D—4a.

26

[j. T. HENDEBSON.

27. Ho has never suggested that your men were taking advantage of you in any way whatever ?— No. 28. He had not suggested that up to the last time you had a conversation with him ? —No. 29. Have you any explanation to offer as to why he should make this statement about your men loafing ?—No, I cannot fathom it at all. 30. Has there been any unpleasantness between any members of your respective families ?— None whatever. 31. Has Mr. Jenkinson at any time found fault with your plant to you ? —No. Some years ago he remarked to me that he was urging the General Manager to get a hydraulic flanging plant: that is all that has ever taken place between us with regard to the machinery. 32. He did not discuss anything about the number of rivets you were putting in with the hydraulic riveter ? —No ;he never made any remark about the riveter at all. In fact, during that week the riveter was not in operation. 33. Do you recollect if Mr. Jenkinson visited the Workshops after Carnival Week or about the New Year ? —I was told he visited the Workshops on the morning of Monday, the 16th November. That was the day we resumed work after Carnival Week. 34. Can you say whether the hydraulic riveter was at work on that particular Monday morning ? —It was. 35. Were you away on holiday at the time ? —No, I was on duty ; but I am not clear as to whether I had not been called down to the local running department just at that particular time. 36. You were on duty, but did not happen to see Mr. Jenkinson ?—That is so. 37. With regard to that hydraulic riveter, how many 1-J in. rivets should the machine be able to put in in an ordinary day ?—Well, working on the barrel, we ought to put in about two hundred. 38. Have you ever timed the period between the closing of the rivet and the release of the pressure ?—I told the men to count fifteen, and then release the pressure. 39. Is it possible on any work that you might take live minutes, as alleged, per rivet : have you any knowledge of that ?—No, and I do not think it did take five minutes. 40. You will admit that there are places where there is some difficulty in getting the rivet home ? —I take the average on a job from the time it is put on till it is finished. 41. Two hundred rivets a day includes all the awkward rivets as well as the straightforward ones ? —Yes. 42. Have you yourself taken the time as between rivet and rivet ?—Yes. 43. What do you make it ?—You can put in about four a minute—not on boiler-work, though. 44. Have you timed them ?—Yes. Take a firebox, where the work is not so particular, they run them in at about one for every thirty seconds. 45. There has been a reference made to the overhead lifting-winch you have there. Do you consider it would be a very great advantage to you if that were driven electrically or otherwise ? — Very much so. Hydraulic, I should say. As far as I can understand, the latest plant they have over in New South Wales is hydraulic, which is more under the command of the operator. 46. Mr. Jenkinson yesterday made some reference to the machinery going very slowly when he was there the last time—that would be on the Monday you spoke of ; and he suggested that there was a want of pressure. Have you any explanation of that ?—The working of the machines dependent upon one accumulator must, of course, be largely regulated by the pressure, which is dependent on the number of machines operating at the given moment. 47. It is quite possible, then, for the apparatus to momentarily run out of power ?—That is so. 48. That does not occur so frequently as to cause any considerable loss of time or trouble ? —No. 49. Speaking generally, does that hydraulic plant work satisfactorily ?—Yes. 50. Of course, if kept in repair ? —Yes. 51. When in good repair it answers your purpose ? —When the pump is in first-class order, yes. 52. With regard to your clerical work, do you find that your clerical work takes up too much of your time ? —lt does take up a good deal. I would like, of course, to be able to spend more time in the shop. 53. Would it be possible to make more use of the Workshop clerk ? —Yes, it would be. 54. Could you get him, do you think ?—As a matter of fact, you have got to build up your replies to take them over to him to write them out, and there is the copying of them afterwards. 55. And you find it less trouble to do it yourself ?—That is so. 56. Id what form could you get assistance that would be useful to you ?—lt might be done in this way : Say there are five foremen, and the clerk's duties were so arranged that he could give one of us each a day. I think that would get over the difficulty. 57. How much of your time do you reckon is spent in the office per day ?—I should judge about three hours out of the eight. There is the initialling-up of the time-book ; that has to be done every day. 58. How long would that take ? —About two hours. 59. You always do that yourself ; the clerk could not do it for you ?—No, he is not allowed. 60. And the extra hour is devoted to such correspondence or papers as you may have ?—Yes. 61. Is the other plant, irrespective of the riveter, good and sufficient, or have you any remarks to make about it ?—lf we had a flanging plant, and our punching and shearing machines were more modern, I think we should have everything we required. 62. And, of course, a power-lift for the riveter ?—Yes. 63. Your boiler-drilling, barrel-drilling, and firebox-drilling is satisfactory ? —Perfectly. There is nothing in Victoria or New South Wales to compete with them.