THE PRICE OF COAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 22 April 1921, Page 2

THE PRICE OF COAL.

(To the Editor.) Sir, —The conference betwen mineowners and miners’ representatives has ended; matters remain where they were; you have laid the miners across your edito~’al knee and well spanked them; and the price of coal is still a puzzle to be solved. The owners’ representatives, of course, did not talk any nonsense; for instance, when they said that a carpenter’s job was more deleterious than a miner’s, or when they said that mining was the healthiest occupation in the world. Also it is worthy of note that they neither denied that they were charging 16s per ton more for their coal than the State mine, nor d:.d they produce any figures to support their assertion that an increase to the uniners would ruin the industry. You, of course, being so busy spanking the miners, would have no time to deal with these points. After reading a full account of the conference, one is left with .the impression that the mine-owners’ representatives were something like Bill Nye in "The Heathen Chinee”: — The cards they were stacked In a way that I grieve, And my feelings were shocked At the state of Nye’s -sleeve, Which was stuffed full of aces and bowers, And the same with intent to deceive. Let us, however, leave both miners and owners out of the Question for a moment, and turn to another aspect of the case. I want you to let me put to you a suppositious case, and I want you, out of the fullness of knowledge which it is so well known is the endowment' of every editor, to give me and your readers some infonmation which will help us to see why coal is at its present price, and who is, as it were, "skimming the cream" off the industry. Supposing that the State mine produces in a certain time a certain amount of coal, which costs on the trucks at the mine £91,000, and supposing, further, that the same quantity of coal cos.ts the consumer in Wellington £425.000, what or who is responsible for the difference of £334,000? Again, supposing that the same quantity of coal costs on the boat at West port or elsewhere £157,000, how do you account for the fact that it costs £268,000 to get it to the consumer in Wellington? I have said Wellington, but, of course, I know all the State coal is not sold in Wellington For the present purpose, however, to help us to condense the question we may assume that it is all sold there. If you will answer these questions, we shall be well on the road to finding out at least part of the truth about coal and coal-uniners—not to mention owners.—l am, etc., F.D.

[We pass over our correspondent’s sarcasm, and, in reply to his question, remind him that we stated it would be far better for the miners, instead of fighting for their preposterous demands, to have the whole matter dealt with by an impartial tribunal, which would give a square deal all round by settling how much was due to the owners and miners respectfully, and what amount of coal should be got out by the -men; also the price the consumer should pay. No comparison can be made between the State mines and those privately owned, as the .financial conditions are quite different, the State having public monej' for capital, not being concerned with earning dividends, and being free of rates and taxes.—Ed.]