THE UNEMPLOYED.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2531, 18 June 1909, Page 6

THE UNEMPLOYED.

THOSE IN GISBORNE CHIEFLY NEWCOMERS.

Though there were about 50 unemployed who handed in their names at the meeting of unemployed held on Wednesday morning, a ‘‘Times” reporter, upon making enquiries yesterday, ascertained that while there is an increased number of unemployed in Gisborne this winter as compared with .previous years, the number is not alarming when all the factors are considered. On speaking to a number of the reporter was told thatltJore were a fair number of carpenteife, /painters and such Lke tradesmen Mo only found intermittent work duriiig the winter months, but who had f been almost continuously employed during the summer. 1 hen, it was pointed out, the progress of the railway' works had attracted a lot of laborers from other parts to the d.s trict,'and many of those men, after savjntf a few pounds, gave up their cm ployment and came to town to look toi something else to do. As there was not much farm work abo_ut and fov. hands will be required until shea. ing season begins, there was plenty of unskilled labor available; but the num her of unskilled laborers on hand had not abnormally increased. It was also to bo taken into account that June ana •July were the. slack months m the freezing industry, and some of the employees of the companies have to take a respite, but as many of those men earned above the average .wages foi nine and ten months of the year a quiet winter would not press heavily upon them. As regards trade, it was ascertained that the average winter turnover was being ivell maintained. The large pay sheet at tbo railway works helped to swell the amount of money in circulation in the district., and most of the cash found its way into town. The dairy farmers had had a good season, and although the supply of milk was slackening, there was no evidence that the farmers were short of cash. It -was pointed out by one speaker that Poverty Bay w r as essentially an agricultural and pastoral district, not a°manufacturing district, and that if tradesmen came to Gisborne from outside towns to try and find work that was not offering, they could only expect to bo unempmyed, but without the newcomers there would be lew unemployed in the district. THE PREMIER'S STATEMENT. (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, June 17. Replying to the deputation of Wellington unemployed the Premier pointed out that steamship companies induced immigration for business reasons, and he also emphasised the fact that if the traffic were interfered with, there would naturally be a lessening of trade to our ports, and that the volume or ■work od the wharves would be reduced in consequence. The shipping companies could not he interfered with, but the Government -would do its best to meet the position. He anticipated that the appropriations made by the. .House would mean' employment during the winter on reproductive works for an additional ICOO men, and he was prepared to give an undertaking that that would be done. Ho referred to the difficulty that arose through the disinclination of some men (with families in the town) to go into the country. That only helped to increase the difficulty which beset the position. At the present time the Government had 9UOU men employed on reproductive works. The High Commissioner had done everything he could to prevent the dissemination at Home of misleading information concerning New Zealand, bir Joseph concluded by saying that his sympathies were with the unemployed, and he would do everything he could to meet the case. As to the statement that labor conditions were no better than they were in England, it had bden authoratively stated, over and over •again, that they were several millions of people out of work at Home. In reply to a suggestion by Mr T. H. Davey, Sir Joseph "Ward promised to try and arrange that some expert hushmen should be engaged on the' areas which the Government proposed >to deal with so that the uninitiated unemployed would have a chance of learning the “art” of bushfelling. An officer had been despatched to one of the areas to make all necessary arrangements. A largo number of names have been registered by the Labor Department for the Government’s bushfelling scheme. It is believed there are at least 80 capable bushmeu, and in all it is estimated there will bo 200 men ready to take advantage of the offer of work. The destination is the ltangitatau block, between 10,000 and 15,000 acres, about 10 miles from the Waitotara railway station. .