WATERSIDE WORKERS

FEDERAL ARBITRATION COURT PROCEEDINGS.

The hearing was resumed on Monday in the Federal Arbitration Court of the application of the Commonwealth Steamship Owners’ Association and others, requesting two pick-up times, instead of the one pick-up now existing, for maritime labour at Port Kembla and Wollongong. The application was opposed by tho South Coast Branch of the Waterwide Workers’ Federation.

At the conclusion of argument, Judge Beeby announced that on the facts submitted he would not be justified in granting the application. The members of the union were making a very precarious living, and as most of them were compelled to accept employment outside of their wharf work, he thought it would be unfair to make them attend the pick-up place twice daily.

His Honour considered, however, that the parties should be able to agree on some matters which should be to their mutual advantage — matters outside the scope of the award — and he adjourned the hearing in order to place some suggestions before the parties.

Mr. George Washington Sloan, secretary of the Union, informed the Court that few, if any of the watersiders were able to make a living from the wharves alone, and they were forced to supplement their earnings by taking other employment. Some of them sold fish, wood, rabbits and vegetables, and in this way were able to earn a few extra shillings.

The onset of the depression, he said, had caused the aggregate amount of wages to his members to drop from £17,000 in 1928 to £9,000 in 1932. If the men were compelled to walk to the pick-up place twice a day they would not have an opportunity of adding to their meagre wharf earnings, and this, would cause great hardship.

Mr. Darban ( for the Oversea Shipping Representatives’ Assn. ) reminded His Honour that the application was not one that was concerned with the earnings of the men, but with the inconvenience that arose through the present system of engaging labour. Under the present method, he said, the employers were subjected to avoidable costs and any alteration would not greatly inconvenience the men.

Mr. John Hickey ( for the Union ) : One of the chief causes in the lesser wages earned by the men has been the installation of machinery. Since 1928 two grabs have been installed for the unloading of phosphate, and these machines , manned by only eight men, do work which it formerly took 27 men to perform. Mr. Darban said that as an alternative to the two pick-ups the Court could apply the Geraldton system to Kembla. Under the Geraldton plan the men would be notified early in the day that there would be work for them, but they would not be paid for waiting time. Such a system would enable the shipowners to meet an emergency when it arose, whereas, at present the parties could not go outside the award even when the Union was willing to do so. The award rigidly bound them down in the same way as it did in the big ports like Sydney and Melbourne.

Despite the depression, said Mr. Darban, there had been little diminution in the number of vessels calling at Kembla. In 1928 the number of vessels that entered the port was 472, and in 1932 the number was 438.

Since 1928, however, circumstances had altered a great deal, and the employers were now forced to cut costs, wherever possible. A second pick-up; would mean a substantial saving.

His Honour said he was quite aware that costs had to be reduced these days, but, at the same time the men had to be considered.

Mr. Hickey said that the reasons for a single pick-up were stronger to-day than ? the court determined the issues ? ?28. W? a charge on the ? companies, but upon the vessels, and many of the delays that had occurred to ships at Kembla could have been avoided had there been more cooperation between agent and stevedore. A phone call put through to the stevedore at Kembla when a vessel left Sydney would easily remedy the trouble. In the past, however, this had not always been done, and waiting time had to be paid the men.

Two pick-ups, he said, would occupy 5 hours and 20 minutes of the men’s time, and if they had to sacrifice that time they would not be able to supplement their earnings.

The application was dismissed.

Death of Mr. Ted Sloan.

THE INQUEST.

At the Court House Wollongong on Wednesday, the Deputy Coroner ( Mr. Kirby ) conducted a magisterial inquiry into the death of Mr. Ted Sloan.

Dr. W. B. Kerr deposed that about 8.30am. on Monday, Sept. 12, he received a message from deceased’s son, I saying that his father had shot himself. Went to the residence in Campbell St., where lie saw deceased unconscious on his bed with two wounds in his head. The doctor described the nature of the wounds, and said dressings were applied, after which the deceased was taken to the hospital in the Ambulance, where he died at 9.30. Death, in his opinion, was caused by lascerations ( sic ) of the brain by a bullet, which travelled in an upward and forward direction from right to left. Taking into account the character and nature of the wounds, the bullet may have been discharged from a weapon held in the deceased’s own right hand.

To Segt. Pye: The revolver produced could have inflicted the wound and the bullet produced could have caused the wound.

To George Washington Sloan, a brother of deceased: I visited your home and viewed deceased’s body in the coffin and made references to abrasions on the nose and the condition of the eyes. The bullet wound may have caused the condition of the eyes, but the nose abrasions may have been a day or two old previous to death.

The doctor, also stated that the eyelids were livid, but this also may have been due to the bullet wound.

To Segt. Pye: I doubt the possibility of the deceased having spoken after the wound had been inflicted. The lascerations of the nose could have been caused by finger nails, or a fall on the ground.

To G. W. Sloan: l.don’t think the abrasions could have been been caused by a blow, or through being hit by a stick. They could have been caused through deceased being pushed onto a hard pavement.

Hilton Edward Sloan, son of the deceased, deposed that on Monday about half past seven his father called out, ” Fred, get me a drink of water. ” There was no reply from Fred, and then he called, ” Daphne, get me a drink of water. ” Daphne replied, ‘All right.’ His father then said, ‘It’s all right, I’ll get up and get it myself.’ His mother was in bed in another part of the house. His father went out to the kitchen and was away some time. When he was returning, and passing witness’s room, he called out ” Good-by, Hixon, ” a nick name of witness, who replied, ” Good-bye, dad. ” Witness thought this was a joke, as his father was in the habit of making jokes. His father returned to his room, and about four or five minutes later witness heard the report of a firearm, and ran into his room where he saw his father on his bed, his body was twitching, and he called out, ‘Oh, Charley,’ that was the name of his twin brother. Witness noticed blood running down the right hand side of his father’s face onto the pillow. His father’s right hand was lying on his chest lightly clasping a revolver. The revolver produced was the one he saw. He called out to his mother and the rest of the family, ‘Dad has shot himself.’ His mother went to the verandah and called, ‘Oh, Roy, come here.’ Roy Wilton came in and witness handed him the revolver. Mr. Wilton said he would communicate with the doctor and the Ambulance, which he did. The deceased did not speak again. Witness said his father always treated him both as a comrade and a son.

‘About a fortnight ago,’ said witness, ‘my father had some drink in, and said before my mother and sister, that he intended to do away with himself. My sister told me, about this, she said, ‘You had better go home and see if you can calm dad down, he is threatening to shoot himself.’ When I went home my Uncle Fred was there sitting on the bedside. I heard my father say he was worrying about something, but he did not say what it was. My uncle asked him to come up to his shop the next morning and see him. My father then said to me, ‘You won’t have your father long.’ ?’ I said, ‘Why?’ He replied, ‘I am always worrying about something, life’s not worth living, I’ll blow my skull in.’ I said, ‘Don’t be silly.’ I did not think he meant it, and thought he was only, joking. He also said he would go and say good-bye to Uncle Charley. I accompanied him to Port Kembla, where he had two brandies at a private house. He had his revolver on his hip, which was as usual, as he was a special constable, and a night watchman at Wollongong. While he was drinking I took the revolver which he had taken off, and extracted the bullets. About last Thursday, we were at home, and my father said ‘You won’t’ have me much longer.’ I said ‘Don’t be silly.’ He said, ‘I’m always in trouble and worrying about something.’ So far as I know my father was a healthy man.

To G. W. Sloan: I saw my father on Sunday morning about daylight. His face was cut on the forehead and on the nose, and his eyes were blackened, as if from a blow from something. The last time previous to that that I had seen my father was about quarter past three on the Saturday afternoon. On the Sunday morning he came into my room and said, ‘Boy, you and I will get hung. That mongrel Bennett ( meaning Constable Bennett ) handcuffed me and gave me a hiding.’ He asked me if I would go with him to ? Bennett to see that he ( the father ) would get a fair go. I said ‘ Right-oh,” and he replied, ‘Never mind, a man will do his job over this. I’ll be summoned on Monday, and you’ll have to go up on Tuesday, how’ll a man get out of it.’

I had to go to Bulli on Tuesday, and my father said ‘Never mind, ‘I won’t be there.’ He showed me his coat, which had a tear in it, and said that Bennett had handcuffed him, and that that was the way he was treated. He then said ‘Never mind that. That mong will have his day.’ He seemed to have sobered up in the morning, Jack Rolls told me in the Silver Bell Cafe on Saturday night, after1 I had been to a dance, that my father , was in the lock-up, and asked why didn’t I get him out.” I said ” I have no money, Jack,” and went home shortly afterwards. When father came home in the morning he told me exactly what had happened. He seemed quite sensible when he told me about what Bennett had done, but you could see that he had been drinking. My father and I were always joking together, and were always real pals. I never believed him when he said that he would take his life, and he never used to say it when he was sober.

To Segt. Pye: I took the bullets out of the revolver at Port Kembla because he was drunk, and said that he would take his life. During the last fortnight he said frequently that he would take his life. He was not quarrelsome, but used to drink heavily at times.

David Beecham, mining contractor, Wollongong, deposed that he had known the deceased for many years. About midnight on Sunday, September 11th he saw deceased near Parsons’ ironmongery shop, in Crown Street, Wollongong. Deceased appeared to be sober, but was in a rage, and nervy. He said, ‘I am going to shoot myself. Things are against me.’ Witness said ‘Don’t be silly,’ and did not believe that deceased really meant to do so. Constable Bennett came along, and had a conversation with Sloan, and witness walked down to the ‘Mercury’ corner, and listened. Witness stood and listened because he knew that deceased had been locked up the night before, and thought that there might be an argument. The deceased and Constable Bennett appeared to be friendly. Just before Constable Bennett came upon the scene, the deceased held up his face to show some abrasions and said ‘That is what happened to me.’ Witness did not notice the eye’s, but the face appeared a bit puffed.

To G.W. Sloan: Deceased said that he had received the injuries in a brawl on the previous night. I understand that he meant the scuffle during his arrest.

Roy Wilton, plasterer, Wollongong, deposed: On the morning of September 12th I was passing Sloan’s house in Campbell Street, Wollongong at about 8.30 a.m. I heard someone scream in deceased’s house,’ and looked round. Mrs. Sloan called to me ‘Roy, Roy, come quick,’ and I ran on to the verandah. Mrs. Sloan said ‘My man has shot himself,’ I ran in to the room where deceased was lying on a bed, and noticed that he was gasping, and breathing heavily. I said ‘What’s this you’ve done, Ted?’ but he never spoke. Hilton, the son of deceased, then handed me a revolver, saying ‘This is the revolver the old man shot himself with. The revolver produced is the revolver that was handed to me, and there is one empty cartridge shell in it. ‘I then informed the doctor, ambulance and police, and handed the revolver to Constable Sawyer.

At the request of the relatives, the inquest was adjourned until Tuesday, September 20th, at 10 p.m., to permit of calling further evidence.

Segt. Pye intimated that Constables Sawyer and Bennett would also attend the adjourned hearing.