EMPIRE SHIPPING.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 86, 4 January 1908, Page 5

EMPIRE SHIPPING.

: * ' ' 'v.-''.': ; COMMONWEALTH BILL.: ' ' ATTITUDE OF HOME SHIPOWNERS .-. AND SEAMEN. BT TELIGEAPH—MESS ASSOCIATION—COFTBiairr, London, January 2. Mr. J. Havelock Wilson,- Labour, mombor of tho House of. Commons for! Middlesborough,, and generaL secretary of tlio National Seamen's and Fireman's - Union, has boon interviewed on tho Australian. Shipping Navigation Bill. He doclaros that the Bill quite the spirit of the. resolutions passed, by. the 1 Navigation Conference, at.'which Mr. Wilson was a delegate representing, Homo .seamen. Ho considers tlio complaints of . British shipowners cabled to Australia through Lord Elgin (Secretary for the Colonies) aro untenable. • Sir Thos. Sutherland, chairman of: the P. and 0. Company, estimates that; tlio AustraI lian'Navigation Bill will deprive" the Company of iCi!OO,OOQ a year, ' . ' Too Australian Navigation. Bill provides, inter alia: "Seamen engaged in- tho coastal trade must receive wages at the current rates ruling in Australia for seamen. employed in that part of the coasting trade. .Such wages, in cuso of ships trading beyond; Australia, in'-ist bo paid .beforo the-'dopnrtiifo of- tho ship from the Commonwealth.''' .. ' Another clause states: "A ship, is to be deemed to be .engaged in the coastiil " trade if • sho takos passengers or cargo' at any Australian port to .be landed or delivered at any other port of Australia,; passengers holding through tickets or cargo consigned on- through , bill of lading not included. Until, tho. railways of West Australia are connected ; .with ' tho railways of South Australia, tho v carrying - of passengers between a port -in West Australia ami any other Austrolian port by any ' British ship ordinnrily carrying pails-to anil 1 front the Commonwealth is not tp be deozped j to bo engagod in coastal trade." One provision of tho Bill is that no foreign ship must engage in coastal jiado without a license, under a penalty ofi' <£500.. Ships 3 registered in a: foreign country, or, sailing . under, a foreign flag may bo oxompted from 1 the provision as to liconso ,if satisfaction is 7 given that by tho law of the country wherein s they aro registered British ships may engage in coasting trade there without a license) and as freely as ships under that country's lldg.