne— the EaKway Department made tho "cut" possiblo, for the reason that other tonnage would probably have been, obtained at'the same rates. I do not know what £he "cut" has cost the country, but 1 fenture ,to assort that the chartering of these 6teaniers and other vessels on a similar basis would have 6aved the country thousands of pounds. Besides this, the fact of paying tho E. R. Stirling 50s. per ton must have coat the Dominion thousands of pounds, because a:lil coal freights l>y outside vessels wont up accordingty. It is interesting to note hetfe that the Otira and the Waiwera were arranged for by, the Munitions Department at 30s. per ton freight, at practically the samo time as the' E. E. Stirling wag chartered. Freights went jip to 455. by refrigerated steamer, but were subsequently reduced to 375._ Gd. on the representations of the Mmnitions Department. The railway authorities knew a!l the circumstances governing Newcastle conditions, and should have arranged accordingly. ,

An Important Point,

To my mind, the Railway Department have leaned too heavily on the shoulder of the honorary advisers on coal matters to tho Government—the Munitions Board and the various coal trade committees—instead of fending for themselves at markot prices. Tliey had the right, aiul should have used it. It may he as well hero to point out that, if certain public and private enterprises, sjich as the Wellington City Council, Wellliington Gas Company, the Bacon Company at Ngahauranga, tho Gear Company, Porirua- Mental Hospital, and others, had adopted tho samo attitude as the Railway Department in refusing cargoes or portions of cargocs because of tho prico of eoal, according to tho freight charged,' they would have had to close down, but, owing to the duty they owed to , Ihemsct'ves and to the public, they bought the coal'and carried om I would noint out to the Commission' that the Wellington Coal Trade Committee was responsible for the importation of American coal to the Dominion. Thoy found that vessels—notably the Ruapehn—wero arriving in New Zealand in ballast, and they refused to supply them with bunkers unless an undertaking wero given that future vessels would bring down at least their own Ijranker coal 1 , and at the same time ■ thoy wero asked to bring down coal for the railways. Continuing, Mr. Collins pointed out that the Railway Department did not adapt themselves sufficiently to war needs in not mixing tho 10,000 tons of American coal imported with other coal, or trying some other method of consuming it, especially seeing that thia coal—New River—was burnt on the American railroads. Ho understood that tho Gear Company burned some of tho coal in their locomotives. A Great Difficulty. One great difficulty tho Munitions Department and the Wellington Coal Trade Committee had to contend with is tho fnct that the railways burn, in tho main, screened coal. If tho railways could have burned unscreened coal in larger quantities a good deal less difficulty would have occurred, owing to the possibility of getting larger quantities by avoiding, to some extent, screening at tho mines. Tlie quantity of coal taken from the railways by the Wellington Coal Trade Committee—considering tho largo quantity handled—has been very small. In one case, that of tho Kanna, tho committee had no other option but to take it. . . . Tho Wellington Coal Trade Committee can point with pride to tho fact that in the whole of tho district controlled by them up to Gisborno on tho ono sido of tho Coast, New Plymouth on the other, and Marlborough and-Nelson, not 'a single industry had to 6top, nor was there any'unemployment through lack of coal, although thoy had thousands of tons less to distribute than wero consumed iii pre-war times, |

Saving the Industries. Concluding, Mr. Collins stated:— It must lie remembered '.hat the resumption of normal services by llio Hallway Department lias only been made possible by the action of the Wellington Coal Trade Committee. When the Newcastle strike occurred, the committee served the overseas shipping; companies with notice that they would give them bunker coal sufficient only to take them to Newcastle or Sydney, in lieu of Panama, with the proviso, that if they brought down cargoes for the New Zealand Government, or for industries, the .Munitions Department would consider giving them bunkor coal. This had the elfcct of bringing thousands of tons into New Zealand, and saving the industries and the railways, and keeping thousands of men in employment. I would like to say (with all due deference to other witnesses), that in my opinion, the cool shortage experienced by the Railway Department was due, as said formerly, to the lack of tonnage. The shortage ill railway supplies which led to tlie railway cut, occurred from the month of November to the month of June, and during the whole of this period there were ample stocks available at Newcastle if tlio Railway Department had made 91'rangeiuents for tonnuge to lift it. In this connection 1 would point out that notwithstanding the seamen's strike, the Wellington Coal. Trade Committee were ablo to get the Overseas Committee to bring down conl from Newcastle in overseas vessels.