THE COAL CRISIS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 142, 17 June 1926, Page 7

THE COAL CRISIS.

N 0 SIGN OF SETTLEMENT. ux OF HOURS AND WAGES. A REORGANISATION BILL. ,By Cable.-rrcss A»sw:.illon.-Copyright.) ] ON DON, June 10. In continuoti-n <■: his statement in the House of Commons relative to the Si crisis the Primo Minister, Mr. StanI Baldwin, sai-1 nic mineowners had lured him that r<n a bnsis of an eight inurs day there « ■•■■ certain districts hich produced half the output of the country where th, miner, would be ffered a continuance nf thnr existing ■lees in July, .Migr.,' nnrl September. In the remaining [lietriets the reduction, •f any, would he matcinlly less than ten tier cent. In the mean::- i tin , dovernment would press on with it? legislation for the reorganisation of 1 lie industry. From October wages won!.! lip based on the atcertained prociW- of the industry. He hoped a Bitbsfiintial portion of the wages would 1«. nin:ntniiipd, if not actually increased. The Ministry wns prepnring to introduce a Reorganisation Bill in a few days. tmrlor llii:i mcnnire the amalgamation ideas of tlio Cnn\ Commission would be closely Mlmyerl. In regard to royalitipa. everybody who owned mineral rights would be required to pay another sum toward a mineral rights welfare fund. This money would I, e devoted primarily to the general welfare of the men fit tho pit-head. The reduction in waces could not be bo drastic as to justify calling on the taxpayer to ease the adjustment. Therefore the £3,000,0(10 which the Government had previously offered would be more tisefully spent on assisting displaced miners. Continuing, the Prime Minister said: We are going on. A Labour chorus: You are going out. It means a general election. Mr. Baldwin: I hope the respective parties will attempt to reach an agreement by negotiation and treaty, rather than by carrying on this unhappy dispute to the hitter end. Mr. V. Hartshorn. Labour member for Glamorgan, said Mr. Baldwin's proposals merely added to the .serious difficulties at present existing. He urged instant unification instead" of waiting foE three years. The outlook was now liopeJess and the deadlock would be prolonged for God knew how long. If anyone imagined the miners would call off the strike, even after six months,- hb was most mistaken. Sir Robert Home, Conservative member for Billhead (Glasgow), asserted that an eight hours day would reduce the costs of mining more than 2/ a ton. Sir John Simon, Liberal member for West Riding (Yorkshire), urged the stabilisation, ■of selling agencies aa a remedy. He.said he thought that to extend the working hours of the miners wae to' fly in the face of the Commission's report. Mr. J, -R. Clynes, Labour member for Platting ), expressed most Mtter disappointment with Mr. Bald(vin's speech. It would, he said, further postpone a settlement of the dispute. ...

The Minister of Labour, Sir Arthur Steel-Maitland, in replying to the debate, said selling syndicates offered no solution of the difficulty. In regard to an eight hours day the Government had left the door open so that the parties were free to negotiate. Labour members refused to allow Sir H. Page .Groft, Conservative member for Bournemouth, to speak. They shouted him down for several minutes until the division was taken. A Labour amendment to reduce the Mines Department's vote was rejected by 299 votes to 138. The House then adjourned. PRODUCTION IN GERMANY. ORDERS FROM BRITAIN. (Received 11 a.m.) BERLIN, June IC. Since the beginning of the coal strike in Britain, pithead stocks in the Ruhr lave been reduced by about 900,000 tons. New lung term contract's with Home and foreign consumers are 'being concluded daily. The stoppage, if it lasts much longer, will result in increasing the production of coal, not only in the Ruhr but also in Silesia. British rajhvay companies are already making inquiries in regard to supplies from' Silesia.— (A. and N.Z.) . DISTRESSED MINERS. MESSAGE TO NUMBER 10.

LONDON, June IC. While a meeting of the Cabinet was in progress a dusty and exhausted man dismounted from a cycle at No. 10, Downing Street. He told the doorkeeper he had cycled ,136 miles from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, with a message from the miners of that district for presentation to the Prime Minister. When he was told that Mr. Baldwin wag attending a meeting of the Cabinet the mau produced the message and asked that it should be conveyed to Mr. Baldwin. He also produced credentials which showed that he had authority to go to Downing Street on behalf of a number of miners. The man explained that the Nottinghamshire miners .had only had one Week's strike pay, whereas the Derbyshire miners had received a gift of £ 10,000. The general secretary of the Miners' Federation, Mr. A. J." Cook, said the cyclist, did not dare to show his face in Nottinghamshire, where the miners Were selling their homes to pay for his foolhardiness. A letter handed in by the man, which « secretary took to Mr. Baldwin, said: "The plight of my wife and children has forced mc to cycle to London. I have been five days on the road, begging for bread on the way. I appeal to you }° let mc and my mates resume work,n g fight hours a. day."—(Sydney "Sun.")