THE COALMINING INDUSTRY.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume VIII, Issue 218, 16 August 1918, Page 6

THE COALMINING INDUSTRY.

WEST COAST MINES IDLE.

FROM VARIOUS CAUSES.

Westport, August 15. Full bins and the shortage of shipping were responsible for the Westport Coal Company’s mines be ing idle to-day. The Stockholm mines are idle owing to a dispute over a deputy who was asked to do work he con sidered outside his duties, nanlelj cutting the tops off mining props. He refused and was dismissed. The management considered the deputy sufficient to do the work and tnat it was justified in asking him to de prop cutting. The other deputies declined to resume work until tht dismissed man was reinstated. It is understood in connection with a stop-work meeting of the miners that there was a majority in favoui of leaving the ma.ter in the hands of the federation to take what action it considered advisable. The mines are idle at Denniston owing to a fatal accident and a funeral, and at Millenon owing to the shortage of coal trucks. Greymouth, August 15.

The men at the State mine held a stop work meeting on Wednesday when the dispute wich the coal own.ers was fully discussed. The position was considered in all its phases and it was finally decided to leave the matter entirely in tnt hands of the Federation of Labour. The men resumed work this morning as usual and will await furthei developments. A stop-work meeting at Blackball decided on the same lines. MINERS’ BALLOT TAKEN. STATEMENT BY MR. SEMPLE. Westport, August 16. In a statement to the Westfprt ‘‘Times” Mr. Semple said the coal miners of New Zealand had expressed their opinion by ballot the purport of -which he did not at present know. The result of the bailor wold be made pjublic in a few days. He had been right through the Dominion and from what he had seen and from what he knew privately, he had not the slightest d ibt that the miners would do thr right thing. It had been asserted by the coal owners’ association that a small soterie of union officials is at the head of matters in Wellington. but the ballot now taken by the miners would show that they were quite prepared and fully qualified to mind their own business.

Air. Semple wanted it to be emp asised that no master what was the result of the ballot the men would still be quite prepared to leave the matter in dispute to an open public settlement.