GOAL MINES COMMISSION.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXIII, Issue 78, 23 April 1901, Page 2

GOAL MINES COMMISSION.

SITTING AT NEW PLYMOUTH. The Commission gat on Monday at the OourfcheuHfi to receive evidence in regard to tha Mokau Ceal Mines, Mr. J, H. Quilliam (Gnvett and Qtjilliam), solicitors for a Sydney syndicate now owning the mines, said he had been conversant with the affairs of thft Moknu Goal Mines property for the past sevea or sight years. It was originally operated by a New Plymouth company about 15 years ago. Then » Makau Coal Syndicate was formed, onsisting largely of Scottish shareholders, and having .£IO,OOO capital. This company bsgan work in 1895, and lost two steamers on the coast, but not near tbo Mokau river. It suspended speratione in 1898, having loit all its share capital and incurred o'rher liabilities. He attributed the failure to tht capital being too small, and to the los of the s'eimers, together with various other losses, largely due to a certair amount of bad management aDd to inexperience. The syndicate was wounc i up in 1900 by order of the Court, wit uess being appointed liquidator. Tb( property consisted of 4240 acres o native lcuso land in the Mang'ipapi 1 Block B, and was purchased by thi present owners (the Taranaki Collieric Syndicate) in July, 1900. This was : company formed in Sydney. In .No vember last it acquired the lease of tb Mangapapa Block B. (No. 2), consist ing of 8167 acres, from Mr. H. Irvine who had kased it from the native s The upper mine wa« equated on thi block. Tho tei mi of bate were ia eacl case for 42 years, with a right of re oewil. Tho syndicate had expendei £2OOO on a scow, besides payin, £13,000 purchasa money for the pro perty ; and a steamer was now bain 1 built for the trade at a cost of £46OC The comp»ny had not yet commence! operations, as some necessary formula* had oot been complied with. Ha undor stood it was intended to build sevtra ■steamers and to thoroughly exp'oit thi coal trade. At present the miues wen being worked by Mr. ucder : temporary arrangemsnt with the cam pany.

Mr. F. P. Cbrkill, land arid commission agent, was the nex. witness He first visited the Mokau in 1882, when the country was clos-.d to Euro-

peans, patties heibg flowed to gr> through only by favour of th-> Maoris. Since that time the eouutry bad beer. prospected in a spasmodic sort cf way. Some t6n yens ago ho and another gentleman wro rjego'.iatiag for a large block of land in tbe Mangoir eßlock, but their efforts failed. Since then be, believed ths la«d had be«n leaded f row the natives by a European. As to the demand for coal, M.-. Uo-kill Bjid there was a fairly large market in the district. Supplies cime from the South Island, supplemented by what could be got from tho Mokau. Much uioro of the latter would be ussd if it wore obtainable. Tho retail price of West port o-al was 45s par ton, and Mok.«u ranged fn-m 25s to 35s for small bts, when ciHa.nable, No qther ccnl was

• used in the tfisftfo'. He bad r.o idin ■nf the quantity o r coil imported In his own house he preferred Mokau. coal to any othtr, as it was clem, gave a good heat, and was mare economical. If regular supplies were obtainable th« coil consumption in the district wouli be largely increased. Daii-y f.c die* consumed a go:d deal, preferring it to Westport—at the pviw. Tho quality of the Mckau coal had improved considerably sinco it was fir..t put up.in the market. It was hopeless to expect land carriage for tlu< Ceal for main years to come; not until the field was tapped by a railway, With improvements to 'the river and a better class of vessels, such sg that now under construction, the output could be largely increased and the cost lessened. He l did not think the bar eould be im proved. In his opinion thero had never baen a suitable vessel on the

river; what was wanted was a ligh'

| draught, large carrying capacity, and powerful engines, the freshes iu the i river being very strong at time*. The bar could not be successfully worked by any vf ssel drawing over seven feet of water. The reason why mors Mokau coal was mot used was that there were no boats tq bring it dpw.n,

Captain A. Jonas, of Wai'ara, said he wa3 master of the scow Surprise. running between Mokau, Waitara, and New Plymouth, and had traded to Mokau since 1897. The greatest depth on the bar was 11 fee*:, and a vtssel drawing eight feat was the largest that could safely navigate it, and that only on the flood tide. The scow bad to h> towed in mi out. of. bo\h Mokau atd the Waitara. She carried 108 tone, and towage cost £8 a trip— £& at Wa ; - ■ara and £i at M°kau, The freight charged was 8s per ton. The 8;e»m r bad to tiavsl with tin eqov, a-d carried a cargo of 40 tons of ooal. ThSiow vras tow«d up and down beUee , Mokau whiuf and the mines (24 mil?s) by a steam launch, (he charge teing £5 per trip. At otditary the river could bo worked (up) for ab.Hi; Ave hours on each tide. To coma down a boat drawing eight feet would have to start from the mines at high water, or within au hour aft"r. The river banka were now, with ono or two exceptor s, covered with original vogetafcion, and if this were ciearod aw ivy t.hoi-3 wruld be a gr.vve danger of the banks falling away, Plats would thtn sin formed, and the depth of w ter dr.- . ivaeed. As Kelly's mill, bush had been chafed, lhn banks ba:i f-'.llen, ar.d the wa'er sl.gal d. Witness1 had be«n engagod in.coal carrying fo: 20 years, and Mokau coil was th>i res\ hf lad knwn for household purpose-, Hr had used it for throe yons for steim purposes, and it wasalwayseatis Factory. Tho sailing k'-ab could mskf about 30 trips in a year. If a training wall wore built on the south nide of t.le river eutraßca and tha snags clearot >ut of the river, it would be s.fer to navigate, q. d cpu'4 bo worked for longer peri'ds on rack t.u'e. Ho did not think barges would to brinjj coal to New Plyracuib, as the weather was often too rough for 'owing oa tht; open sea, though boats like the scofr might ba tow'ed successfully. 'Jhi channel ever thb Mokau bar was about 50 feet wide; but a training .vail en the sou'bern side wqu]d inike t,be channel g'raijjh'; and wider, and tlu i Miour would duepeu it. A b<»t could be loaded in an hour if an improved '

sfcuto wove p'ov;dG'.l. ' At presorf it took him ii<l ,y *o loac.

Ge<\ s'. S'-.ubbs, coal m'i'chan'-, 'ai*' 'no was t'io present pripncrto • of the Mokaa Coal Mines, under r, lease from '.lie p'esrn'-. ovneva of lig property i'he rninea were nn the Mangapapa B .iloek. His first connection With the nines was as an employee ef the Mokau Joal Mines Company, three and a-half ' 'pars ago, being stationed at Wai- ' *ra. Two.and a-half years ago he J ook charge of the mine. About 20,000 ' ons of toal had been taken oHt, and ' he workings were in a fair state. 1 since then witness had ekaned ant the ( Bines, widened the tunnels, and itn- ' irovsd the ventilation in all faces. ! Phe main drive had baen driven in ] .bout 22 chains. The seam was an iven one, lying horizontally. The ' oof was particularly good and very ittle timber was used. Witness had ' ■aken nearly 8000 tons out during the ' mas two and a-half years ; but during v iat time the workings had been closed iown for about six months, owing to '' ressels being wrecked. The pre-ent mtput was about 100 tons per week. Seventeen hands were employed, seven aen working on the face. The men »ere paid 9s per day, and those on )iece work received 2s 9d to 3s 4d pur ism, according to the thickness of itcme batween the seams ; and 4s per ?ard for driving stsntons. The men !o no trucking, and the piece men iverage 10s per day. During the last ;ix moaths the men have put in full icne, but before that the time was n'oken, owing to shortage of steamers. Che coul was sold chiefly at Waitara, teing taken from the mines in a scow, urrying an average load of 110 tons. Shi had to be towed up and down the VToka'i, and sometimes over the Waiara bar. Practically it took two >oa'.s (steamer and scow) to take a largo to Waitara, but the steamer larried 40 tons, The steamer was (bartered, and was paid 8a a ton freight >n what she carried, and £2 for each ;ow. The scow was towed up the Wokan by a launch. Reckoned the lost of transit from the mine to Waiara at 8a per ton nil ronrd, and wharf - igo amounted to Is per ton. The coal vas sold at Waitara at 20s per ton en he trucks For coal owned at Waitara 22s 6d was charged. \.t present it wae costing 8s 6d pT ton .t the tip hetd. The Waitara Freezng Works, when running, tako 25 ons per week. About 30 tons weekly yr.uld suffice for the balance of Wai-

tira's consumption. The other coal was sent to New Plymouth, Ingleword and Stratford, Tha coal was

carried to N6\v Plymouth at is 9d par fon as a " brown coal " by rail. In

the Taranaki market he could dispose "f 1000 a month if it could be got out. He expected to be able ta work up to that amount shortly. He was just starting to work up a trade with' Wanginui, whero. it would bB used ehi.fly for household purposes. It would be carried by boat from th* mine to Winganui. The coal was used both at Waitara aßd New Plymouth for pteam purpose*. The coal had beer. tpsted for locomotive use, but the engineer thought it was too soft to stand the strong blast required in generating high-pressure steam, A stfamor was being built in Sydaey for the trade, but she was not to be sent until some snaggling wsb done to the river, This would, he estimated, cost, roneh'y, £IOOO. Tha steamer being built was 100 feet long on the keel, 22 feat wide on the beam, and 8 feer, 6 inohrs draught, loaded. At present he c~u'd no* work boats drawing over 6 feet 6 inches regularly, though bnats drawing 8 feet f> inches were loaded on the spring sides. It was nopeeaary v hat the bush should, be preserved on the binks," Unless this is done the

banks will deprave, the river bed widen, and shoals form, and the stream become fall ©f fallen timbor. The mine was in charga of a mine maaager who had been there 12 months. V- isness' instructions to the manager were to do all necessary fsr the safety of the men employed, and to carry out the provisions ef the Coal Mines Act. There was abundance of timber for mining. Only one accident had occurred since he had charge, a mac cleaning the roof being struck by a piece falling from the roof. The man's blood was in a bad state, and he died about five months' after. Had cot heard of the coal fal'ing in the mine. The miners are paid for unscreened] coal, filled with a shovel. He lost 20 per cent, in scrrening the coal at the tip-heap. The screenings were burned in thejwas'e he»p. Waßganui would soon, he thought, take 500 tons a month, and he thought Kaipara would take a similar qmntity, as people there were pleas "d with trial lots. A few; cargoes sent to Wellington sojd readily

i"- liousehold coal, The freight >n a rpgular conl servue to WoHing•"■n» from the mine would bo about 10s pprton, Wharfage at New Plymouth was Is 9d pnr ton, and at Wanganui and Wellington Is, as at Waitara. At timfs ho had to barge Iho coal to Man2a*a«va. ten mi'es down the livr, through sings preventings'mmers from "oming up, and thh co-t him extra, ! The mine was easily worked, and if tho river were snugged and the entrance improved as much cnal could be got out as was r-qmr<d for the market. The monthly pay sheet for the past six months was between £l4O and £l5O. There was a shortage of railway trucks *t Waitara at times, so that bad to w;ijt. To Mr. Proud ; He had never be en able t 8 get a gnnuine tost of the usloiific power of Mokau coal as compared with Wwtpwt. It was paid to bo about 10 to 12, Ho could not give an opinion as to the practicability of the plan folWed in working the mine. Th« ;< hoards" wero driven 18 feet wide, pillars were left 18 feet wide. Ston l ,ons wet's 15 apart. No pitI irs wprfi taken rut of the mine. There are about ten sraled-off boards on th* d>p, and 20 on the m'sp. These are all winding. He had never come across "•ny f-ofl. eoal in the working faces, and had only Som one f au ] t _ a s j 2 .f oJt nownfault,

I Ilus circles tbo *vHenoo to be '; "">""' tll ° Commissioners proceed f o Wellington to-day to pvepare their report,

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THE CrKADINU POUT QUKSTIOIf.

TO TUT. EMTOrt. Sir,—Pei-rait me to roply to the lo.ter of J. P. Holloway, vvMoh nppwmid in your issue of the I7"li ins'-. It is a solf-evident proposition that r. controversy dor-s not nlw.iyn s?ttle the question under discission on I the best foundation. This principal applies with special force to the raa'tw naw engaging the attention of dairymen, the constituting of another grading port for the provincial district of Taranaki. My object, therefore, in now writing, is Dot so much to review the letter mentioned, as to briefly put the main issues before, and warn onco for all my fellow sottlers against the attempts now being made to c*rry a certain point—which, in my opinion, and I claim to know something cf the business—if successful, will put baok the dairying industry for 10 years. As usual, in such cases, J. F. Holloway has carefully avoided the main issues at stake, and adroitly introduced side issues which apparently become of undue importance in the minds of thos"

who have to determine what is best,

In September, 1900, the Executive of I the National Dairy Association, a legally constituted body, which exists only to safeguard the interests of all engaged in dairying pursuits, and has | no axo to grind, no harbour rate to pay, no harbour interest to advocate—and no locality to benefit at the expensa of its neighbour-had the following problem to solve:—l. Had the timo ar-

rived in the history nod experience of dairying in Taranaki when tbe producers should themselves control tbe freezing and cool storage of dairy produce or allow a middleman to do it for them ? Tbe word " middleman " is not intended in any offensive sense, but as clearly defining the position which exists. 2. Would a scheme of centralisation and combination tend to unity, strength, and a vass saving of expenditure from a commercial point of view ? 3. In tbe Rvent of thc< above boing considered desirable, was it advisable to erect new, cr acquire existing works to attain the above objects ? 4. What poit in T*r,«iaki—that istos-iy, Wuitara, New Plymout'.), Opucake or Patea could handle for ox j port 250,000 boxes if butter at once, 'iffectivtly, regularly avid cheaply ? Sir, !ho:e were th»i important issues that presented themselves to the Executive, j and still demaud tho serious consideration of all interested. Independent of persons or localities, tho Executive are of opinion that in the best interests of the district they satisfactorily answered those questions, and having done so, they took the dairymen of Tarauaki into their full confidence. It is. needless to say, that with so many conflicting interests at work, it was no child's play for the Committee who had tbe task a lotted them. Every phase of the question has been, threshed threat tbare, and amongst the, 40 Co-op. Dairy Factories in tho district, it was almoao unanimously decided, that New Plymouth should be the. port, and the Moturoa Works acquired. I affirm, en the broad prinoipleß enumerated above,' the step was a wise one. Naturally, the question arose in reference to factories at a distance pwing heavy mil agtf to Motu:oa, it was i-.ugg! stfd i:y 'me of the meinbnv, who propounded the scheme, that tbe principle dqw applicable'to fruit could lja applied with advantage to dairy produce, that is, a uniform rate, for a long or short distance. This would bring those factories at. a distance from the seaboard as close to tha port as those more advantageously situated. The Minister of Hailways has publicly s'.atei that ho will adopt this principle in future. If sub division, as in the case of Patea, means strength an.i unity, '.he principle carried to its logical conclusion is tbat *very factory should be supplied by! Government with its own grader, and possess its own freezi-igchambw. Turning now to tbe mipoi;. issues raised by J. F. Holjoway, reference may be mads* to, the orieinators of the Patea movements. The difference between the two schemes is that tbe purchase of the Moturoa Works emanated with the dairymen of Taranaki, and the Patea scheme came into existence with the business people of tbat town, vide cirr culars circulated by Patea Chamber of Commerce, and sigm-d by the Chairman (Mr R. A. Adams), and a'so the faot that Messrs Adams, Symcs and. Oldham, attended a meeting of dairymen held at Stratford in the interests of their projec s, I therefore give the statements o{ Mv J, F. Holloway, "No .

outsider beyond the writer of this letter holds a prominent place in originating the schema," an emphatic denial! The socond point is thy ast of work-'. "The Southern pioducers," Mays J. F Holloway, "wouid bo only too happy to [foil in, provided they had not to -oe.tribute luoro rl>;m ihsir cjinta, u-i represented by tho cost of wviks ;r l:\itca," 0:i th,i advugthot this (idmission T claim the ;>upp.rt <f the " Southern Producers " to the ilotu'm lecheme, What is ths position it, presents? Ton factories huvo to fi»d .£SOOO in the Pate* scheme, an average of .£SOO each ; leaving Motunu with 30 factories who have to find .£15,000, which is also iSOO each. When you consider that amongst the 30 there is 4 greater proportion of Issrge factories, the bmdea is lighter proportio-iato-y for the SO than the 10. What bi<coa«i * of the quota in the fae-J of this fact ? -4 s to tho cot of Moturoa Works, it, i only ncoe6.«ary to siy that <,ik> uf t!i strongest supporters of Patea proposed a certain limit for the purchase of the said Works, and the Committee were able to secure them as .£350 helow th, price fixed by the resolution. I refrain from giving the propose." » uamo, but if anyone is inter.sted in this question, they are at liberty to inspect the records of the Dairy Companies' proceedings. It is greitly to b=) regretted that in this movement there should bo a diversity of opinion, arising from eer'ain interests whbh 'are nv.t c>»ducivo to the welfor, 1 o' dairying, for by unity of action the. c ar.i enormous po-.sibi'i-ied bi'or-' <h<-\ First, th- combine' i-.fluence! to reduce rail*ay freight- to a <wimv ■ib'e amount; secoi d'y, m ''i-'p o

..■ si tracts T"i h *tv-. rliipfi ;: ■ :n----panies for the rfjju'ar despa'cb asiri in rival of Btoarai r.< in tiiv. Home markets; thirdly, the reduction of the

, ... • u> ji^J^J^H per iuu on <!ie n li v. - ' butter; and fourthly, tha : ' f t> competent nmi lo "!,">• "viso «HH wttch the dispone! of dai y pr>>' in" tic Jlome market, awl w:o il-w'd bo :■' sohitoly mdepftjidontof H nvc ;i;roritfl. T.io above can bo oii'v ?.:zJ.wd by and if <:\■■>, <i on«. will put .: ,ii.-iarids v.' ri 'u itii.o 1;ho p'Ckets of t';..>■■ ~ ~ ',!(;.,;S mid mo (v -: :!: :. -..',:.. 1 «,: 'Loir '■' ■ • • -'■.,. ■ ■., Y, .'-, .«..; .'..lv'th "■ >V. ! \.r, i ...■■,/ ..;.. fc -S.-.11 ij-viC-.'illOlt ■'■<■■ U-. , JU ? ,;-J-"., .;; '.'., ~..,j li-.'.uvht-d, vni (M/i.iu.l.-, \vi:.li tcai.ispohiiig tlie w<i,.'3 of yfii-r Midori •., J. F, I olloway," tint within two years Pate* will recognise that Moturoa has the bn«ipe«s end of the industry."—l am, r.tc.,

Joseph G. Haekkess.