THE SHIPPING STRIKE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 19207, 22 December 1925, Page 11

THE SHIPPING STRIKE.

INTIMIDATION SY MINORITY. DISASTROUS YEAR FOR P. AND O. LONDON. Dec. 9. 1 do not believe that 10 per cent, of the seamen and firemen who refused duty in Australia and South Africa had their hearts in the strike, into which they were intimidated by avowed Communists," said Lord Inchcapo, chairman of directors, at the annual meeting of the P. and O. Company. It is significant," he said, " that only British vessels were involved. The extremists have been defeated at the polls by Mr. Bruce, a statesman with courage I and determination, and, accordingly, we now expect more settled conditions. The 'peaceful picketing,' which the leader of ilie miniature opposition employed, included a vast amount of terrorism and btutal assaults, so it is essential that the lav.- should be altered to enable people I peacefully to follow their legitimate occupations. Lord Inchcape. expressing approval of the prosecution of the British ComI munists, declared that a revolution in I Britain was inconceivable. The Governi ment could rely on the country supporting legal action aiming at the destruction of an anarchist conspiracy, engineered j fro:a Moscow. Britishers would never I succumb to seditious doctrines, and as | long as their sons and daughters, especii ally Sects, were ready to migrate to the | Dominions, they need not fear for the j solidarity of the Empire. \ Calling attention to the Australian and | Indian development of local industries be- | hind increasingly high tariff walls, Lord | Inchcape pointed out that Britain could ] not rely solely oil Empire trade. She | must realise her dependence on foreign | markets, and refrain from bolstering up J industries under safeguarding Acts, which I wouid only result in Brtishers paying imi port duties. ft was added by Lord Inchcape Lhat, owirg to a cargo shortage, low freights, ! heavy dock and labour charges, and j Chinese troubles and strikes, the past j vear had been the worst shipping had experienced, inflicting gigantic losses on many shipowners, including the P. and O. Company. The results of most voyages had been disastrous.® Lord Inchcape commended Mr. Baldwin's refusal to subsidise the shipbuilding industry, because there was more than sufficient shipping already in existence. He urged an international agreement to abolish submarines, thus effecting a considerable saving in naval and commercial expenditure. Since the war, Britain bad spent £47,000.000 in submarines. The P. and 0. Company's associated lines total war losses had been 504,31t) tons, of which 400,000 tons had been the victims of submarines.