LABOR MISSTATEMENTS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17639, 1 December 1931, Page 7

LABOR MISSTATEMENTS

DENIAL BY PREMIER AXLE-BOXES FOR RAILWAYS (Special to tho Herald.) WELLINGTON, this day. A reply was made last evening by tho Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes, to a circular issued by the national executive of the Labor Party with reference to an order for axleboxes amounting to £13,000 placed in Sweden by the Railway Department.

Mr. Forbes said roller hearing axleboxes had been adopted for the new railway cars and engines. This was a modeln development, and was made flic subject of careful study by Mr. Angus, assistant chief mechanical engineer of the Railway Department waeji lie was sent abroad some two years ago. “After carefully considering the various types of axle-boxes in uso on other systems, Mr. Angus recommended the adoption of the roller bearing axle-boxes manufactured in Sweden, known as 5.K.F.,” said Mr. Forbes. “The manufacture of these boxes requires a highly-specialised knowledge and machinery, neither of which is, available in New Zealand, so that it is entirely incorrect to say that they could be manufactured in this country. Even if the specialised knowledge and machinery wore imported into the nuntry tho extent of the demand for these boxes would not enable their manufacture in New Zealand to be made an economical proposition as compared with the price at which they can be obtained from the present makers.”