CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 211, 30 May 1908, Page 7

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.

QUARTERLY MEETINQ. IMPORTANT-MATTERS-TOUCHED. . (.'. ' About the' quarterly meeting., of the ..Chamber of Commerce ; held last evening. . PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. - Tho President- (Mr.' J. G, Harkness) said that -as this -was' tho •/beginning.' -of the Council's neiv; system of-quarterly meetings ' i ho regretted-somewhat that there was not a larger-attendance. Ho enumerated some important matters . iiealt with by. thfe Council i sinco tho annual-meeting, and stated that thero wore two* 'or 'three matters of very considerable importance about which he wished V) speak. . 1 DUPLICATION OF MAIN. . . ■-. First,' there was,the matter which tho City, Council, had;, before it of the duplication of the water main: between Wellington and the Wainui-omata reservoir., - It was under- : • stood that some stops were to bo taken by r the Coiipcil, about. twelvo months" hence, to carry: out-this work., Tho main was ■ - incapable of tho work which .it, was called npon.;to that-,• eighteen months.ajgo, the Chamber had represented to tho City Council that something should be -. done'.in'.this"matter. (' Tli§ subject, .was., of ; vital'-importance to the city, as the' security .- of valuable property was - involved.. .It was all right to say . that public services'like gas' and others should be'municipalised as far -' • as . possible, but tho first duty of tho City Council .was to see that the services now undents control.were ;nado as far as possible - perfect. . . / HARBOUR BOARD CRITICISMS. •In. regard'-toH arbour Board representation, ho said/ as-thc Chamber's representative on. that -body, that the Harbour Board had been condemned bccauso it had introduced a ; ; pretty .extensive policy of borrowing. It was going to ask. the Government for power, to ■ raise a, millibn:.loari, and this intention had.been oailled; extravagant, ,but this loan-was practically a legacy to the new Board. . Liabilities had previously been'entered into for new works,'all, of; them, /be' thought,, quite: •'necessary, which would, jrivolve a cost .'of £536,000 by : the end of 1911..'' This was .with,out taking ihto'(accbunt the/Patent-Slip, >o'r . ■ reclamation" w : driis 'at -Evanij Bay," and. the : 'Board (considered it' better to go to the Legis- • eay for one momenti that tho whole million. loan than to' make repeated applications in respect of individual works.: They did not say for ono moment that the wholo mililon - would, be spent. He .held' no, brief for, the presorit members,of the Harbour'..Board, hut ■ , ho had heard ;on- many sides that they ..werenot .equal -to -their, predecessors, on former , > Boards/'; He was not concerned to defend the . ; present (members- then, . but in.. all sincerity . he said that the,.raajority of them wero actu- : >r' ated .by/a strong and sincere desire to do their best in the interests of the city.. They ■ 'wero-.giving :ungrudgingly of their; valuable - time- without payment, .and. ho thought-that the .Chainber -'should . suspend' its judgment till r :they-.;had,■ proved' ;the.' members ', of .the. Board to bo incompetent to carry, out- the work they had to do. ~'''';.: , ; MAIN TRUNK LINE. Tho question' of' the time-table on the Main Trunk line was worthy of tho consideration of 'the'.Chamber, [''and .'should- be '.approached, ; ho' . thought,'"by mernbera in'.no selfish'/spirit, only :to the good of businos's '-men;' but with :.'a strong desire to - meet, as. far "as! possible/-;tljb : ' needs; of every class of the travelling public who would uso the line. It was desired, above all, that the .;. speed 'of •; the'.express trains should be in-'--...-''■^"crcasedji^.'but,'.'owing.to- steep, gradings ,'and ~ sharp curves, that could- only/ be done by limiting tho<number, yf.^tp^pages., :" f ' ARBITRATION. ACT, r„„ , In -speakinj;- of tho Arbitration Act, lie ~ did. not Tvish; to: posa. as a captious l critic, -or ono dosirous of throwing'-obstacles Jin the .; • way of ■ the r ..Government, ivwhick. Jiad.i a . very .'iifficult-,;-fbaila.{b .treadidii'.- jetfara-ito'-this- '• .; -. natter. /\ Hp 'spoke..bf, tliov.,Adt bcc'ause; it vas in ; tho mind 3 of every - one of .thcm. . , .it was impossiblo -to;',go>anywhere, throughout tho: length'and breadth of New Zealand •; ivitlioufc.;beingmet by-this question.every .- hour 1 of.;-tKe/ day.' '•' '..Tliere'*was" in_-Nbw • Zealand to-day' a : feeling of' unrest and. dissatjsfaction ,'in ;.thei minds'of the/employers, ' in the;..tliovights aiill' actions of the employees, in respebt' of '•' this'; very /important matter.; Theifujada'mental objects of tho.measure ,wero two-^to-provide a livina wage for'the'-worker, and brins about industrial; ponce. He /re- .' grettcdi.that, as far as.he could' Understand,; -.'•• it was.-achieving neither of these; two things. The question,to be considered;was. this: Was it possible..!to;'..adjust by. legislation certain economic; principles over' which' legislation- ' hrfd; practically no. control ? -. For instance,' it was. ;a (-'principle.' of 'political : economy that cheap money meant dear land, and another principle; that high-wage 3 meant dear living. :He did not believe that thoso ' prill-; ciples could be* altered by legislation. ■ It: had , been . stated ( or; tho platform that to • : attribute the increased cost of living of re-, cent years to. the.'Arbitration Actj and to the of wages which t-ho Act had given, was-only partially true. ' Yot ;it had also . been stated-' that during the last fourteen or fifteen years, ' wages,' and, also the price of food, had increased by 18 per. cent, ll" high wages' did 'hot make,'dear living, how had that , strange coincidence been brought about ?• - There. was. no ciuestiou .-but what . these things rah •in parallel lines. He referred to the defect, of the, Arbitration Act in not .providjng for brains arid efficiency in fixing wages; ' /He believfed that; some employers -had exceeded, *iii"';the ease of specially ' competent -omp!oyees, : '-'tho miiiimnnv wage fixed by tho Court,; result'had been •; that those'employers had'been: cited before .• the .Court/'to. -mako- tho" higher- wa'go the . minimum./'(Hear, hear.) 1 This had 'causedthe Court's minimum wage to be treated as ' the maximum, and. the good-worker had tho -• 'Bamo''.remunerati'pn ab: toe: ! The "' result 1 of .the Act* 'was that work'. was ; very ' much /.dearer, i and men ttero .not,.'doing thosanie. work-' to-;day. for an Increased wage; as. they were some years ago. / (Voice: Nor doing it. so well,) This was a defcct- in the 'Act that could nover'bo properly' regulated. Probably orieiiof tho ..worst-features was the ... disloyalty of, the workers 'to the . measure,. '. which was; jntpndcd 'for their .benefit. ,'lf the Act .lia'd ; been -wisely .administorcdj it- . could not, ho thought,, have failed to benefit the workers. : -To-day'there was ; :open' de- . -.'fiance' 'bf'.thb'-A.tst ( aiid' flagrant v breaches-of tho I law'/ They' 'could not.' condemn too 6trongly' 'or ; ;piinislr t'oo severely thoso who . had forsaken;lafr and.order, and-adopted the old method.'',of (striking.lf'the; employers . had 'acte'd {is tho workers had acted in con- " ncctitm " : T)'ith.''"tlk) Blackball and Auckland I - strikes;/'t'librfe^" Would have been- a hue and 1 cry 'thrdilgliout' Now Zealand 'raised 'against, them. ';'Hb''''belioved- that the Act needed amcudm£iif,'"&nd tlieir duty as' qitizetis was. ' to -realise 'that their, interests -were bound up witfi "the interests of ' all thoso called' ► . iupoiy to -and it was their bounden duty to's'ssist, as far as possible, the powers r that be 'to biing out of chaos that condition of things that "would make for industrial peace and concord between employers and .', employees. ■ .-.; ■ ' ... . ■ •After- listening to addresses (published elsev.-hero) by Mr.- Ben H.' Morgan and 3lr. J. Eduston, visitors from Great Britain, the Chamber dealt .witjj sevoral local topics. ' HUTT TRAIN; SERVICE. Mr.. C. T.: Natusch, who' had' just _miss6d . his last train,.-'moved that tho Couucil urge tho Gbvornmbiit to givo increased.- railway : facilities betw-bon-.'Wellingtonand.the Upper ,- . Hutt. Ue thought- that the Upper Hutt - uhould bo brought within-'tho suburban area ' Bs regards, fares- arid 'frequency of -service, present the suburban area' stops at Lower Hutt. - '-: - •-. - . .: ' . Mr., G..,Shirtcliffo,-in. seconding, said-that V twelvo iuo'ntbp -,ago. ,the-. Chamber • had doputationiswl'. AVarcl on this subject, and' drawn "pleasing hopes from his reply, . bat ' the ..outcome, had.'- betjri f somewliat .disap- . pointirii.' A huge petition'could bo organised in Wellington in support .of this request, The motion was unanimously-adopted. TELEPHONE TO PALMERSTON. ' Mr. j! "j. Reich.compjained .that; the main telephone lino to' Palmerston North was n perfect abomination to use. The statement ' of the DepKtuient that there had been no

complaint from the public was childish. The samo wire was used for telephoning and telegraphing, though to Master ton a special .wire .for telephoning liad been erected. He moved that tlio'Department should bo asked to erect,a separate main telephone lino to Palmerston. Tho motion was adopted'unanimously. WHARF TELEPHONES. -Mr. R.' Hall, moved that tho Harbour Board be asked to provide telephones on the' principal wharves, 'which, merchants could use,' free of charge, for .telephoning to . tho various quays and sheds. .These-facilities wero' provided at Auckland. The motion was adopted,/