THE BRITISH NAVVY.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIII, Issue 99, 24 April 1909, Page 2

THE BRITISH NAVVY.

A LOCAL CONTRAST

Accompanying the Drainage Board on its tour of inspection a clay or two ago (says the Otago Daily Times) a visitor Avas struck with the wide dissimilarity between the New Zealand toiler and the English navvy. lie noticed parties oi; stalwart men wielding shovel and pick as though their lives depended on it. They were doing a deal of work in a short time, instead of a little work in a long time. They were not only working, but they appeared to relish it.

The visitor was surprised, and said so.

"My dear sir," explained the chairman of the Board, "we employ none but the very best men here," and the eyes of the engineer twinkled as if he also understood. ■'

"Quite so," replied the visitor; ".but —:—." Then he became reflective. He was puzzled at these lithe, sinewy, intent workmen, who wrought with such strenuous pertinacity as he thought of the navvy at Home. Here there' was no fighting, no abuse, no epithets even—nothing but work and the sounds thereof.

'' Things are different here, are not they?" remarked-the engineer. , "Believe me, I've never had so much as a disrespectful word from any of x them all the time I've been here. At Home? Why, I've had as many -as 40 fights. The men come up and abuse you till you can't stand their insults^ any longer, and then you let them have it, and that's just what they like. But you see here they are different. It's education I suppose."

Again the visitor looked curiously at the toiling New Zealanders, who scarcely raised their eyes from their work, and he seemed to remember something he had read regarding "the dignity of labour."

But the finishing touch came at another section during the dinner hour. Within a few yards of a public-house sat 50 or 60 workmen eating sandwiches and drinking *cold tea. Some used the outer walls of the inn as a back rest, and as far as they y/ere concerned it was there to serve no other purpose. Again the visitor was staggered. "Cold tea!" he murmured, and, " Fancy finding an English navvy outside a publichouse in the dinner hour!"