GOVERNMENT LABOUR EXCHANGE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 7875, 18 May 1887, Page 3

GOVERNMENT LABOUR EXCHANGE.

A meeting of the Board of Advice of the Government Labour Ecchange was held in the Government offices yesterday, and attended by Dr Hißlop <in the chair), Messrs R. B. Martin, Colin Allan, E. R. Ussher, J. Logan, and J. P. Maitland.

The following report was read by the secretary, Mr Collin Allah:—

On the 6th inst. 48 married men received orders from me to proceed to relief works on Catlins railway. Of this number seven did not put in an appearance.

On the 10th Inst, orders were given to 24 married men, butonly 20 put iv an a pearance. Land orders under village homestead settlement system were given to 35 married men for the purpose of settling on the laud set apart f»rthem in the neighbourhood of the works. . It may ba of Interest to the boara if I supply a few statistics bearing on the unemployed question. The list of so-called unemployed furnished by Mr Bracken contained 88 names, and of this number 12 only came forward and obtained orders for the relief works at Glenomaru. Of 39 applications received by myself, 19 only put in an appearance, and were forwardtd to Ilomahapa by the fubllc Workß department. The really honest, hard-working men whose families were suffering were those who put in an appearance, and who expressed thankfulness for any employment wherewith to support their 1 families.

Several letters have been leceived from applicants in the country districts for work on the railway but I have discouraged these applications, as I thought working men in the country have a better chance of earning a livelihood in-the winter than married men in towns, where expenses of various kinds are to be met.

I am glad to report that applications for ploughmen aud country servants have increased since the reorganisation ofthe exchange, and that the men are now inclined tp be content with smaller wages to meet the demands of t he times.

The following classes of labour were registered for hire since lasb meeting, viz., 4 milkers, 1 married ploughman, 6 single,do. 2 shepherds, 1 blacksmith 1 handy man, 1 brickmaker, 2 grooms, \ farm labourer.

The applications by employers were \ married couple and 7 ploughmen. ;. The engagements made were 1 married couple at £70 and cottage found, 6 ploughmen at 15s per

The Secretary stated thafc he had written to Mr Menzies, who had a contract for the Glenham tunnel and formation on the Edendale branch, stating that he could supply him with 20 or 80 able-bodied single men used to navvying if be fequirsd any.--Hi« action was approved,

I The Board resumed consideration of giving employment to single men at Catlins river. During the discussion it was pointed out that ifc would be unfair to pay single men 4s 6d per day, and also to only give a married man with five children the game wages. Most of the members of the board were opposed to giving men single work, as a number of contracts had recently been let, and any single man could easily earn 4s 6d a day rabbiting, or at other work up country.—lt was finally resolved to communicate with the Government as to the rate of wages, and nofc to send any single men to Catlins river until a reply had been received. Mr Ussher stated that he could not take on any more men until next Wednesday week at the earliest.

—It has been demonstrated that platinum wire may be drawn so fine as to be invisible to the naked eye, although its presence upon a perfectly white card can be detected by the touch, and can be seen by the aid of a small magnifying glass when the card is held in such a position hat the wire casts a shadow.

—The vast majority of Queen Victoria's subjects (139,000,000) are neither Protestants nor Catholics, bufc Hindoos, while the Mahommedans, 40,000,000 in number, are themselves moTe numerous than the Protestants of all denominations in the empire. —A perfect recitation is called a " tear " afc Princeton, "squirt" at Harvard, "sail" atßowdoin. "rake" at Williams and "cold rush" at Amherst. A failure in recitation receives the title of "slump" at Harvard, a " stump " at Princeton, a " smash" at Wesleyan, and a "flunk" at Amherst and the University of Pennsylvania.

The fiftieth anniversary of Pope Leo's ordination as Bishop, and the Queen's Jubilee com ing in the same year, there will be an exchange of letters and presents.