COAL SHORTAGE.

Evening Star, Issue 25224, 11 July 1944, Page 8

COAL SHORTAGE.

• TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —A number of articles have appeared recently, in regard to a coal shoitage. I think it is time the public were informed of the true position. If your reporter had visited some of the small merchants these facts would have been brought to light sooner. The coal distribution in Dunedin is mainly controlled by a group of agents who obtain a commission per ton for ringing the merchants' orders to • the mines; the public pay for this. At present the railways require a proportion of Southland coal; the agents, who are also coal merchants, have next say, and the rest of the merchants get only as little as the agents care to give them. Most of the merchants were short even in the 1 summer, but not the agents. They could deliver full orders to their own customers as well as to as many of tho smaller merchants' customers as they could grab. Six years ago I believe there were 90 merchants in Dunedin; now we have about 45. A number were certainly bought out, but the majority were pushed out. We even have a case of a returned soldier of this war who bought a business with the assistance of the Rehabilitation Board, being compelled to notify his customers he could not supply them with shiny coal, but behold, the powers of the great could supply them. Is this state of affairs going to be allowed to go on ? Does a man have no protection, or is his livelihood going_ to be taken away by slow strangulation? So we see that this state of affairs lias existed for sonio time. It would be interesting to know to what extent the turnover of these igents in household coal has increased and to what extent the small merchants •■as decreased over the war period, despite the fact of fewer merchants. Tim I'act of the matter is the agents hav<> more business now than they can cope with, being short of man power; but 'hey have the coal and will get it. and" the public can wait three weeks ■or their orders, while the small man vits idle or tries tn satisfy with something inferior. Ts this a humane attitude to take in the middle of winter? We have exceptions where a small merchant gets a good spin, but then lie must be a good chup, and that is favouritism and not supply according to oast business. Another case is the big nma',l man; he has been brought down to the level of the smallest; it is easier when the clay of rec-ikoning conies. I helieve that if the coa! were supplied in proportion to past business the public would all get their share of good coal ■Hid not have an empty bin for perhaps three weeks, even though there is a shortage. Recently we had a strike for

an increase in the margin, but 1 am sure the small merchant would and could forgo this if he were given his share of available coal. Our local Department of Industries and Commerce may take notice and provide some pro tectioii for the public and hard-hit smalt coal merchants, and I am sure the housewives would get their share ol available good coal through their owi tradesman.—l am, etc., Fair Play for All. July 10. [There are over 60 coal merchants u the Dunedin distributing area—Mosgie to Port Chalmers—and not about 45 In the past few years none of tlu> smaller merchants has been pushed our of business, but tihose who are not now in the industry have either retired or 6old their interest. Inquiries made of several agents revealthat the amount of coal they are receiving from the mines they represent has been drastically reduced by the Government, and that at present they have only enough supplies to fulfil the orders of their customers. It is understood that the .Minister of Mines (Hon. P. C. Webb) is to discuss the whole question of the production of the Southland mines with the owners this -week.—Ed. E.S.]