WELLINGTON TOPICS

Taihape Daily Times, 18 January 1919, Page 5

WELLINGTON TOPICS

THE FERR SERVICE,

MAORI HELP UP.

(Special Correspondent.)

WELLINGTON, Jan. 17, *

The ferry service between Wellington and Lyttelton serves so many interests in the Dominion from the North Cape to the Bluff that its present partial dislocation is causing widespread inconvenience land loss. The popular disposition is to blame the Union Steam Ship Company for every disorganisation of the service, but in the present case the responsibility seems to rest upon the circumstances that have created a shortage of regular firemen and given casual bands, commonly known as “runners” an opportunity to exploit the Company. These temporary Lands have been demanding £6 for the round trip between the two ports, that is by signing on and signing off at times of their own'choosing they have managed to make three days’ wages at an exorbitant rate of out of ten or twelve hours w r ork. THE SEAMEN’S UNION PROTESTS.

The patience of the Company, which endured through the holiday season, was exhausted at the beginning of this weehf land rather than be. (exploited further if did not send the Maori South on Wednesday nigUfi. This brought matters to ia head and yesterday the secretary of the Seamen’s Union strongly protested against his organisation being held responsible for what was happening. "The action of the runners,” Mr. Young said, "is in no way endorsed by the Union, which is anxious to carry out the conditions of the existing agreement in every particular. The runners are mere - selfish individualists who entirely disregard the best interests of their fellows by bringing discredit upon the principles of unionism.” The effort of this official statement, approved by all tho responsible members of the Union, has been to clear the (atmosphere and it is hoped the service will resume its regular to-night. PUBLIC WORKS. Mr. F. Mander, the member for Marsden, who has been in Wellington this wck looking after the interests of his constituents, speaks very emphatically of the need for the active prosecution of public works in view of the new demands that are being made upon the country in connection with the war. “We have taken up a. tremendous burden of debt,” he said this morning, "and the only way we can make it tolerable is by developing to “the utmost the productive resources of the Dominion. Our waste lands must be roaded and railed, and settled, our occupied lands must be turned to the best possible account and every individual in the community must realise tho responsibility that lies before him. ’ ’ Naturally, Mr. Mander is specially concerned for the development of the North of Auckland, but ho docs not take a parochial /view of the position and would have every province put in a position to do its utmost towards the common weal. DEFENCE MATTERS.

The practical close of the war, so far as Now Zealand is directly concerned, has not lessened nor modified the criticism by which the Defence Department has been assailed since the dispatch of the Alain Body of the Expeditionary Force. It is generally recognised that the Minister at the head of the Department has accomplished great things and that this is not the time to be recalling his earlier mistakes; but grave dissatisfaction with the administration of some of the branches of the Department continues and is finding the frankest expression. It is complained, for instance, that the Financial Assistance Board is altogether out of joint, seeming anxious to evade its responsibilities as long as it can, and that at the same time costly military appointments of no obvious value except to the recipients are being saddled upon the country. There plainly is a lively time before the Minister when the tongues of his critics are loosened by the final declaration of peace.