OUR AUSTRALIAN LETTER.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 49, 21 November 1907, Page 8

OUR AUSTRALIAN LETTER.

THE ENGLISH MAIL CONTRACT.

NEW SCHEME OF PENSIONS. PROM O.UII SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT Sydney, Novembor 16. After long negotiations, the contract , for the conveyance of mollis botween England and Australia has .at last been signed. It has been given to tho Orient Company for a period of ten yoars from' February, 1910, and a subsidy'of £170,000 per annum. Tho service is to be extended tq Brisbano, and the route will be from an approved port in the United Kingdom, probably-.by way of Brindisi, and certainly by way of Canal, thence .by Colombo, Fremantle, Adelaide, and Melbourne, to Sydney. There will be a special service to Hobart during six months of the. year. Tho speed.'js. to be increased sufficiently t° reduce the period of transit from : 696 hours to 638 hoUrs, a saving of 58 hours in the time of . the , passage of mails to Australia. This will bring the now contract to the same rate as thai'of tho contract botween the Imperial Government and tho P. and O. Company, and, as Mr. Deakin stated in explaining the new contract in the House of Representatives yesterday, we will obtain what Australia has never yet enjoyod —not only a much quicker' service, but a'bsolutelyjtbo same sorvice Week by week, which, will permit of letters being answered even from Brisbane practically,by return of mail. Five new stpamers, of not' less than 11,000 tons each, with a speed of'at-least 17 knots, are to bo built in accordance with plans and specifications to be approved:by the Government. and insulated cold Storage space equal to at least 2000 tons, or 42 cubic, feet pot ton, is to be provided on each;'of these vessels. The first of the new boats'is to he ready within 18 months of the commencement of the contract, and thero will be then ono each year afterwards* until-the five are ,added to the fleet. White labour will bo employed on the vessels, without any discrimination between unionists and non-upionists. - The plans for the new steamers are to bo submitted within three months of the ratification ,of the contract, and the work of building is to be'carriod on with all reasonable despatch. ■■ The present deposit of £10,000 is .to.bf increased to £50,000, to guarantee the performance-of tho contract, while'the amount can be increased to £100,000 if it be considered that sufficient progress ris not being mado with the building of the new steamers. The usual provision has been made for the purchase of steamers by the Government, if such a step should become necessary, and,that no vessel is to be sold without the consent; of the Post-master-General. ' i , The cool, storage conditions are naturally of the greatest interest to producers, and here, according to Mr;/'Swinburne, the' Victorian Minister of Agricultural the .Federal authorities, have made,a very..satisfactory bargain. The maximum rate to be'charged for tho conveyance of butter is id. per lb„ and for fruit 60s. per ton of 42' cubic feot. A temperature of' 15' degrees, is, - to ■be maintained in the butter chambers throughout tie voyage, whilst there .are to ,be cool chambers for fruit. No ..difference .is to be mado in the rates from' Australia, so that all ports of the., Commonwealth, will be placed upon' exactly the ..same .footing so far. as freight charges are concorned. . .. .' The delay in signing of-the contract, it is well known, arose because .of,the difficulty of the-differential rating for butter cargoes, tho Orient Company being one of the parties to the agreement between the mail Companies. It appears that the arrangement now proposed is' sucli '.as will, secure :a uniform rate by all steamers, so that the disabilities under which producers have been complaining will 'disappear. PENSIONS FOR ■ INVALIDS. The scheme of the New South Wales Government for "poiisibns, 'for ' tho " weak and cripplcd of the community; provides that every person permanently incapacitated for work by reason of an accident, or reason of his being, an invalid, shall be entitled, to a,pension, jifi'the,following conditions be fulfilled:—(a) That Hie is above tho ago of 16 and under tho age of 60 years ; (b) that he is residing in the State,'and was so residing -when tho accident occurred; (c) that he has resided in the State for a_ period, in the aggregate, of . not less than 25 years, and has so resided for at least two vearsjmmediately preceding the date on whicii 116 establishes his claim to the pension, or, in the case of a person who is under 27 years of age, and was born in the State, that he has resided'hero for the whole of his life with tho exception of occasional absences, if any, not exceeding in tho aggregate two years; I'd and e) tliat the accident or invalid state of health permanently incapacitates him from work, and was not self-induced, or in any way brought; about with.a view of obtaining a pension ;; (f) that he has no claim against any employer who is.'compelled under private contract or public enactment to compensate or maintain him for' accident or invalid state of health; (g) that his income or property does not exceed tho limits prescribed'in the Old Age Pensions Act; (h) that he has not ; directly or indirectly deprived himself of incomo.or property in order:to qualify for a pension; (i) 'that., he is without relatives in'-a position to . maintain him. . The amount of; pension payable, under tho Act shall not exceed £26 , a year. There is provision for ;an examination by a Government medical officer .as . to tho alleged incapacity to .work in any case where, such , .incapacity is not manifest. -The total sum .-. payable under the Act shall not be more ' than £40,000 a ■year, and if any further" Bum is; required, it will, have to lie obtained from a special appropriation by Parliament.' It is stipulated, as' in tho Old Ago Pension Act, tliat a person shall riot receivo his ponsion; while he is an inmate of a Government charitable institution. „ . , Tho new Bill has been read a first' timo in the Legislative Assembly. .' . A BAKERS' .BOYCOTT. A .curious boycott in tho; bakery trade in Perth was drawn attentioii;>'to,:in the West Australian Legislative Assembly . yesterday, when Mr. Bath, Leader of tho Oppositipn, moved the adjournment of the; House to malto a complaint upon. tjio subject. Ho stated that tho Perth Co-operative Bakery was being boycotted by, the master millers and master, bakers, for ,the, reason that the Co-operativq.'Society .thought 3jd. per loaf, 'charged .by the master'bakers, . extortionate, and chargcd only 3d. Circulars, ho stated, had been sent to the millers; by the bakers, threatening to boycott them if thoy supplied the Co-operative Society with flour, and further declaring that thoy, would cease dealing with tho produce morchants with whom tho Co-operatiyo Society had:-,f;r?dei relations. As a consequence, the Society has- been obliged to import, flour, and Mr." Bath,urged tho Government to take action-,ill'the'm'attcr. • In replying, tile State Treasurer' stated that there was an agreement of. tho nature indicated, that no bakers, outside the Masters' Association within a five-mile radius of the Town Hall, should bo supplied with flour, but the practico had been in voguo■ since 1906, therefore.-the matter wa. 1 ; not urgent. When tho.agreement lapsed; in'three or . four weeks' time, it would riot be -renewed., and ho promised to see what steps could be taken to prevent o recurrence of tho trouble.

AN OPERA SCHOOL. Herr Grcder and his Wife, Fran Vallorio Waller, both, lately of tho Musgrovo .Opera Company, have decided to remain in Sydney and open'a,.school' for training in, opera and tho stago arts, >" When I eanio to this country ana-began my work'as stage manager in Melbourne,. . says: Horr Greder, " I was agreeably surprised to find whiit ambitious, willing, and talented people I had to deal with, and during the soason 1 camo to tho conclusion that Australians should bo fully able, with a properly organised operatic school, to supply thoir own needs in grand opera. In case any principals are wanted in our earlier . essays, our standing in Gormany will enable mo to secure first-class talont to support us. Wo shall save much of the exponso hitherto involved in staging grand opera in Australia. Besides tho Heedlessness of. importing inferior principals, it will not be necessary to bring out scenery or costumes. 1 found myself, for example, thoroughly understood by such artists as Mr. Goatcher, Mr. Coleman, and others, who were quick to grasp from my models what was wanted."