PORT OF WANGANUI

Evening Star, Issue 17328, 16 April 1920, Page 4

PORT OF WANGANUI

INSUFFICIENT SHED ACCOMMODATION. ,

[Special to the 'Star.']

CHBISTCHURCH, April 15. _ Owing to insufficient shed accommodation at the town wliarf at Wanganui a, great deal of trouble* and. inconvenienca is experienced by trading vessels, and it js stated that until conditions improve the Canterbury Steam .Shipping Company intend withdrawing their largest vessel, the Calm, from the South lsland-Wan-ganui trade.

Inquiries into the position were made from the head office in Christclnrrch of the Canterbury Steam Shipping Company. The trouble, it was" stated, was that on tha town wharf at Wanganui there was shed accommodation for only 600 tone. This wharf ;s reserved for the coastal trade, and the Calm has often 700 tons of cargo to unload, and c.u occasions as much as 1.000 tons. In consequence the. vessel .has had to lie up from three to five days at times before she can finally complete her unloading.

This lias disorganised the -whole of the company s trade, for as they have ths Breeze, Storm, and Kara engaged irt coastal carrying as well, their time-tables m other places are affected; indeed, on several occasions lately, the companv hav* cut the Storm out of the Wanganui run. The position has been causing troubU for some time.

A SERIOUS MATTER

AFFECTS PORT OF DUNEDIN,

" This matter is of just as much. im. portance to the merchants and manufacturers of Dunedin as it i£ to Christchurch," said a representative of Messrs H. L. lapley and Co., local agents for the Canterbury Steam Shipping Co.. Ltd., to a. ' Star ' reporter to-day. " Even with steamers endeavoring to maintain a timetable to Wanganfii," he said, "there are heavy accumulations of cargo waiting to be shipped, and now the Canterbury Company have l>een forced to take the Calm off the Wanganui run owing to the lack of accommodation at Wanganui, matters will get much worse. Three, vessel* have been kept on the run until delays huve become absolutely impossible" to contend with, and it will now mean that instead of three steamers catering for shipments from this port, we will only have two, and as the Calm is the biggest vessel on the trade, this will further complicate matters.

"'•A deputation from the DunedinManuAssociation waited on us on ■\\ ednest'ay last in this connection, and we explained the position to them. In the meantime it will be impossible to give any relief to Dunedin merchants until the Wanganui people bestir themselves .and provide nrnper shed accommodation. Alter building up this trade for the past 15 years, it is certainly a serious matter to see it bc-ina: gradually driven into tho iiiVKb of Wellington merchants; and it is necessary for the good of this port tnat the Dunedin merchants and manufacturers .bestir themselves to provide better facilities and more shed accommodation. TVs think merchants will realise that delavs from two to five days of these vessels is a serious matter for the shipping compav.y. and that they have done their £est_to carry on the service to Wanganui. ?.} far, although we have adopted every measure possible to iirge tho Wanganui Harbor Board and the Chamber of Commerce at Wanganui to do something towards providing more shed accommodation, they have been unsuccessful, and have only received promises from tho Government, by whom the wharf at Wanganui is controlled."