THE DOCKS JAM

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17942, 22 May 1920, Page 7

THE DOCKS JAM

GOVERNMENT "BUNGLING." LORD DKVONPORT'S SCATHING CHARGES. FOOD " PITCH-FORKED INTO LONDON." (From Oub Own Cobeespondent.) LONDON, March 11. An onslaught on the Government by Lord Devonport, in relation to congestion at the docks, was the teature of a sitting of the dockers' inquiry, conducted under tho chairmanship of Lord Shaw. Lotd Devonport, who is chairman of the Port of London Authority, complained particularly of Government "bungling" in the matter oi the meat supply. The amount of cold storage and awaiting discharge was, he said, sufficient, with home-killed meat, to last the country six months. With proper organisation meat prices, he affirmed, might be much lower. -

Further complaints by Lord Devonport had reference to earlier Government shipments of wool, tea, and sugar. ; remedy for tho present congestion was for the Government to put tho meat on the market. Asked, what in his opinion was tho cause of the congestion of the Port of London,-Lord Devonport replied: 'The real cause of the congestion is the fact that the total stuff coming in is eo muck greater than the storage available."

" GOVERNMENT BUNGLING." "There is at present, for instance, 150, I (XX tons of meat in oold storage, sufficient, with home-killed, to last for three months. In addition there are 106,000 tons waiting to be discharged, sufficient for about another three months. All this was visible six months ago, when the Govern meet was warning the people that there was going to be a serious meat shortage.'—(Laughter.) It is all due to Government bungling—the bringing over of the meat. This means extra charges of demurrage, etc., and it is at. passed on to tho consumer. By proper organisation the cost of meat . might be much lower than it is to-day."

"WOOL, WOOL, EVERYWHERE!" Then, continued Lord Devonport, there was the congestion of wool —two million tons of it. "Wc tell the Government the utmost limit of our accommodation, ami they instantly hurl twice the quantity at us, and congestion ensues. " Last year it was wool, wool everywhere, till one could hardly move a step for wool. Before the war wo never had congestion, and it now arises from the ill-thought-out plans of the Government. T-his sort of thing demoralises everything and holds up the docks. The way to keep the port going is to keep it free from congestion." THE SHIP FLOTILLA.

' Then there, is tea, an article which is now causing great congestion. „While we were full up with tea, sufficient for many months' supply, the Government sent a flotilla of ships to the East to bring over moro tea, with the result that six months' average supplies were crowded into three months —' pitchforked into London.' The result was that the bonded stores were soon full to repletion. The Government had been given warning as to what would liapperu The other day eight tea ships were diverted to other ports, and to the eye the trouble was solved. But' it was not. It was worse, because all _ the tea was to come back to London by rail." "OVERWHELMED WITH SUGAR. " Though we are full up with sugar the G-ovemment is now bringing over 50,000 tons to be dealt with next month. There is no reason why this quantity should not be distributed over several months. We shall be overwhelmed with sugar, and may have to iock and bar the port against it." Lord Shaw: " What do you suggest should be done to relieve the congestion and improve the accommodation?" Lord Devonport: " The Government should put on the market their large stock of meat and face the loss. They have made heavy profits out of it. In any case they would get" their money back."— (" Hear hear.") LORD DEVON PORT'S " ILL- . INFORMED STATEMENT." Talcing up the matter on behalf of the Government, Sir A. H. Goldfinch, Directorgeneral of Raw Materials, writes to The 'limes:— No doubt it is true that wool has occupied a considerable amount oi space in the London docks, and, as Lord Devonport puts it, throughout 1919 wool was to bo seen all over the place. So might some noble 10/ d when his Rolls-Royce was caught in a jam in Oxford street or Queen Victoria street, observe that omnibuses were to be seen everywhere, and blame the London General Omnibus 1 Company for grossly miscalculating the amount of traffic which the streets oould bear. A little further inquiry would show, however, that the omnibuses wero all crowded with people proceeding on their necessary business, and whatever remedy might be the right one for the block in London traffic, to reduce the number of omnibuses would be obviously wrong. Exactly the same remark applies to the Government imports of wool. It was indispensably necessary in the first half of 1919 to import Australian and New Zealand wool in unusual quantities, because our imports in 1917 and 1918 were desperately small. It has also been necessary during the last eight months, and will continue to be so throughout 1920, to continue to import wool at the rate of 2,000,000 baks per annum, or considerably more if wo can got it, in spite of Lord Devonoprt's ill-informed statement that before the war 800,000 bales were sufficient. I wish to state, with full knowledges of the facts, that to fall below 2,000,000 bales per annum would mean grave disorganisation of the wool industry of this country, of Franco, and .qf Belgium, with an alarming probability of aggravating the already excessive prices of wool and wool textiles

Tho imports of wool on Government account in 1919 wero approximately 2,600,000 bales. Tlie unsold stock in this country on December 31 was under 600,000 bales. It is estimated that 100,000 bales per month are required for re-export to those neighbouring countries which depend upon us for their supplies of wool, and 125,000 bales per month aro required for our domestic manufactures. Allowing for a moderate sediment of wool of slow sale which necessarily accumulated in a year when great changes in tho nature of trade demand occurred, the stocks now available amount baoly to two months' supply, and aro the absolute minimum upon which tho selling brokers can keep up tho regular flow of wool through tho auctions. < Lord Devonport should have consulted tho records of his department before suggesting that the Government in the case of wool had ordered forward double the quantity stated by the port authorities to; bo the maximum which they could handle. The direct opposito is the case. Tho correspondence between the Ministry of Munitions and tho Port of London Authority, which is at tho disposal of Lard Shaw's Court of Inquiry whenever it is asked for, proves that in February,- 1919, tho Port of London Authority offered and undertook to supply storage space up to 1,000,000 bales of 'wool, if required. As a matter of fact, tho quantity of wool so stored only reached 600,000 bales for a week or two, at a timo when shipments of wool malde at considerable intervals arrived < together owing to oircumstanccs for whioh the Government were in no way responsible. In November last the whole situation was thoroughly gone into between tho Port of London Authority and the officials of the Ministry in confcrenco, and a programme for 1920 was laid out to cover quantities considerably in excess of what the Port of London Authority have in practioe been asked to deal with during the present year. The stock in London at present is about 300,p00 bales. ' I have not tho least intention of suggesting that the Port of London Authority have neglected anything which it was in their power to do to overcome the enormous difficulties which they admittedly have to oontend with. All I suggest is that grave charges of incompetence and gross care-

lessneas against Government departments should not be thrown about in public when they have no foundation in fact. DEMAND FOR CITIZENS' MEETING. 'ilie revelations ot Lord Devonport concerning tlie congestion at the Loudon docks, tuu eliect ol eaijiiiiiig delays on tae cost oi living, and tlie measure ol Government unity ior tlie present condition o£ an an a were referred to at question tima in tlie liouse, vviien a number ot interrogations ware put to Mr Lloyd George. He luiswered for wool, toa, sugar, meat—there was "no unusual congestion" ol tlie first; tho Government wore not responsible to tho second; there was no present, congestion ot tho third; •and the lourth was being placed on tne market ajs last as it could be absorbed A question about lord l>evonports assertion ttiat tlie congestion waa duo to the iutile policy of the Government Wits joiungly evaded. The Prime Minister attributed much of the congestion at tho docks to a shortage of railway wagons, as did Lord Devonport. Tho subject came up also at a meeting of the Court of Common Council at the Guildhall, when Deputy Neal drew attention to tho statement in. the press to the effect that tho present high cost of lood was duo in large measure to being held up in large quantities. Ho urged the -Lord Mayor to call a inciting of citizens in tho Guildhall to deal with a matter of suah. vital importance to tho welfare of the people of this country. The Lord Mayor said that a meeting would be called if a requisition, properly signed, was sent to him. Deputy Neal urged that the Lord Mayor should himaelf call tho meeting without waiting for signatures to a requisition. The Town Clerk pointed out Hat Lord Mayor did not usually call meetings without being assured of support. Deputy Neal: "This is not a usual case. OFFICIAL RB p LY TO LORD DEVONTwo days ago, when the Industrial Court of Inquirv into Dockers' demands resumed sitting (Lord Shaw of Dunfermline in too chair), Sir A. Goldfinoh gave evidence on behalf of the Ministry of Munitions _in reply to statements about dock congestion made last week by Lord Devonport, _ M chairman of the Port of London Authority. The witness, who confined himself to tho subject of wool, denied assertions made by Lord Jjevonport in his evidence, and said the latter's figures were wrong. "Replying to questions by Lord Shaw, he said during the war congestion the Government, right or wrong, wished to utilise the ordinary means of distribution, though these meana had then got rusty. _ Examined by Mr Philip Guedalke Sir Arthur said tnat his duties included the superintending of the movements and purchase of Australian and New Zealand wool by the Governipent. Hie attention had been called to a statement _ made on the fifth day of the inquiry by Sir' Alfred Booth to the effect that "the extraordinary vagaries of Government trading" were partly responsible for blocking the ports. As far as wool was ooncerned, -'-he (Sir Arthur) would like to travcrso the state, ment from the first word to the last. The control of Government wool had" been carried on under the supervision of com-, mercial men, and none but commercial men had intervened. He himself had spent his life in the business before he took up that war work, and he and his colleagues had been engaged in watching the movements of wool with the most anxious desire to serve the interests of the Government. They could claim and prove they had foreseen the requirements of this country and of Europe, and had provided far them beforehand. - •

Questioned aa to Lord Devonport's 'statement last week that wool had been "ooe of_ the prime causes of congestion, Sir ArGfur Goldfinch said' that Lord • DeronDort's evidence conveyed an absolutely false picture of the comparison between 1919 and pre-war years. Taking the figure • given by Lord Devonport of two million bales shipped to London in 1919, the witness saad that there was then a great surplus of wool in' Australia, and a great deficiency in Europe. Mia department were concerned in finding tie best means of distributing wool through Europe—a very difficult taek. They endeavoured to arrange for total shipments to this ocwntry of 2,700,000 bales, and it wab agreed, that the Port of London Authority should hold at the disposal of his department storage up to one million bales at a time. Actually, the greatest amount that was in store in the various London warehouses during 1919 was 554.000 bales. Ho did not -thmfc; that they were imposing an abnormal strain on the port, because in 1915 the imports into Lopdon were over two million bales. The congestion period of 1919, to which Lord Devonport referred, was due to the necessity of sending back Australian ships from Egypt and Palestine, their cargoes being brought forward later. But for thai circumstance the regularity of arrivals in the Port of London would have been much greater than before. , 1 WOOL DISTRIBUTION IMPEDED. In reply to Lord Shaw, the Witness admitted that 1915 was'a year of oongestion, but said that in that year there was no Government intervention.

Lord Shaw: But is it helpful to oomparo one year of ..congestion with another year of congestion?—" Pee, as showing that the' suggestion made by some witnesses is an entirely false one. Lord Shaw suggested that the ooort might have been presented with, a echedula applicable to 1912 or 1913, instead of 1915, as a .congested year. He called attention to the -imports of 266,000 bales in February; 286,000 in March; and 243,000 bales in April, 1919, and , asked the witness / if; it was not a fact that there had been .no three months like them in the history, erf the port " . .. ilie witness replied he believed that there had not.

Asked by Lord Shaw whether he sag- < gested Ehat the free distribution of the wool had been impeded because they had not .the process of the auction sales, Sir Arthur replied that the policy of the Government, right or wrong, was to revert to the ordinary means of joommeroial distribution and i. the means of distribution to which they , turned in 1915 were precisely those which existed in 1913. But they wews . rijety, l and out of gear. . , . . Lord Shaw: And during this tremendous congestion you kept it up bcoause you wanted to resume auction sales?— Yes, we

did. , The witness admitted that it was the duty of the Government Department to take all means to dispose of the wool when they had it and people wantod it. Mr Bevin (for the dockers): W<*uld it not have been comparatively easy for yotrr department to work out an entirely tew method of distribution aj)d so have avoided delay?—No, it would have been ft matter of the most immense difficulty. ; Lord Shaw: The witness has already committed himsolf to the statement that.) 4 was the policy to revert to the old system. ;