SHIPPING CASE.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 20, 24 January 1912, Page 2

SHIPPING CASE.

RECENT COASTAL TROUBLE. ACTION AGAINST MERCHANTS' SERVICE GUILD. CLAIM FOR £200. Hearing of the case in which the Inspector of Awards, Wellington district, is proceeding against the Merchants' Service Guild for £200 for allegedly instigating a strike, on 2nd October last, was continued after The Post went to press yesterday. Mr. H. H. Ostler prosecuted on. behalf of tEe Inspector of Awards, and Mr. A. L. Herdma'n defended. W. E. Fuller, shipping manager for LeVin and Co. (coastal vessels) said he had received a telegram from Captain Watson, asking if the owners would agree to the demands made before the award wajs made. If the demands were not acceded to there was, Captain Watson stated, likely to bo serious trouble. Eventually' four . officers in the • company's employ left the service, and before their articles had expired. This was on 2nd October. In reply to Mr. Herdman, witness admitted that Captain Watson had said to him that the officers left the ships of their own volition. When witness called on Captain' Wateon and. asked him to get officers, he said : "Where can I get officers? I'll see if I can get •them, and will let you know." Witness heard nothing further. He did' not remember Captain Watson saying he had no authority from his guild for stating that there was likely to be serious trouble. , Re-examined: When witness's company wanted officers it was their usual practice to go to Captain Watson for men. Sometimes he may have difficulty, but he always managed to supply the men. PARTIAL CONCESSIONS. John Mathew Deck, shipping manager for Turnbull and Company, said his firm was agent for th© Anchor Line, which owned, the Waimea, Alexander, Kennedy, Wayerley, Nikau, and Kaitoa. Turnbull, and' Company were parties to the award. All the onicers of the vessels named left their employment practically the same time. To Mr. Herdman : The original award had been modified in certain respects. To Mr. Ostler : The agreement arrived at did not concede all the men asked for. Frederickj C. Gale, shipping manager for J6hnston and Company, said , nip company were -the agents or owners of the steamers Blenheim, Huia, Moa, ! Manaroa, Ripple; anxLPutiki. The offiI ocrs of all these ships"' left on or about 2nd October. ... In cross-examination, witness maintained that Captain .Wateon was running the Guild, and "everything had to be referred to him. 1 / INTERESTING TELEGRAMS. George Levey, clerk in the Telegraph Office, produced a number of telegrams sent to different officers by, Captain Watson. These messages were all signed ."Watson" and endorsed "D. J. Watson." They ran :—: — s "If any trouble guild pays." "Both officers gitfe masters twentyfour hours' notioe.">'\ ."Unless Mana remainfc, Pa tea matters • will be exceedingly difficult for u&." "Take her as far as Timaru." '.'No, hold up VYestport.". - "Sorry you cannot ccc your way; you are, only officer ! Riding .put; • presume you have twenty -fow hours ,t clause in' articles." ' „ "Can we depend on you." "Officers giving twenty-four hours' notice; will you do likewise." FOR THE DEFENCE. Captain Watson, called by Mr. Herdman, gave evidence in L accordance with points mad© by "Mr. Herdman that the guild was composed of three unions or associations at Lyttelton, Auckland, and Wellington. He was secretary of the guild and of the Wellington Association. Witness negotiated with the employers. He admitted that *■ number ,of officers (some who belonged to tha union and some who did not) left their employment. No union meeting had been held to-de-cide upon a strike. Several officers had told him that they were not going to work under conditions of the award. He had accordingly rung up Mr. Fuller and. told, him there "was likely to b« trouble." This had been done with bh* object of keeping th* 'men in, witness thinking some concession might be made with that object in, view. Witness maintained that he had nothing to do with the men leaving their employment prior to midnight of 2nd October. At this stage the case was adjourned i till to-day. TO-DAY'S PROCEEDINGS, When the hearing of the case was resumed to-day Captain Watson continued his evidence under examination by Mr. Herdman. Witness said he had nothing to do with the mate of the Kiripaka leaving his ship on 29th September. Irvine of the Manaroa., left before midnight of 2nd October. Mr. Herdman : Had you or the union anything to do with inducing these men to leave their employment? Witness: Nothing whatever. Was there any concerted action on the patt of theee men?— l have no knowledge. Ab to the men who left their employment after 2nd Octber— did you induce these men to leave their ships? — Noj the fact that the other men left before 2nd October may have had something to do with it. •Did the union at any time hold any meeting, to discuss the question of the men leaving their ships?— No. Continuing, witness said that neither did the executive nor the committee of management meet at any time to discuss, the question. As secretary of the guild he had no vote on the executive. Several of the men, after they left their ships, went to Sydney. The men ceased work because the award set out that they could be employed for 20 hours' per day. CONCERNING THE TELEGRAMS. In reference to the telegrams produced yesterday witnese said that most of them were replies to messages he had received. Some of the wires came from men who did not belong to the union. He admitted that most of the -men bound by the award left their employment. There were 279 men in the union and about 30 left their employment. x CROSS-EXAMINATION. Witness admitted that he might have made a distake in reference to the date Irving left his ship. Mr. Gale's evidence on the point wa« probably right. Witnese carried out the instructions of his management committee. Mr. Ofitler : Did you consult the committee? Witness said he did not. Is it not the fact that you thought if the men. were called out before the award came into force they AVOuld not commit an offence under the Act? — Wheu I came back from Dunedin a lot of the men told me that they would not work under the award. That \a not an answer to the question: la it not a fact that you did so in-

porting to be interviews with you contained similar statemente — Witness said he was under the impression at the time. Counsel quoted a published statement by Captain Watson "that if the men waited till Monday they would be liable," and asked him if he made it. Witness: I don't remember making the statement. It may be true. THE OFFICERS DID NOT KNOW. Did the president of the guild know you sent the telegrams? — He was not in Wellington at the time. Did the vice-president know of the telegrams? — No; I don't inform them of such small things as telegrams. It is . in the ordinary scope of your business to send such telegrams?— Yes. Counsel also quoted from a report in The Evening Post of 6th October, 1911, stating that "the officers have been discussing the situation to-day, but Captain Watson stated that there was nothing for the press." Witness said he was not responsible for the press. Representatives of the newspapers called at his office each day to enquire for news. Proceeding, witness said a meeting of the guild was held on 28th September, bat no reference to the strike had been made as a matter of business before the meeting. Mr. Ostler: Was nothing Raid about the sending of the, wires next day ? Witness: NNtc t I have already said many wires were sent in. reply to other telegrams. Will you swear on your oath that any of those wires were sent in reply? — Yes. Will you produce th© telegrams sent you and to which you replied? — I could do so. Very well, I will ask you to do so. . THE BREEZE AT DUNEDIN. Counsel then quoted a statement published in the New Zealand Times and telegraphed from Bluff to the effect that officers of the Breeze had received instructions to take tha Breeze to Dun- ! ediin and! leave her there. j Witness said he had no doubt sent a telegram to the (officers of the vessel. He also admitted sending a telegram to the officers of the Petone at Greymouth. Mr. Ostler : Can you deny that you were asking these men to come out? Witness : No, I do not deny that. Counsel quoted the telegram sent by witness to "Dodds, steamer Putiki — Tell master state officers left their own account entirely," and asked witness to explain it. ' Witness : That was a message in reply. THE REASON WHY. Mr. Ostler : That is probably correct. But why did you 6ay "tell master state the officers left on their own account entirely?" when you had already sent over thirty telegrams telling them to do soWitness hesitated, and counsel said he was content to leave the point to the Court. Mr. Ostler : Now, in the face of these telegrams, will you deny that these men came out uninfluenced by you? Witness : Most of them did. Did all of them? — They would have left in any case. * Can you say they were not influenced by you as secretary 'of the guild? — 1 gathered they were determined to come out when' T returned fr6m Dunedin. Captain John A. Hayward, pilot at 'Wellington and vice-president of . the guild, said that so far as he was aware the only reason way the men left their ships was the fact that they were dissatisfied with the award. He knew of no meeting at which it wafi decided to As an executive oflicer he would know. To Mr. Ostler : Witness had no know , ledge of the telegrams sent by Captain Watson to various officers nor. did Captain Watson inform him of, the fact. . Mr. Ostler; Do you irepudiate Mb action in sending the telegrams? ' Witness : • I have no power to do eb. That would be a matter for the executive. In .reply to further questions witness admitted that he had attended a meeting of* the guild on 28th September, but, so far as" his recollection went, nothing was said concerning the sending out of telegrams. , COUNSEL ASKS FOR DISMISSAL. Mr. Herdman submitted that the information should be dismissed on the grounds that it had not been proved to the court all that he must prove under section 3 of the Industrial Conciliation Act. Before a conviction could be entered it had to be shown that there was a deliberate' attempt to secure certain conditions, and inducing employers to agree to came. It the men were dissatisfied with their conditions they had the right to cease work. There was not a scrap of evidence that the men were endeavouring to compel the employers to agree to their terms. The Shipping and Seamen' Act gave officers the right to leave their ship ori getting ty> home port on. giving twenty-Tour iiours' notice. Sub-section 3 of section 6 of the Industrial Conciliation Act made it clear that when a majority of the members of the union left their" work "it shall be deemed that the union has instigated the strike." Counsel submitted that it had not been proved that the majority of the , members of the union had left work. The case was not against Captain Wat. son or the individual members of J-he union. There were 279 members in the union, and 30 men without a determination of the executive had ceased work. Why should the union be mulcted in £200 because of the action of this handful? After Mr. Ostler, had replied, his Worship Dr. M'Arthur, S.M., announced that he would give his decision on the 31st inst.