COALFIELDS STRIKE SETTLED.

Evening Star, Issue 23421, 11 November 1939, Page 10

COALFIELDS STRIKE SETTLED.

To all intents and purposes the strike which threatened' seriously to affect industry on the northern coalfields of Australia has been settled satisfactorily. The decision of the colliery engineers to strike not only caused idleness among the miners, but also showed signs of spreading beyond the immediately affected areas. As no country facing the major crisis of Avar can afford to labour under the handicap of internal industrial dissension Avithout suffering something graver than mere inconvenience, great relief will be felt at the outcome of the conference of combined Ainions. The conference, at which delegates of Engineering Union were present, unanimously carried a resolution recommending all Employees, including the engineers, to resume Avork on Monday, the understanding being that the case for higher wages would be heard by the Arbitration Court. The latest news is that the Prime Minister will meet representatives of the combined unions on Tuesday at Canberra to discuss the whole position, together with the unions’ request for speedier treatment of their claims than the Arbitration Court’s legal machinery provides. The miners themselves have already derived considerable benefit from the aAvard, and l at no time since the trouble first made itself felt have they appeared strongly sympathetic with the engineers.

The latter, however, maintained that the award put them at a disadvantage in the matter of working hours, and had the effect of reducing wages, although this contention is answered largely by the fact that the award retains the previous basis in hours of work. The engineers’ aggregate meetings, it was stated, decided to strike in full knowledge that a combined meeting of the unions was to be held. The meetings felt that there had been ample time for a policy to be formulated since the Full Bench’s award had come out, and that action had! to come quickly if an effective fight were to be made for the 40-hour week. This explains the pressure for speedier settlement of the claims which is to be brought to the notice of the Prime Minister. Happenings since the promulgation of the award suggest that the striking engineers were backed by their union. No results were achieved at a compulsory coal conference held late last month, and subsequently more than a dozen northern collieries were rendered idle through the strike. On November 3 the recommendation of the executive of the Coal Miners’ Federation that the engineers should return to work was turned down, but more success seems to have attended the direction on November 8 by a conference of delegates from the combined unions that “ all engineers who are on strike on the northern coalfields should resume work immediately, pending completion of negotiations.” Possibly tho threat that the miners would resume work even if non-union labour was employed to do the engineers’ jobs had something to do with this. Tho main point is that a strike which, if prolonged, would have reacted disastrously on the war effort of tho Commonwealth has been settled with a minimum of unpleasantness.

Evidence of the combined effects in Japan of labour shortages, rising freights, and other causes due to the conflict with China and the outDrcak of war k given in the quotations of one line of goods alone before and after the present situation arose. Elastic, for use in garments, has increased from 2s to 2s 6RI a lb within the past few months. Other commodities show similar trends.

Even far away Finland is affected by import control in New Zealand. A Dunedin business man who has had profitable dealings with Finland received a letter recently that informed him “ No business is possible owing to tho policy of import restriction in your country. We can just wait and hope for the time when New Zealand will be able to import freely again,”

The hearing of evidence in several charges arising out of a motor accident at the intersection of Mechanic street and the Main North road, the defendants being Donald M'Lcan, Anne Munro, and Charles Evans, was concluded in the Police Court yesterday afternoon. M'Lean was charged with driving without consideration, Miss Munro with driving without due care and attention, and Evans with aiding her in the commission of an offence. The charge against M'Lenn was dismissed, while a conviction was recorded against Evans, who was ordered to pay costs (£1 13s); and Miss Munro was convicted and discharged.

James Tlobinson, a labourer, a statutory first offender for drunkenness, was fined 30s in the Police Court this morning.

In the course of his visit to Dunedin, Mr P. A. Smithells, the newly-ap-pointed suervisor of physical education, was able to make a brief survey of the work being done in the secondary and primary schools and in the Training College. He was very much impressed with Dunedin’s playing fields and open spaces for recreation, and expressed the opinion that there were few schools in England with better playing fields than those at aiid near King’s High School. There cannot be many living in New Zealand to-day who can recal| the days of the terrible smallpox epidemic of London, when the town criers patrolled the streets calling on householders to bring forth their dead. Mrs Emily Jane Bassett, of Masterton, who on Monday celebrated her ninety-fifth birthday, still has vivid memories of those terrible days. She was born in Regent street, London, in 1844. She recalls that during the epidemic marble counters were installed in her parent’s shop: money was placed on these in payment for pastries, and allowed to become cold before being handled by the shop keeper, who thought by this means to avoid all *isk of infection. In spite of her great age, Mrs Bassett, who has been a resident of Wairarapa for 71 years, retains her faculties to an astonishing degree. Her family appears to afford some corroboration of the theory that longevity is hereditary, as her sister in' London has just attained the age of 92 years. A Wellington Association message states that yesterday’s attendance at the exhibition was 13,279, making the total to date 68,796. The weather today is the best yet, and a good attendance is expected.

John Andrew Porter (22), for being intoxicated while in charge of a car, was fined £2O and prohibited from obtaining a license for 12 months. The defendant was celebrating a cricket win He borrowed a car, which charged' into a parked car, badly damaging both, and then struck a power pole.—Ashburton Press Association.

This is the day in which old and unsafe bridges are being steadily remoyed, giving wav to wider and safer erections as are demanded by fast modern transport. One of the latest to fall under the eyes of the Public Works Department for complete reconstruction is the bridge over the Anderson’s Bay Inlet, on the Portobello road, the old wooden structure being condemned. Tenders are now being called by that department for the rebuilding of the bridge in reinforced concrete, and the decision of the department is one that will be welcomed by the very many who pse that highway. . ,

At the Port Chalmers Court yesterday Albert Greer was_ fined • 10s for breach of Ilis prohibition order. Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M., yviis on the, bench.

The city organist (Dr V. E. Galway) has arranged an interesting programme for his after-church recital in the Town Hall to-morrow evening. A number of items are being played for the first time at these recitals—viz.: 1 Fantasia on St. Ann ’ (Harris), Adagietto from ‘ Suite L’Arlesienne ’ (Bizet), Andante from a Concerto (Mozart), Nocture in G minor (Chopin). Other pieces are ‘ Aubade ’ (Bernard Johnson), choral prelude on 1 All Glory, Laud and Honour ’ (Bach), ‘Stella Matutina * (Dallier), ‘ Electa ut Sol ’ (Dallier), and ‘ Marche Solonnelle ’ (Mailly). Dr Galway will be assisted _by Mr Ivan W. Hanna, who will sing ‘ Return Now, You Wild Rushing Storm Winds ’ (Bach) and ‘ Sea Winds ’ (Julius Harrison) and Mr A. J. Jones, who will be heard in_ 'ln Native Worth ’ (‘ The Creation ’; Haydn). There will be no charge for admission

A piece of the rook on which Edinburgh Castle is built will probably bo incorporated in the observation lookout at Signal Hill as the foundation stone of this Dunedin centennial memorial. A letter has been sent to the Lord Provost of Edinburgh by the Centennial Committee, notifying him of the proposal and enlisting his cooperation in having the stone transported to the Dominion. One Dunedin resident who left Edinburgh over 50 years ago was so enamoured of the idea that ho succinctly remarked: If the stone does become a part of the memorial I will take a taxi to Signal Hill to have a look at it! ” Incidentally, the Otago branch of the Institute of Architects expects to have the plans of the look-out completed by the end of this month.

The city brigade was called 1 to a hotrse in Delta street at 3.32 p.m. yesterday to attend to a fire which ignited owing to aoot accumulating in a stove. At 9.24 a.m. to-day the South Dunedin brigade was called to a chimney fire in Young street, St. Kilda.

Notifications of Sunday services as enumerated below appear in our Sunday services advertising columns: —Anglican: St. Paul’s Cathedral. All Saints’. Presbyterian: First Church, Knq.\- Church, St. Andrew’s, Musselburgh, St Stephen's, Roslyn, Kaikorai, Maori Hill, Wakari. Methodist: Trinity, Central Mission, Mornington, St. Hilda, Caversham, Dundas Street, Abbotsford, Cargill Road, Maori Hill. Baptist: Hanover Street, Caversham, Mornington, South Dunedin, Roslyn, Sunshine, North-east Valley, Green Island. Congregational; Moray Place Church, United. Church of Christ: St. Andrew Street, North-east Valley, South Dunedin. York Place Hall, Salvation Army, Playfair Street Hall, Christian Science, Theosophies! Society, Spiritualists, Salvation Army (North Dunedin). The garden party held at Wakari Hospital and the display of the patients and ex-patients’ handiwork held last year proved such a success that it has been decided to hold a similar function this year. It will tako place in the grounds at Wakari on Saturday, November 18, at 2.30. The Kaikorai Band will be in attendance and members of 4ZB Broadcasting Station will give items. An advertisement in this issue draws attention to the official opening of the new railway road motor terminal at Dunedin by the Minister of Railways at 2.30 on Monday. Particulars of train arrangements in connection with the Taieri A. and P. Show at Outran) on November 18 are advertised by the Railway Department in this issue. The St. Joseph’s Orphanage Band will play at the Botanic Gardens to-morrow afternoon.

All who have Territorial art union books kindly return same to the secretary as soon as possible.