MIDLAND RAILWAY.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume VI, Issue 1641, 19 May 1919, Page 8

MIDLAND RAILWAY.

WORK AT OTIRA. VISIT BY CHRISTCHURCH DELEGATION. PROGRESS OF THE TUNNEL. The members of the Canterbury delegation which has been investigating conditions at the Otira tunnel this week, returned to Christchurch on Saturday evening, in company with the Hon. W. D. S. Mac Donald (Minister of Mines) and Mr T. E. Y. Seddon, M.P. The members of the party, which left Christchurch on Thursday last, were: Messrs H. Holland (representing the Canterbury Progress League), H. J. Marriner (Railways Committee of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce), H. H. Smith, and W. Goss (West Coast Committee of Arthur's Pass Tunnel League), ■ • The party, which had walked through the tunnel on Thursday, repeated the performance on Saturday, leaving from the Otira end. The journey occupied an hour and a-half, the party being "trolleyed" a portion of the distance. The Hon. W. D. S. Mac Donald went on to Wellington by the ferry steamer the same evening, and Mr Seddon, M.P., remained in Christchurch. Mr JVfacDonald's Impressions. The Hon. W. D. S. Mac Donald, asked what impression he had gained from his visit to the tunnel, said that, considering the number of men engaged, he thought that good progress was being made with the work. Asked what he thought of the prospects of securing a larger number of men on the work, Mr Mac Donald said that he had no doubt that the Minister of Public Works (Sir William Fraser) was fully alive to the importance of completing the line at the earliest possible date, and would engage as many men as it was possible to obtain. The West Coast people were displaying a keen anxiety that the work should be completed at an early date, and were looking forward eagerly to the day when through railway communication would be established with Canterbury. The line touched four electorates, and, in view of its importance to the people of both the West and East Coasts,- it was important that it should be completed as speedily as possible. Considerable agricultural development was taking place on the West Coast, and this would be assisted by the completion of the line. The people seemed very strong on farming just now, and were showing keen attention to their properties. There was also considerable activity at present on the Coast in regard to gold-mining and. the timber industry. Work for Returned Soldiers.

The Minister was hopeful that some of the men who had been to the front, and were now returning to New Zealand, would take up work afrthe tunnel. All of them were entitled to 28 days' leave on their return, and they had a right to every minute of the time, but probably by the latter end of next month a large number of fit men would have settled " J down again, arid some of them would -be prepared to go on to the work. : Speaking of West Coast matters ; generally, Mr Mac Donald said that there was a decided revival in goldmining. The Westland Gold-mining and Prospecting Company had just constructed a race 18 miles long, and, altogether, the company had recently spent £150,000 on its property. Another company had spent £BO,OOO. Mining prospects, said the Minister, are now being looked at in a big way. While he was on the Coast, a most successful conference had been held, representative of mining interests, inclusive of mining engineers, company promoters, etc., and all were enthusiastic concerning future prospects. He had no doubt that all this development would be helped by the completion of the Midland Railway. Conditions of Work. The ex-Mayor (Mr H. Holland), questioned regarding the conditions under which he found the employees at the tunnel to be working, said \ that, without expressing opinions, he 'would give the facts just as they presented themselves to him. In the first place, the men did not make any complaint to the members of the party, and the information given of their grievances was furnished by a sympathiser with the men. They might be classified under the headings of wages, medical attention, and housing matters. In regard to Wages, he had, as a result of his investigation of the pay-sheets, found the position to be as follows:—At the Otira end of the tunnel the men worked six hours 40 minutes per

clay, inclusive of half an hour allowed for lunch. They worked on a day-wages basis, and the earnings of the various classes of workers were as follow (inclusive of 2/- per day bonus): —

These men are employed inside the tunnel. Without the bonus of 2/- per day, the rates would be;— Per hour.

Two strikers .. .. .. 13 0 1 7\ Four concrete block-makers, on co-opera-tive contract averaged 20/2 per day for four months, equal to 2/0 i per hour. At the Bealey end of the tunnel the men work on a co-operative contract basis, their average earnings for eight months nast heinsr:—

Cost of Living.

Mr Holland stated that the men employed at the' Bealcv end work eight hours 25 minutes per day, of which 25 minutes was travelling time. The men at the Otira end work six hours 40 minutes per day, of which 40 minutes is travelling time. As previously explained, these times are inclusive of half an hour allowed for lunch time. The men at the Otira end are absolutely opposed to the contract system, and refuse to work under it. They work shorter hours because of the fact that that end of the tunnel is much wetter than the Bealey end. He saw no evidence that the men lost much time, and in most cases where time was lost it was lost voluntarily on the part of the men. The cost of living, of course, was high—but it was high all over the Dominion. Meat was cheaper than in Greymouth, and quite as cheap as in Ghrislchurch. Plentv of good firewood could be collected in the district. The men had no rent, rates, taxes, or insurance to pay, and coal could be purchased for 3/6 per bag. Medical Officer Demanded. The men demanded that a medical man should be provided, but the place was healthy, and there was very little sickness to warrant a medical man being stationed at Otira. In any case, there was telephone connection with Grevmouth and Christchurch, and a medical man could be summoned quickly if required. The Public Works Department maintained a hospital, contributing £l5O per annum towards the cost of staffing it with a couple of nurses. The nurse in charge was qualified,, and had seen service at the war. The men had the option of contributing 9d per week, for which they received free medical attention at the hospital when sick. The Housing Problem.

; In regard to housing accommodation, the men demanded that the cottages, which are provided free by the Public Works Department, should be equipped with electric light and baths. The difficulty in the way of providing electric light was that sufficient power was not available. There was very little water in the streams from which the power was derived, and even the department's haulage requirements could not be met, and steam power would have to be used from to-day. Regarding the demand that the cottages should be provided with ,baths, Mr Holland said that the attitude of the department was that it would cost a very large sum of money to install a hot and cold water service in over 200 cottages, and such an expenditure would not be justified, in view of the fact that, after all, the job was only a temporary one.

It had been stated that one of the reasons why men could not be attracted to the work was that the unoccupied cottages were in a state of disrepair, but Mr Holland said that he had been assured by the Engineer-in-Charge (Mr A. Dinnie) that the cottages would be put in proper repair when men were obtained to occupy them. Reverting to the demand for baths in the cottages, Mr Holland explained that there were hot water baths provided for the men's use at the tunnel mouth, but they were rarely used, despite the fact that the men were obliged to go into the rooms where the baths were situated, in order to change their clothes. In conclusion, Mr Holland said that, although he was entirely sympathetic with the men, and would go out of his way to try to get any legitimate grievance removed, it, nevertheless, seemed to him that the department was doing its best for them, under the circumstances obtaining.

Progress Steady, But Slow.

In reply to the question as to what progress was being made with the work at the tunnel, Mr H. H. Smith said that the department was doing as much as could be done with the staff at its disposal. A great deal had been done since he last visited the works, 15 months ago, but not half as much as could have been done if as many men were being employed as should be. At present, certain men had, at times, to leave their own particular-work to assist with other work that had fallen behind. Men engaged on concrete blocking were often unable to continue, owing to the top headings not being ready, and the blocks could not be used fast enough. At least another 100 men were required, and if this number of additional men were put on during the next few weeks it would hasten the completion of the wqrk by about a year. On the other hand, if the present rate of progress was continued, he did not think that there was the slightest prospect' of the tunnel being completed before 1923. "Good Enough."

In regard to the grievances of the men, said Mr Smith, he had spoken to a number of the workers, and they had professed themselves satisfied. Speaking of the cottages, one man had said: "Of course they are not all that one would desire, but they are good enough, under the circumstances." The men, too, had the advantage of occupying them rent free. In regard to wages, the workers were getting better pay now than they were at the time of his previous visit. After quoting the wages paid the men as indicated in the interview with Mr Holland, Mr Smith'said that, having inspected the paysheets, he was satisfied that the figures were correct.

The Midland Railway, said Mr Smith, was commenced in 1886, the Midland Railway Company being formed in London, with a capital of £500,000. The line had, therefore, been under construction over a period of 33 years, and was still uncompleted. They had the money, and they had, or should have, the material, and the only question was, could the men be got, and, if so, on what terms? R would be profitable for the Government to pay the men an extra 2/6 per day if they would accept the increase as an, inducement to get other men to take up the work. The Government was at present losing nearly £IOOO per week in interest on the cost of construction. Future Benefits. "■ Speaking of the advantages of the line when it is at last completed, Mr Smith said that the people of Christchurch were starving for coal, but they could not get it. The cost of coal to-day was enorm6usly increased by the many handlings it had to undergo in its journey from the pit mouth to the consumer in Christchurch. In addition to that, all the vitality was taken out of it, as it became badly smashed up in these many handlings. If the Midland Railway was finished, the people would be able to get cheap coal and good coal. It would also open up thousands of acres of good land on the Coast for settlement. Much of this land was as good as any other land in New Zealand for .dairying purposes. The butter and cheese that could be produced on these lands were needed by the people of Christchurch, both for j their own consumption and for export. The Railway Department would derive considerable revenue from the transport of coal, timber, butter, cheese, and agricultural products if the. line were completed. Tt must not be forgotten, said Mr Smith, that, in addition to the tunnel work, there was a good deal of other work to be done at both ends, including the relaying of the permanent way from the tunnel mouth at Otira to the station. He did not see why this latter work could riot be gone on with. Neither must it be forgotten that the future rate of progress of the tunnel work may be slower than it has been in the past, owing to the soft nature of the rock now being encountered. So soft is it in some places that it bulges round the supporting props. In conclusion, Mr Smith said that he, too, was anxious to help the men, ! but, so far as he could see, they were getting a square deal from the department. Men Get a Fair Deal. The position, said Mr W. Goss, is that since they had previously visited the work, 15 months ago, 23 chains of lining had been completed, and there was still 90 chains to do. It may be explained that this means the concrete lining of the tunnel,■■ which is carried up a certain distance on either side—-the- arch itself is lined with concrete blocks. It is the opinion of Mr Goss that unless the speed is increased, the- work Will take four years to complete. The trouble is lack of men. The methods of the department were good, and there was no complaint to make on that score. Compressed air drills were used, which had the effect of keeping down the dust. After some of the statements that had been made, he was surprised when he saw the paysheets, and he was satisfied that the men are getting a fair deal. The difficulty of obtaining supplies was one of the complaints that had been mentioned, but the department had made arrangements to bring sup-plies-from the Bealey end through the tunnel, free of charge. He spoke to one man who had been employed on the work for .eight years. That man said he was satisfied with his job, and had no complaints to make. Only the need for men was keeping back the progress of the work. One hundred more men were required, and Mr Goss expressed himself as hopeful that the return of fit men from the front would solve the problem. The deputation that had waited on the Hon. W. I). S. MacDonald had urged on him the desirability of trying to attract the men of the New Zealand Tunnelling Corps to the work when they returned to this country. The Minister had said that the Government had already had that matter in mind, and that ail effort would be made to get the men to take up the work. The delegation, said Mr Goss, was the strongest that had yet visited the tunnel, consisting, as it did, of four representatives from Hokitika, four from Greymouth, and four from Christchurch. An organising secretary had now been appointed on the Coast to maintain a link with the Arthur's Pass Tunnel League in Christchurch. Mr Goss said that the league would be .kept in existence until the tunnel was completed.

Per Equivalent day. per hour. s. d. s. d. Two tuniiol foremen IK 10 2 1(1 Two-shift bosses .. .. 17 8A 2 8 One imison lii 7.V 2 (i Seven mncliine lace men 1C 7 A 2 C - Tliree mnehinc men 1C 1 2 5 Two .lifters 13 CJ 2 4 Three- winchineii .. .. 15 0 2 3 Four truckers 15 1) 2 3 23 ehuckmeu ..... .. 15 0 2 3 One platelayer 1C 1 2 5, One assistant platelayer 14 5J 2 2

Tunnel foreman .. .. s. d. Shift bosses Mason . 1 8i Machine face men . 1 8J Lifters Truckers Chuclunen . 1 G Platelayers Assistant platelayers .. . 1 51 OUTSIDE WORK (eight hours per day). Per Equivalent da y. per hour. s. i. s. d. One transport foreman .. 15 ft 1 104 One electrician .. .. If. 0 2 0 One turner 15 ft 1 104 One fitter 15 ft 1 104 One foreman carpenter Hi (1 2 0 Two carpenters .. .. 15 (1 1 104 One foreman blacksmith 1(1 4 2 04 One blacksmith .. ., 1st 0 1 6 One chainman 14 0 1 9 Three loco, drivers .. . . 15 0 1 104 Two power-house assistants 15 0 1 104 Two other assistants 15 ft 1 104 Two guards 14 ft 1 fi One wagoner 15 8 1 81 Two lamp-room attendants n T 1 2} Boy labourer io 94 1 41 One special labourer 14' 0 1 ft Two labourers 13 9 1 74 One powdermau ., .. 15 ft 1 104

Thirty tunnellcrs .. .. .. Per day. s. d. Three shingle-getters .. 17 5} Xhree concrete block-makers .. 14 4 One electrician .. .. 0 One power-house attendant .. .. 15 9 Two locomotive drivers .. .. .. 15 8 Two guards 7A One labourer 0 One lamp-room attendant .. 8 5 One boy .. 9 7