WAIKATO MINES

New Zealand Herald, Volume 82, Issue 25299, 5 September 1945, Page 6

WAIKATO MINES

THOSE UNDER CONTROL

QUESTION OF FUTURE (8.R.) WELLINGTON, Tuesday The future of four of the five coal mines in the Waikato which were placed under Government control for the duration of the war following a serious strike in 1912 w.ill be* the most important matter to he discussed at a meeting of the Waikato Coal Mines Control Board to he held in Auckland tomorrow under the chairmanship of the Controller of Mines. Mr C. H. Benncy. The mines concerned are Glen Afton, Pukemiro, Renown and Taupiri, The fifth colliery, Wilton, was purchased by the State last year and was operated as a State mine from October last. Under the emergency regulations gazetted in October, 1912, five mines were designated as "controlled"' mines, but the provision was made that this should cease on Ihe termination of the present war. Although to the layman this time has now arrived the official definition is something different. It was laid down in the Finance Act passed by the House of Representatives earlier this session that the end of the war for the purpose of contracts and various other purposes, would be the official proclamation by the Governor-General as published in the Gazette. Interim Scheme Possible

In spite of this the Government will soon be called upon to suggest some alternative to the controlling of the four mines. While there appears to be no indication that the mines will not eventually return to private control it seems doubtful if this will be done immediately and some interim scheme may lie put forward by the Mines Department. Under the regulations a limitation of profits was put on the companies concerned. It was laid down that where net: profits for a particular year exceeded the average net profit for the three financial years immediately before the control declaration ■ the amount in excess should he paid into the War Expenses Account, Where the net profit was less than the three-yearly average the amount of the deficiency was to he made up from the Wir Expenses Account. Outstanding Accounts Settlement of outstanding amounts owing to the Pukemiro and Renown companies to dates in 1914 was made ! 111 the last financial year as shown in ! their recent annual accounts and it is j understood that two of the companies ; are still awaiting final settlement. So ! far as is known none of the companies has yet been called upon to pay any of its net profits in excess of the threeyearly average into the War Expenses Account. In view of this and also of the fact that the price of coal is stabilised. there is some doubt in Wellington circles whether the mine owners would want to resume private ownership under the present price of coal. The matter is a corn [ilex one and will be discussed at tomorrow's meeting. The strike in the Waikato mines which led to the control regulations created a stir throughout the Dominion and it was the direct cause of the resignation from the War Cabinet of the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Holland, Mr W. A. Bodkin (Opposition-Central Otago), Mr W. J. Broadfoot (Opposition-Wai-tomo) and Mr W.J. Poison (OppositionStratford). The Hon. A. Hamilton and the late Rt. Hon J. G. Coates also resigned at that, time but later rejoined the War Cabinet. STRIKE AT THE STATE MINES LIVERPOOL AND STRONGMAN (P.A.) GH.EYMOTTTH, Tuesday The Liverpool and Strongman State miners were idle today owing to a dispute over holiday pay on V-J Day. At a mass meeting tonight it was decided to await a readjustment of the rate in accordance with the terms of the local agreement before resuming work. WATCH SUPPLIES RELIEF NOT LIKELY IMPORT DIFFICULTIES Wristlet watches, particularly those for women, will probably be in shorter supply in future than they have been in the past, year. Commenting upon the position yesterday, a prominent Auckland jeweller said that i£ took eight to ten months for orders placed with Swiss manufacturers to be tilled. The Swiss frontier had been closed for about six-months, thus interrupting the flow of supplies, which usually were shipped through Portugal, and now shortage of shipping was creating transportation difficulties. In the past the New Zealand Government. had permitted jewellers to import service watches fairly freely, he continued, but these were almost entirely men's patterns. Importers were now faced with the problem of securing Swiss exchange, and as available francs were severely limited, purchases would probably be much smaller. Similarly the position regarding dollar exchange meant that no watches could be imported from the United States. | Somes time ago, the jeweller eon- | tinned, the Government placed an em- . bargo on the importation of the more ! expensive tvpes of watches, jewellers being prohibited from selling models i costing more than £ll. Consequently, . watches in the more expensive catej gories would not become available as ; long as the embargo existed. This meant . that there was no likelihood of gold ! watches coming 011 to the local market. I Some time ago, jewellers in New ZeaI land endeavoured to overcome this by I ordering watch movements from Switzerland, and Wiving them set, in pold cases manufactured in Australia. % Fhis plan met with New Zealand Governmental support, but so far the Australian Government had refused the manufacturers there permission to export. POWERFUL FORTRESS DEFENCE OF WELLINGTON (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Tuesday Now that hostilities have ceased, some of the secrets of a powerful new fortress built in a Wellington peak during the war have been revealed. Few people can have a conception of the magnitude of tho undertaking, which turned the interior of a hill into a maze of concrete tunnels and chambers, reminding one of a portion of the Maginot Lino. The hill is honeycombed with long concrete passages, lined with cables and hydraulic power lines. Flights of concrete steps between the higher and lower levels, steel doors and spacious vaults crammed with switchboards and powerful Diesel and electric motors, are part of the equipment. All that can be seen above ground are two huge coastal guns, a few small sheds and the' concrete cowls of the extensive ventilation and compressed air systems. These guns are long-range weapons designed to fight off any vessels which might approach to attempt the bombardment of the city or harbour. Spotting is by forward observation posts, spread around the coast and containing range-finders and other equipment, either visually or radar controlled. It was 1912 before the first equipment for the fort began to arrive and finally the site was selected. Guns with barrels weighing 2K tons were hauled up the hill and installed. A picked team of New Zealand Army officers and non-commissioned officers, who had been sent to Australia for experience, installed them. At its height, Wellington's coastal artillery was manned by 750 men and women. Soon there will be only 41 on the job, keeping it in order.