DEATH KNELL.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 282, 29 November 1933, Page 8

DEATH KNELL.

WARO COLLIERY. PUMPS BEING WITHDRAWN. OVER 100 MEN AFFECTEB. : (By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent.) WHANGAREI, this day. The death knell of Wilsons Colliery, Waro, which may affect the Hikurangi coalfield, was sounded last evening, when the dispute between the management committee,, headed by Mr. A. T. McGlashan, and the men came to a head. Acting on their ultimatum to withdraw, the pumps unless sufficient men turned up to woi.k the mine, as soon as the time limit was up the committe started to di'/iw the live pumps in the mine.

The miners were given until 4 p.m. to return to work, but instead during the day they got their tools and kits from the mine. At 4 p.m. the safety men were withdrawn, but were later reengaged to assist in shifting the' pumps, and tlie work was started i 111 mediately. All live pumps were uncoupled and withdrawn several chains last evening, and it is expected they will be brought to the surface late to-day. That virtually means the end of tlie mine, for at present it is flooded in the lower dips, and the heavy rain to-day will see a big inflow of water now that the pumps have been taken out. This will mean that 104 men, -many of whom are married and who have been engaged under Mr. McGlashan and his party, will be unemployed, and numbers have already registered as such. Not only the pumps, but also all gear, such as pipes arid rails, arc to be taken from the colliery, and it is expected that all this work will bo completed within the next fortnight. It is just over a year since Mr. A. T. McGlashan and his party took over the working of the mine. The previous party, consisting of most of the men employed by Wilsons Cement, Limited, when they were running the mine, had as their director Mr. J. Scott Davidson, and they were in occupation for a year only before it was found that they could not carry on. The closing of the mine was threatened then, but after negotiations lasting a month Mr. A. T. McGlashan and his party secured the rights to work the colliery. They were assisted by the Unemployment Board.

Effect on Hikurangi Mine. During the year of occupation the members working under Mr. McGlaslian received £10,000 in wages, and other expenses met by the Cement Company amounted to £0000. The serious effect which the closing down will have on Hikurangi and on the district as a whole can thus be understood. Another serious aspect is the danger which a flooded mine at Waro would present to the Hikurangi Coal Company's colliery, which is oyer the hill. With the cessation of v puinping at Waro a great deal more water will find- it's way into the Hikurangi, mine, and will make the already harassing question of water control much more difficult. The Hikurangi mine, which is also worked on a co-operative basis, employs about ICO men, and has, an output of about 1000 tons of coal a week. The Waro, mine has been in existence since 1013,. when it was opened up by the Northern Coal Company. It was closed for some time, but in 1921 was taken over by Wilsons Portland Cement Company and was worked by them for eleven years until labour troubles cropped up in 1031.' Then, owing to a dispute over the- question of wages, the men- went out on strike, and Wilsons talked seriously of closing the mine. However, negotiations went on between the miners and the owners, and these ended in the mine being handed over to the men to work co-operatively. That agreement lasted for a year, at the end of which Mr. M'cGlashan and party took over. Hikurangi Mine. The Hikurangi. Coal Company commenced operations near the site of the Waro railway station in 1893'. About 10 years ago the company, whose shareholders mostly reside in Auckland, shifted its scene of operations to the present site over the hill facing the Hikurangi Swamp. Previously the company had been fairly successful, paying regular dividends, but this first attempt at deep mining was ill-starred almost from the first. The mine has brought more than its fair share of trouble, flooding, fires and labour disputes. Some years ago the Government came to the assistance of the company, making a loan available for dewatering after a disastrous flood.

Following a strike of employees last year, the mine lias now been worked by a co-operative party.

It is not thought that the closure of the Waro colliery would endanger the Hikurangi mine, if the latter were equipped with pumps sufficiently powerful to cope with the extra water. Tlie whole question is whether the Hikurangi Coal Company will be able to finance the necessary equipment. Company's Attitude. The general manager of Wilson (N.Z.) Portland Cement, Ltd., Mr. S. Reid, stated this morning that the company anticipated no difficulty in obtaining full supplies of coal. They had a reserve sufficient for over a month. There would be ample coal in New Zealand to meet all tlieir requirements.