MYSTERY AT ARAPUNI.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20596, 21 June 1930, Page 14

MYSTERY AT ARAPUNI.

ORDER TO STOP WORK. PROTEST. BY TUNNELLERS. NO ELEMENT "OF DANGER. i / . ... " MINISTER'S INSTRUCTION." Tho following letter was received yesterday:—"We, tho undersigned tunnellers at Arapuni, desiro to protest against the action of tho person or persons unknown to us who have taken it on themselves to complain to the Minister that tho tunnel in which wo have been working is unsafe. Through this action and tho Minister's subsequent instruction that our work bo immediately stopped, we have been thrown out of employment and the loss to us in wages is very serious at the present timo. " We therefore desiro to mako known the following facts in regard to the situation : ■" (1) We have never at any time been nsked to work in any place which could he considered unsafe, either by the engineer-in-chief or by tho general foreman. " (2) If at any timo timbering was considered necessary in the tunnels, our instructions have been to proceed at once with timbering. (3) Tunnelling is voluntary and wo jick our own parties for this werk. " (4) The tunnel in question, in which we have been working, is of such soundness that no timbering whatsoever was considered necessary either by tho men or by those in charge. " In consideration of tho above facts we, tho undersigned, hereby desire to extend to our unknown, but apparently mistaken, " benefactor," a definite invitation to como to Arapuni and examine carefully tho tunnel in question, thus proving to tho satisfaction of all parties tho truth of our contention. If our wouldbe benefactor is genuine in his desiro for our welfare, surely ho will immediately accept our offer and so put an end to the enforced idleness which we neither want nor can afford." Tho lotter is signed by Messrs. D. Logan, H. Jones, S. Wilson, E. Yorke, B. Allwood, A. Blanchard and W. Rennison, MINISTER'S STATEMENT. CESSATION OF TUNNELLING. ' NO EXPLANATION GIVEN. [BY TELEGRAPH.—OWN CORRESPONDENT.] DUNEDIN, Friday. The Minister of Public Works, tho Hon. W. B. Taverner, stated this evening that the published information was the first intimation he had had of the cessation of tunnelling work at Arapuni. He stated, however, that several exploratory tunnels had recently been undertaken and the' cessation of these might have given rise to the statement that tunnelling work had been brought to a standstill. UNION'S INTERVENTION. 'ALLEGED DANGER TO MEN. FACILITIES FOR MR. SEMPLE. A report upon the conditions under which members of the New Zealand Union of Workers were working at Arapuni was made at the union's annual conference in Wellington on Tuesday by Mr. J. B. Williams, the union's organisor of the Public Works Department's employees in the northern part of the North Island. Mr. Williams said he had made a close inspection of tho work and of the country around the Arapuni dam, and was satisfied that a most serious situation existed. Ho complained that tho union's members at the works were being asked to work in situations dangerous to life and limb and said he was satisfied that little regard was being paid to reasonable safety precautions. The conference passed the following resolution: "That in view of the alarming position at Arapuni, this conference suggests to the Government that its local president be appointed as an inspector on tho job so that the lives of the union members shall not be placed in jeopardy: the Government to pay the salary of this inspector." According to a telegram published yesterday representations to this effect were made by a deputation from the union to tho Minister of Lands, the Hon. E. A. Ransom, 011 Thursday. The Minister said he would refer tho request for the appointment of an inspector to the Prime Minister* and the Minister of Public Works. He remarked that it was not a question of expense, but of dual control. Mr. Ransom read a telegram from the Minister of Public Works, stating that ho had given instructions that Mr. Robert Semple was to bo given every facility for making an inspection of tho work at Arapuni, LABOUR MEMBERS' VISIT. PERSONAL INVESTIGATION. [ISY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENT.] WELLINGTON. Friday. Two members of tho Labour Party, Messrs. R. Seinplo and R. McKeen, left for Arapuni this evening to make a first-hand investigation into tho various aspects of the recent developments thero and complaints as to the working conditions reported to tliern.