42

D.—4a

James Hislop (called by Mr. Hampton) examined. (No. 23.) |J 1. Mr. Hampton.] What is your present position ? —I am a retired Eailway servant. 2. You were employed at Addington Workshops ? —Yes, for fully twenty-four years. 3. What other shops have you worked in during your lifetime ?—I served my time with the old firm of Tod and McGregor, in Glasgow, in 1864. I also worked in the Anchor Line Shipping Company, Glasgow, for five years ; with Messrs. King and Co., Glasgow ; in Dubbs and Co.'s locomotive-works ; and also in Nelson's, in Springburn. In New Zealand I have worked in the Hillside Shops, in Messrs. Sparrow and Co.'s, and in Morgan and Cable's at Port Chalmers. I have worked also with Price Bros. at the Thames, and with Messrs. Brown and Smale at Gisborne. 4. Would you tell the Commissioners how the discipline and work done in Addington compares with that of the various other places you have been in ?-r-I have worked in those different private shops I have mentioned, and at Addington I have worked as hard as ever I worked in any shop, either in the Old Country or in New Zealand. 5. That applies also to the time you were with Price Bros. ? —Yes, I worked as hard in Addington. A. and G. Price was the name of the firm then. 6. Mr. Jenkinson stated in his evidence that he had recommended you, together with Messrs. Earwaker and Eoss, for appointment as leading hand in the boilermaking-shop. Did he do this with your authority ? —No. 7. Did you ever approach Mr. Jenkinson and ask him to speak to Mr. Eonayne on your behalf ? — Never. 8. The Chairman.] You say you worked as hard in Addington as in any private shop. Can you give us any idea, speaking generally, of the manner in which the hands worked apart from your own case ? —Speaking generally, the Addington men work as hard and as honestly as the men in any shop I have been in. 9. Speaking generally, of course, with regard to the boiler-shop ? —Yes. Hugh Sloane examined. (No. 24.) 1. Mr. Hampton.] What is your present position ?—I am fitter in charge of the tools at Addington. 2. How long have you held this position ? —Since 1890, I think. 3. What other experience have you had in addition to that at Addington ? —I have worked with John Martin (Limited) in the North Island, and with Messrs. Scott Bros. 4. What is your experience with New Zealand firms ? —After leaving Scott Bros. I went to Cable's at Wellington, and from there came to the Addington Workshops. 5. Do you find that Addington for discipline and work compares with the other places in which you have been employed ?—I think it is superior. 6. Mention was made here yesterday of your having brought about improvements in connection with the machinery and appliances. Could you give the Commissioners some particulars of those appliances ? Take the hydraulic coupling for flexible tubes to connect the portable riveter ? —They had no couplings to connect that machine, and no couplings were supplied with the pipe, and Mr. Haskins told me that he had tried to make a coupling to connect the pressure-pipe, but it blew out every time. Both Mr. Haskins and Mr. Henderson came at me several times to see if I could make a coupling to hold the pressure. I eventually undertook the work, and it proved a perfect success. It never once came ofi until the pipe gave way through long use. '' ! 7. What about the stud-extractor used in the boiler-shop ?—lt is used in the fitting-shop and in the boiler-shop. It is a very simple little affair, and could be made for about 35., but it is worth its weight in gold. By this contrivance of mine studs can be taken out and put back again as required with the least possible difficulty. It is so simple that it is hardly worth while to patent it. 8. The radial cutting-head in use at Addington is also one of your contrivances ? —Yes, and I claim that it has very materially decreased the time occupied in the work for which it is used. 9. You also manufactured tools for making ticket-nippers ? —Yes. I made those tools at the request of my foreman. The-Department were paying 15s. or 14s. for these ticket-nippers, and after I had looked at the machine I came to the conclusion that I could turn them out easily at 7s. I made the tools, and they are now in use, and have turned out some thousands of ticket-nippers. These tools are thoroughly original. 10. You were also concerned in the designing of dies for making swab-irons ? —Yes. When Mr. Smith was foreman of the Addington Workshops he came to me with one of those swab-irons and said that Mr. McCarthy was making them by hand, and asked me if I could make a die. I said, " I suppose so," and at once set about devising a punch and die. I succeeded, and my device is in use now; and by its means as many swab-irons are turned out now in a day as were formerly turned out by hand in eight or ten days, and they are better made. 11. You also made an apparatus for boring king-pin holes in carriages ?—Yes. There had been a great deal of trouble occasionally in getting the If in. king-pin bolts out of the carriages and replacing them with 2 in. bolts. Mr. Handysides came to me and asked me to try and suggest some way of getting these pins into the holes other than that in use at that time. Up to that time Ido not think twomen could do the work that was required under eight hours, and this appliance of mine does it in one hour. The adjustable-feed head-clamp for widening the buffer-pin holes is also an invention of mine, and is now in regular use. It was also'at'my instance'that'the half-tooth|feed, which is used on the large planing-machine, was adopted. I had no instructions as to what to do, but the Manager asked me to endeavour to make the feed finer. I devised a half-tooth feed so that the machine will now feed from half-tooth to three-tooth. 12. Were you responsible for the introduction of an improved tube-expander ? —Yes, and the tool I made is superior to anything I have got from the Stores or anywhere else. This expander of mine would outwear five or six Dudgeon's expanders, and then it would be good.