The New Zealand Times. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 21, 1925 N.Z. GOAL

New Zealand Times, Volume LII, Issue 12042, 21 January 1925, Page 6

The New Zealand Times. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 21, 1925 N.Z. GOAL

The use of New Zealand coal by the New Zealand railways had not met with the fate many important domestic questions sometimes undergo. Occasions may be . mentioned on which domestic matters of urgency have been killed by mere mention in Parliament and buried under a brilliant epitaph promising a “Royal Commission of investigation. -This question of the use of our own coal by our own railways has been : taken up, after agitation in Parliament and outside. A Commission has been appointed, and will begin its labours immediately. The jjrst thing that strikes one is the composition of this inquiring authority. Comprising professional men of eminence, and men representative of all interests concerned—of produce;*, labour, consumer, general public, and merchant—the Commission must be acknowledged to be of the best possible composition.- So far as the personnel of judgment is concerned, the question awaiting settlement is sure of genera] fairness of treatment, and of till shades of sympathy possible to be found in the Dominion. The composition of the Commission pleads in advance for a fa- - vourahle reception from the public. ' Another merit or the Commission is promptitude.’ The inquiry long wanted xor the settlement of a question of great importance to the Dominion throughout every class and grade of its people is about to be-‘.settled at last. At all events,. whatever may ensue in the shape of action, all discussion and consideration of the future 1 will, after the judgment of the Commission, have authoritative statements of fact to deal with. , Provided, of course; that there be nothing contentious in the report embodying that judgment. The; great Commission on the Coal. Industry-erred in ■ this. respect, with some recommendations highly debatable. The report of that Commission, though presenting the country. with, some < valuable facts well vouobed for, failed for that-reason to be carried • out. ■ The present Commission -will, do -well to avoid that cause of failure.

Much in: such proceedings depends on the order of reference.., The order in this case --is adequate. It states the problems fairly, and even makes-room i p. the inquiry ■ for - -by-issues,-- about which (neither the people who raised the main question of the employment of our coals- on -the railways,- nor the general public which heard. and discussed these appeals,. knows anything definitely at aIL The : object of the inquiry ..will be ( as the Minister has said, to get the ; relative value of all coals, both local and imported, for railway purposes. Nothing outside <n this question can bo considered by the Commission, and thus a great field of contentious matter will be avoided, to the manifest; advantage of the business- in hand. This matter of local fuel -has not,, of. course, been neglected by the railway management. On the contrary; the management has both conducted experiments and studied what has been done, in other countries,-send-ing officers to make personal observation. The -question ' has often been raised in Parliament, conspicuously by -the Hon., <3. M. Thomson in the Legislative' Cowell,, whose repeated attempts .td-get ,a seTtle-ment have originated into which hip own contributions ,'ljave Been valuable and re'markable.'; In the House, Mr H. , 15 ■ Holland , and others have ventilated - the question, with 1 as much : 'earnestness as' Mr Thomson displayed in his chamber, - but with a treatment entirely general, apd, therefore, nob so valuable. Mr Thomson has also contributed spine writings full of information. ■ The Commission will, therefore, have abundant material to study and discuss, reinforcing whatever steps, experimental and otherwise, it may find necessary in the course of its investigations to take. We look forward, therefore, to a report valuable because of the amount of up-to-date information at command and of the .various lights thrown upon it from all possible angles of view. We do not see that the question of importing coal can escape a thorough ventilation. The story of Mr MoVilly’s very determined, spirited, and thorough policy of purchase by which he saved the Dominion at a critical time from grave transport disaster, ought to be told to t|ie Commission, if any Recommendation is to be expected in the direction of at least' reinforcing the local supplies by means of foreign importation. Broadly speaking, the Dominion ought, for obvious reasons, to be selfsupporting, in the possession of the means of transport free from.

foreign complications. On the other hand, the need tor a safety-valve has arisen from various causes, conditions of local mining and labour troubles. That need caused Mr Mfc- ! Villy’s very remarkable and ' praise- ! worthy and successful effort for the I continuance of the , national railway ' transport. We cannot say that this side of the question is' included in the order iof reference. That may only include investigation of the various varieties of coal fuel available throughout the world to the Railway Department. Even if this is so, the report of the Commission will bo a valuable verdict about the coal facts. The question of what will have to be done with these facts, whether reliance on importation alone, or upon local user with a safety-valve ef importation attached, will in that case to be decided later under guidance of the Commission’s judgment of the coal facts. In that case, too, consideration will have to be given to the shipping interest, which offers another grave problem to the Dominion. However this may be—the Commission will, no doubt, decide the point early in. the formation of its agenda—we can, at all events,’ look forward to an authoritative statement of the coal facts. And that will be a notable and useful step in advance.