POLICE INQUIRY ORDERED

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23589, 17 March 1942, Page 4

POLICE INQUIRY ORDERED

ALLEGED REMARKS BY UNION OFFICIAL TELEGRAM SENT TO PRIME MINISTER cp.A.) WELLINGTON, March 16. Police inquiries were ordered on Saturday afternoon into a statement alleged to have been made by a union organiser to cheese factory workers in the Manawatu. The matter was brought to the notice of the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser) by the Mayor of Palmerston North (Mr A, E. Mansford). who sent a telegram asking that an inquiry be made. The statement alleged to have been mode was as follows:—“ Hullo, you slaves, still working for £4 or £5 a week. I can get you £lO a week in Wellington for half the work. Why don't you strike?" Mr Mansford said in his telegram that such a statement was most serious and likely to have grave results. “I received Mr Mansford's telegram about 1 p.m. on Saturday." said Mr Fraser to-day, “and I immediately got jn touch with him on the telephone and told him that the matter of the alleged statement by a trade union secretary would be taken up immediately by the Commissioner of Police. The police issued instructions and immediately detectives visited the cheese factory in question and carried'out inquiries on Saturday afternoon. "Unfortunately Mr Mansford had not informed me that lie had handed or intended to hand his telegram to the newspapers on Saturday afternoon. He also overlooked the obvious desirability of informing newspapers of my prompt verbal answer to him, and the instant instructions issued to the police. Mr Mansford assured me today that he proposed to remedy this oversight."