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APPENDIX K.

EMPLOYMENT OF COLOURED LABOUR ON MAIL STEAMERS.

EMPLOYMENT OF COLOURED LABOUR ON MAIL STEAMERS. The Agent for the Peninsulas and Oeiental Steam Navigation Company to the Hon. the Peesident of the Postal and Telegeaph Confeeence. Laid upon the Table by the Hon. Mr Ward, and ordered to be printed. Sic,— 21st February, 1894. Apropos of the inclosed paragraph, which appeared in the Sydney Daily Telegraph of the 16th instant, I have the honour to bring under your notice two statements which are reported to have been made by deputationists who waited on the Postmaster-General of New South Wales. These, if allowed to remain uncontradicted, cannot but create a wrong impression in regard to the events to which they refer It is stated that at the wreck of the " Tasmania " " the native crew took possession of the lifeboats, some of which were swamped while being launched, while the passengers were left to shift for themselves." To this utterly incomprehensible statement I feel I must give a most unqualified denial, and in support thereof I would remind the members of your distinguished body of the fact that, although the commander, several of the European, and about thirty of the native crew perished, not one single passenger was lost. At the inquiry held in London, shortly after the disaster, it was conclusively shown that the native crew, so far from rushing the boats, behaved admirably, and, as a matter of fact, died at their posts. The other point to which I would refer is the somewhat ill-thought-out reference to the wreck of the British India Steam Navigation Company's s.s. "Quetta," in respect of which I will crave your indulgence, simply for the purpose of mentioning that the time which elapsed between the striking of this vessel on an unknown rock and her actual sinking was inside three minutes. I have, &c, A. D. Miohie, The Hon. the President of the Australian Postal Conference, Wellington. Agent.

[Extract from the Sydney Daily Telegraph, dated the 16th February, 1894.] COLOUBED LABOUE ON MAIL StEAMEES.—DEPUTATION TO THE PosTMASTEE-GeNEBAL.—The Besolution op the Labour Confeeence. A deputation, consisting of Messrs. Davis, Houghton, Gardiner, Cann, Langwell, J D. Fitzgerald, Bavister, and Edden, waited on the Postmaster-General yesterday, and asked that no subsidies should be paid to mail or other steamers belonging to lines on which coloured labour was employed. Mr Davis said the deputation understood that the Postmaster-General was about to leave for the Postal Conference in New Zealand, and they desired to say that the Intercolonial Labour Conference, recently held in Sydney, had passed a resolution to the effect that every effort should be made to induce the various Governments contributing to the subsidies of steamers carrying mails or other articles to insert a clause in the contract providing that none but European or Australian labour should be employed. Action similar to that now being taken had already been urged on the Premier of South Australia, and he believed with good effect, as Mr Kingston had fallen in with the adoption of the idea, and quite agreed that only Europeans or Australians should form the crews, of these vessels. A similar deputation had also waited on the Premier of Victoria, and he believed the matter was under consideration by the Government. The South Australian delegate to the. Postal Conference had, he was told, received instructions to vote in favour of granting no subsidy to any mail steamer carrying a black crew In Queensland, about eighteen months ago, the Government had fallen in with the same idea, and in the new contract with the British-India Steam Navigation Company a clause had been inserted specifying that only European labour should be employed on the boats. The deputation thought it would be only right that the New South Wales Government should fall in with the views adopted by the Governments of the two colonies named. The P and O. Company, which received half the subsidy given to the English mail lines, employed crews of lascars and other Asiatics, while the Orient Company employed only Europeans. There was no doubt that the P and 0. boats were very fine ones, but in case of disaster their crews could not be relied on to do their duty When the E.M.S. " Tasmania" went ashore in the Mediterranean a few years ago, the coolie crew took possession of the lifeboats, some of which were swamped while being launched, while the passengers were left to shift for themselves. A large