HANDLING OF CARGO.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume VI, Issue 1577, 4 March 1919, Page 8

HANDLING OF CARGO.

DELAYS AT WELLINGTON. INCONVENIENCE AND LOS 3. [Special to The Sun.J WELLINGTON, March 3. The congestion of inward and transhipment cargo on the Wellington wharves at the present time is causing a great deal of inconvenience and some actual loss to the commercial community. There is delay in the delivery of goods, and there is the cost of extra handling. Some firms complain that thej' have been threatened with charges for wharf-storage on goods that they are keenly anxious to get into their own stores. Customers are kept waiting, and further orders are delayed. A reporter who made some inquiries on the subject, with the object of ascertaining what prospects of relief could be offered importers', gathered that there is a conflict of interests to be faced. The officers of the Harbour Board consider that with the means at their disposal they are doing all that can be done to secure the prompt handling of cargo. They admit that there are delays, but they state that these delays are inseparable from the conditions that have arisen. If there had been no war the Harbour Board would have had by this time more storage accommodation, more wharf space, and better appliances for the handling of cargo. If there had been no war, moreover, the supply of coastal shipping would have been larger, and the strain on the port of Wellington would not have been increased by a concentration of transhipment work, due to the desire of the shipping companies to secure quick discharge of overseas boats.

Some of the importers are not convinced that the handling of cargo by the board is the best that could be done, even with the accommodation' and appliances available. The attention of the reporter was drawn to the fact that recently two large American steamers, each carrying about 3000 tons of cargo from New York, were berthed, one on each side of the King's Wharf. They were discharged into the store on the wharf at the same time, and the delivery of this cargo has been a matter of great difficulty. The position would have been improved, from the p.oint of view of the importers, if one ship had waited in the stream until the other ship had completed discharging, but this arrangement would have involved delay, and the shipping companies urge that, owing to the grave shortage of shipping, delay in the discharging of vessels should be avoided at any reasonable cost. If Wellington kept ships waiting for discharge under present conditions, the result would be the diversion of a certain amount of shipping to other ports. The shipping companies claim to have suffered loss already through delay in the departure of ships that have been required.-to take transhipment cargo from this port. Quicker handling of the cargo on the wharves and in the stores would produce an improvement in the situation. This seems to be admitted by all the parties, but an improvement in this I respect does not appear to be within I reach. ! "The waterside workers, set their own gait, and anybody who visits the wharves can see that it is not a rapid gait," said an importer yesterday. "I am not entering into any discussion as to the rights or wrongs of the matter, but just look for yourself and see the leisurely way in which the men go about their work, the slow handling of the plant, and the apparent duplication of effort. You will not find a sign of haste anywhere. At least, that is my impression."