HARBOUR CHARGES

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19767, 15 February 1927, Page 6

HARBOUR CHARGES

Sir, —The statements made at recent Harbour Board meetings with reference to the discharging of the Bronnoy warrant emphatic contradiction. When the Bronnoy wias unable to come into the port on account of her draught, she went on to New Plymouth and discharged there. In explanation of this, Air Bignell said stevedoring charges amounting to 25/8 were responsible— la ridiculous statement. Admittedly, the cost of discharging in the roadstead would have been well above the cost of putting such goods a« wool, tallow, mutton on to the Home liners; but in handling the Bronnoy’s cargo the men would have been working th© reverse way, from, liner into lighter. Under these conditions, with such a cargo as sulphur, costs must necessarily bo higher than usual. The charges levelled by Air Bruce and Air Bignell against local stevedoring interests arc inaccurate and prejudiced. In actual fact, the stevedoring agencies of New Zealand have arisen as a matter of economic necessity, and the concerns with whom they do business reb.l- - their value. As ordinary business men, the stevedores are entitled to a fair return of profit. They are not philanthropists, any more than is Mr Bignell. The business of stevedoring involves the provision of stagings, crates, ‘ ( skips ’ ’ and the engaging of labour, and only a reasonable margin is returned. I challenge Mr Bignell to show where loctil stevedoring charges are higher than the average of the rest of those through the Dominion, At th® same time 1 yield place to no ono in my enthusiasm to see this port developed. But facts must be faced. A word regarding harbour matterf generally; lightering is always expensive—thtit is unavoidable. When the Calm was stranded in the river channel last week, she had to be lightered to be floated off, and the lighterage bloiK cost 8/- per ton. As for the Bronnoy: she could not have got into Wanganui if she had been drawing five feet less» Air Bignell knows as well as 1 do that the day when vessels of 20 feet draught can safely negotiate tho entrance has not yet arrived. He knows the value of publicity, and also its disadvantages. The public are told a lot about maximum depths, but little about tho depths at which navigation is practicable. Under the circumstances, roadstead lightering, whith involves such expense as meals, car fares and travelling time for the watersiders will continue to be a necessary evil and the charges of stevedores will remain a much more justifiable expense than the 2/3 per ton wharfage charged on all cargo landed at Castlecliff. For this rate, which comes on top ol berthage payments, no service whatever is yielded. T. H. LOVEGROVE