THE WHARF MANAGEMENT.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 4985, 15 March 1877, Page 2

THE WHARF MANAGEMENT.

: # TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEW ZEALAND TIMES. Sib, —Referring to the deputation of carters and others who yesterday interviewed the Wharf Committee to protest against the new cartage arrangements, I think it my duty to place the public in possession of the facts of the case, so that they may be in a position to draw their own conclusions therefrom when necessary. I.' This cartage regulation was not directly or indirectly brought forward or influenced by me. It was introduced and adopted by the committee themselves. I was then instructed to advertise the resolution at once, and to engage drays at the proper time. , I pointed out that this rule would interfere with vested interests, and that there would be a violent opposition raised in many quarters. I waß told to be firm and carry out the regulations. I shall continue to do so as long as the committee support me and give me their countenance in the carrying out of their own orders. I shall not allow anything extraneous to divert my attention from the main issue, and will confine my remarks to such part of the wharf management as bears on,the cartage question. Accusations of any otter nature against me I shall be happy to answer at the proper time. 2. One or two of the carters seated— (a) That goods were not sorted and stowed on the wharf. (6.) That drays stood wherever they pleased. (c.) That the wharfinger did not exercise his power of storing after three hours. (d.) That insufficient labor was employed, (e.) That the goods were allowed to accumulate till 3 o'clock in the afternoon. (/.) That the extra men were paid weekly instead of daily, consequently good ..men, were unwilling to work. My replies to. which are— ■, • > ;;• , (a.) There are 90.0 r 100 consignees in a ship. The Rakaia, at present .unloading, has 89. One-fourth of cargo; is for transhipment ; for at least another third either the Customs' entries are not passed or orders for their disposal are not received. A ship takes say fourteen days to discharge—it is quite impossible even to guess at the order goods may be delivered from the hold, and the wharf is not large enough to leave blank space for cargo that may not come to hand the day entries are passed or orders received." In'short, there .is not sufficient room to properly sort cargo in the present limited space, without incurringgreat additional expense for labor. ; (6.) I gavea draymanoncein chargeto a policeman because he would' not obey my orders. The policeman-declined to take him, and on to the Inspector, I was told my Remedy was at law, or' by forcibly removing the offender at my own risk. The block always takes place of course in busiest times. At great inconvenience I on several occasions took men from their work, and removed the 'drays to the top of the wharf, whence they very quickly returned ! I have not time to go to law ' with every offender. As a general rule, however, I may state that I have experienced-civility and a readiness'to move when told by large numbers of the city carters. The pity has been to see these men wasting their time looking over a wharf full of 200 or 300 tons of goods, and sometimes going away empty because a certain packag* they wanted for a particular merchant was not there, and might not be out of the ship for a week. ■ (c.) I do not exercise my power of storing after three hours to any large extent, simply because I have no place big enough to hold the goods. The sheds are"' not large enough properly to hold all the transhipment and tin-paßsed-for goods, which must be stored. These transhipments are sorted according to their port of destination, for re-delivery to coasting steamers. None but shipping houses know the inconvenience of short shipping a single package of transhipments under bond after all th« entries are passed. A nice mess the transhipping clerks would be in if I completely oovered up their goods. I should like to give a tribute of praise to Mr. Prince and his subordinate, Mr. Osborne, who manage this department—a part of the work the public never

hear/of, but perhaps the most important and the most difficult to work smoothly. • '(d.)Thatinsufficientlaborwasemployed. The remedy for this is simple, viz,, to pay more wages. «,'"' ■ vl employ a certain number of men to each English ship—four men to receive ex ship and a tally clerk, and on an average four to five men to deliver and a delivery clerk. As an English ship discharges, say on an average not more than 140 tons a day, from 8 o'clock to 3, I maintain that even were the goods all passedfor and were there no transhipments, this number of men could deliver easily that quantity of goods from 8 to 5 o'clock, if the drays worked regularly all the time; but as a matter"' of fact, fully forty tons of this quantity arc detained for transhipment, and for want of Customs and shipping orders for delivery; ' leaving an average of 100 tons to be delivered., during the day. If however the City Corporation wish me to employ more labor than ia absolutely necessary, I shall do so ; but I beg to observe that I cannot make a large profit, and at the same time|please everyone, by an extravagant system of labor. Had I from the commencement adopted such a course, the committee could not safely have remitted, for the public benefit, the estimated sum of £ISOO a year by making, transhipments free of wharfage, or be in a position now,to make the proposed further reduction of £IOOO per annum, by striking off the wharfage on coastwise goods, so as to place Wellington merchants in a fairer position to compete for the trade.

. More goods have passed over the wharf this year than ever before, the large Government imports that swelled the amount in the previous years having for the most part been transhipped without coming on to the wharf. Inthe matter of wool aloae the amount last year was 30,000 bales. This season it will touch 42,000, and it is gratifying to me to know by the following letter from the principal shippers, that this important branch has been , managed to their satisfaction. • Wellington, March 13,1877. ; Sib, —Is answer to your verbal request, we beg to say that during this Beason we have experienced less difficulties and inconveniences in the shipment ol wool than during former wool seasons, and that we have good cause for satisfaction in this respect.—We are, &c,,—Levin and Co., Johnston and Co., Krulland Co., Bethune and Hunter, Murray, Common (per W," Harris), Edward Pearce (jwr W. H. Meek). :_^ , The Wharfinger, Queen's Wharf, Wellington. *.-. ; This department ,has been this year placed under the charge of Mr. Backhouse, wool clerk, who is entitled to great credit for his carefulness and courtesy, and Mr. Morrell, the engineer, has under him, I do not hesitate to say, from what I saw of woolpressing during my holiday last month down South, one of the very best gangs of wool pressers in New Zealand.

(<?.) Goods accumulate on the wharf up to three o'clock for two reasons—First, som* carters (not all) knowing that no one else can take the goods they contract to move, suit their o>n convenience, which 1 is, of course, as late as possible in theday, by which time their other work in towa' is got through. Some carters contract to do more work than can possibly be overtaken in busy times without inconvenience to the wharf. Second, merchants will not pass entries and procure, delivery orders early. The time for receiving these orders is from eight to three o'clock. I have known a merchant send down orders for 100 tons at 3,20 p.m., and ex* pect the lot delivered at. once. This I try to do to save expense.. In the late lessee's time such goods were quietly stored for the night at a charge to the merchant of 2s. per ton.

> (f.) Inßtead of objecting to be paid weekly, it turns out, curiously enough, that all the extra men object to be paid any other way, as you will note by the following memorandum, signed by all those employed on that day. ,

We, the undersigned laborers, hereby certify that we are satisfied with the system of weekly wages payment now prevailing on the Queen's wharf:—Chas.Johnston, And. Clark, Geo. Cock. W. Benham, Jss. Jordan, d. Leonard, Wm. Hutchinson. J. S. Farllls, Asserlind, F. Beard, R. Stormont, P. T.Beade, T. W. Bastman, a. Gonder, W. Roberts, H; Smith, B. Carroll, J. McNamara. T. "Wood, Chas. Williamson, Robert Robertson, C. NlUsson, John Potter.

It is my ambition to get for the port of Wellington a name for economy and despatch. If arrangements I can; be/made—first for the immediate removal-of-goods for which entries - are not passed to the " examination warehouse" of the'Queen's bond (to be now opened by express permission of the Collector of Customs, who cordially co-operates in anything tending to benefit the port); second, for the regular and immediate removal by drays of all goods for town as they come out, I see my way without block to permit ships to discharge from 8 a,m. to 5 p.m. without stopping ; and thus, on account of its great natural advantages, to place Wellington ahead of any other port in New Zealand for economy and despatch, —I am, &c, "■. Edward Reeves.