THE H.B. TRIBUNE. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1911 THE STATE COAL FAILURE.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume I, Issue 52, 11 February 1911, Page 5

THE H.B. TRIBUNE. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1911 THE STATE COAL FAILURE.

The Dominion of New Zealand.' Neither by the characteristic enterprise of its people, its youthful energy, or its isolated position, has become the universally recognised field for experimental legislation in labour, in Government trading and Government monopoly. While the theories of the theorists remain mere theories at Home, out here they are put into practice,', and schemes for transferring the •control of industries from responsible individuals to —shall we say—irresponsible Government officials, -quickly assume a concrete form. We are led to-day to touch upon this big question of government Versus individual trading by the contents of the telegram we publish from Westpart regarding the protest made by the Westport Chamber of Commerce concerning the unsatisfactory condition cf affairs at the State coal mine at! "Seddonville. From this source we| learn that miners engaged by the;

State are doing only one or two days’ work a week, and that the much eulogised briquette works "have been closed. In these days of rapid changes it is never safe to prophesy unless one is absolutely aure, and with this axiom in mind we have no hesitation in phophesying that the State’s failure in the -coal field will in a very short time be announced. This assumption is grounded on the indisputable facts that, compared with other coals, the State product is brittle and of inferior quality; that transport difficulties are greater; and that the mine is not worth developing, aa the end of its supply is already in sight. These things so heavily handicap the State coal industry ss « make successful competition with other mines impossible. The, Taupiri coal holds the market in the North Island, and in the South,' aa stated by the Westport Chara-j ber of Commerce, the coal-owning Government uses not its own coal! but goes to Newcastle for steam | coal for its railways. This por-j tends a fateful ending to the Gov-! emment’s experiment in State-1 owned coal mines, and it being the first State undertaking, outside r.a absolute monopoly, the result is distinctly discouraging to those i who hold that it is a function of I

the State to be a sort of universal provider to the people. We are not told what remedy the Westport Chamber of Commerce covers their protest with, but we would not be surprised if they suggest to the 'Government—supposing that people still persist in buying coal from privately owned mines—to insist that every person must use, or «t aajy rate buy, so many tons of Sed-

donviUe coal per year, and that any ■’ refund to take the quota would » e ■ tegfrded as an attempt to defraud 1" the State Coal Department. This appears to be a mad suggestion, fc bnfc the carrying of it out would at ? least ensure the removal of slackBnas at Seddonville which the Westpeople are now complaining ■bout.