MAHANA'S IMMIGRANTS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 253, 20 July 1920, Page 6

MAHANA'S IMMIGRANTS

DISEMBARKATION YESTERDAY j WATERSIDERS DECLINE TO HANDLE BAGGAGE LANDING ARRANGEMENTS CRITICISED Immigrants to tho number of 971 arrived by the Mahana, which berthed at Queen's Wharf yesterday morning at 10.30 a.m., of course without tho few who had been quarantined on Somes Island owins to the outbreak of scarlet fever on the ship. Of those on board some 700 had been nominated by persons already established in New Zealand, so naturally the people who assembled on tho wharf tu greet tho newcomers numbered many hundreds. The disembarkation arrangements were considered yesterday a distinct discredit to Wellington and the port. Here was a- case of nearly 1000 immigrants, including many women and a lot of children, arriving not suddenly, but after remaining for two days in the harbour, and nothing was done to make the landing as easy and convenient as possible. A single side gangway was provided, but the vessel was so low in the water that the gangway could not be lowered to an angle which would allow the steps to lie flat, with the result that men, women with babies, and children had to walk down on the edge of the steps, nnd each one came down clinging to the guideropes or the vessel's side. Owing to the large number of passengers the stewards—though they worked well—were unable to handle all the cabin trunks, so nien, women, and children, carrying trunks nnd parcels of all shapes and sizes, had to venture down this perilous gangway. There were many who slipped and tripped. The Mahnna berthed at No. 1 south, Queen's Wharf, but instead of tho big empty sheds opposite the ship being made available for the work of the Customs officers' the newcomers had to carry the whole of their cabin baggage the full length of the wharf, to the Customs shed near Brandon Street. There were no other steamers berthed in tho vicinity, and no nee was being made of tho sheds alongside the Mahana. In spite of all these inconveniences, the new arrivals appeared to bo glad to get ashore, and their liign spirits were in no wise affected. The immigrants are a fine, healthy, well setup lot. Tho children are robust nnd merry-eyed, and look the right sort of stuff to make good colonists. One spectator of the landing was so moved by tho appearance and buoyant spirits of the Mahana's passengers that he ventured the opinion that New Zealand would be nil the better if a similar cargo were ! discharged here onco a week for a year or two." In Great Spirits. ~ "Hullo, Johnny, doing a bit of honest?" This remnrk was hurled at a pale-faced, sharp-eyed passenger as ho 6flized a "wharfie's''' truck. "Yus," ho replied in good East-end, "the fust I'vo done since I left the bleedin' Army!" And a roar of laughter went up from the crowd.

"Hullo, 'Liza! is that your Jimmy?" *Liza, gazing down on the crowd from tho bulwark, at once recognised her female friend, blushed, and admitted the soft impeachment. Jimmy, by the way, was about three years old, and looked with wondering blue eyes on the sea of heads below.

"Where's your, 'usbond?" said tho shrill voice from the wharf.

"Over there, looking after . the baggage." "Thought he might be on the island!" This pleasantry evoked another shout of laughter, niuch to thß indignation of tho questioner. Photographers bailed up groups of immigrants as they left the wharf, and "snapped" them for the weekly papers; men pushed their own belongings along to the Customs shed on commandeered

trucks; porters and expressmen did , a: roaring trade; everybody was plied with questions in the accents of all the counties 'twixt Devon and, Cumberland. Watsrsiders Declinß to Handle Baggage. The Mahana, having boen fumigated, was declared a clean ship on Sunday night, and as such was berthed yesterday morning after some little delay. When the steamer came alongside it transpired that the members of tho Watersido Workers' Union declined to handle the luggage in the hold, as, though the ship had been declared "clean," another case of scarlet fever had developed on board on Sunday evening, and there wero ten contacts in connection with that case. , Under thoso circumstances the watersiders did not feel disposed to handle the luggage, and so take tho risk of carrying infection to their.homes. The officials of tho union expressed surprise at the Health officers 'sanctioning the berthing of the Mahana under tho circumstances. In view of the action of the watersiders the immigrants arranged with tho Immigration Department to do the work themselves, and were hard at it. all the afternoon. Very completo arrangements had been made by the Department to get the new arrivals away to their destinations as quickly as possible. Most of tho Auckland passengers left by last evening's express, and those for • New Plymouth, Napier, and Gisborno will leave this morning. Representatives of the Salvation Army and C.P..M.S. lent valuable aid to the newcomcre. It was found impossible to fumigate the holds of the Mahana yesterday, and probably this will be done to-day. About 150 or 200 immigrants slept aboard the vessel last night. -

ADDITIONAL FEVER CASES. , Before the Mnhnna berthed yesterday morning it was found that a passenger named W. Clarke and a seaman, C. Hill, were suffering from scarlet fever, mid they were removed to the quarantine station on Some 9 Island. As two "contacts," Mrs. Shaw and Miss N. Mackay, nave since developed the disease, the number of cases of scarlet fever from the vessel has reached a total of 21. Tho following eleven "contacts" were also transferred to Somes Island yesterday morning—Hiss Shipley, Miss Shute, Miss G. AValsh. Miss E. Porter, Miss 31. Rollo, Mrs. Sweepers, Mrs. M Taylor, Miss M. M'Donald, P. G. Clarke, Mrs. Cates (stewardess), and Miss Brown (stewardess).