Image TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage TileImage Tile
Image size: 5632x7680 Scale: 35% - PanoJS3
Page overview thumbnail

Article text

SPEEDING UP COAL
SUPPLIES
Ships To Leave For
All States
FEARS FOR FUTURE
"The Age" Special Representative
SYDNEY, Tuesday. — With a further 40,000 tons of coal produced
to-day, all official efforts are bent on ensuring speedy distribution of
this and an equal amount mined yesterday to att necessitous centres
in- Australia.
The Coal Commissioner (Mr. Mighell) announced to-night that
Victoria's share of the week's production will be . about 30,000 tons.
- Despite an appeal by the N.S.W. Minister for Mines (Mr. Bad-
deley) to the miners to shorten their Christmas holidays; the Cen
tral Executive of the Miners' Federation is adamant that .they shall
cease work on December 21 and resume on January 7.
Ships now loading and expected to load within the
next few days will remove 86,500 tons of coal from
Newcastle. The railways will transport an additional
10,000 tons.
This will be despatched to Melbourne, Brisbane,
Hobort, Adelaide and Fremantle before the end of the
week.
Passengers in northern trains
to-day watched with interest as
the coal trains raced - past their
cars as a . result of a departmen
tal decision to increase their
normal , speed to cope with the I
removal of accumulated coal and
that mined in the last two days. I
Every, possible ; ton has to be I
transported to the dyke end and I
the basin at Newcastle to enable I
the assembly of urgent cargoes!
ui ueieu _.oy tne uoal commis- 1
sioner for New South Wales and
inter-Stjte shipments. 1
"Only a Recess"
Indications at the Trades
Hall arc that the "steel, coal
and seamen's dispute" has only
entered the "Christmas recess"
period. Union officials frankly
express their fears that the
Communist leaders of certain
unions will before long renew
their recent fight to gain con- .
trol of the movement.
Support for this outlook was
forthcoming from the miner's
president (Mr. H. Wells),.: who
said the Parker case ' would be
the declriin fsrtw. ap.
\u- ) Hon and &tt> i, VhhJ'
r f ' jd Die l.'on iw.L'.
i strike,' the V. south ,, coast; .will
; come;, before, the State. , -industrial'
.Commission to-morrow.
| Considerable 'Significance Is nLso
i attached to a statement credited
! to Ihe president of. the Queens
land branch of the Miners' Fede
ration (Mr. T. Miller), at Kurri
Kurri on Sunday. He. said of the
recent struggle: "It was a re
verse, but it does not mean the
finish. We are going to fight
them again in the near future.
We will give them no more coal
than they can live on. That is
to be our attitude."
Commenting on Mi. Miller's
statement the secretary of the
Furnishing Trades Union (Mr; O.
Schreiber), said: "It is obvious
that the Communist-controlled
unions have only, taken a
breather and will attack the I
general community and - trade I
unions in particular whenever i
suitable."
Communist Policy i
"It is well known that the!
Communist leaders of the Miners' |
Federation deliberately pursue'
the policy of preventing the ac
cumulation .of coal stocks so that
industry can be dislocated to suit
their - plans at very short notice.
The policy of the Communist
party is to bring about industrial
turmoil and. dislocation of social
life in. the hope. that-, this will
create, what Communists term 'a
revolutionary situation' (under
vuvei ui which . uiey attempt me
overthrow of . the Parliamentary
system of government."
' The secretary of the Builders'
Laborers'- Federation (Mr. W. F.
Thomas) claimed that most union
officials who i promoted' "phoney"
strikes were not, controlled by the
rank and file members of. their
union,, but by the Communist
party. He said' the strike weapon
had been hjiwked about too
cheaply in recent years. In the
hands of power-drunk union offi
cials It has caused a lot of
damage and could cause much
more. —
. Other union leaders were of the
opinion that - much . of the indus
trial unrest could .be eliminated
j, if the rank and file members of
' unions -would oust two classes of
h<- ---thOoi; ; wTicT we it ' f urther-
' the I'.d , of u c-i ",1 organi-
\ r ).. . o' 1. . e . were - so
, weak-- o (hey turned color un-
, dor the HiSghteat'- pressure'.,
I To combat the extremists a
i - committee-.: <if. -prominent' trade
' union officials has formed
i to a campaign inv the
j new year against - Communist
| leaders, in the - movement.
I "Wherever the rank and file
I need help to move these gen
try," said a committee mem
ber, "11 will 'be forthcoming.
We will not rest until we shift
them from office;"
It is not. anticipated there will
be any general resumption of
work in N.S.W. industry until
January 7 at the earliest: Until
then,: when It Is 1 anticipated gns
and electricity rationing .will be
relaxed,, unemployment through
out the State- is likely to remain
at 450,000.
When Mr. Baddeley's request
that the miners should shorten
their holidays was refused, he
asked the miners' central execu
tive if it had any objection to
him personally asking the various
district executives to consider the
matter. This was agreed to..
$