Damage Cargo

How Native Labourers Damage Cargo

AT Port Moresby, the newcomer to Papua has his first glimpse of what damage Papuan native labour can do to property if allowed to practically run amok in the hold of a ship.

I came through Port Moresby on the “Malaita”, some months back, bound for Samarai, and witnessed the unloading process. I had previously wondered why, quite often, our cargo arrived in store in very small pieces, but the unloading at Port Moresby explained it Two winch boys sat at the winches, while a dozen boys went down below.

Cases of goods were lifted up by the boys in the hold, and dropped from as high as possible on to their corners, and deliberately broken. Whenever a case was smashed, which was frequently, the winch boys would leave their positions, go to the edge of the holds and join in the laughter which took place.

I wondered who was in charge, and when it would cease, but it went on for several hours.

Often, in Port Moresby, natives are before the court for stealing from cargo.

Isn’t it time that some Government official awoke to the fact that if a native is not allowed to deliberately break cases open, the temptation of loose tins of meat will not be placed in his path? If they were made to take reasonable care of the cargo in the hold, the trouble would cease.

We blame the Government for every thing, and we are quite often right.

However, they have to try and mete out justice to many different classes of men, and they have necessarily to protect the native from being exploited. Still, wouldn’t it be as well, in cases like this, to protect the decent white man from being exploited?

If any Government official went down and saw the unloading process from beginning to end he would probably see my point of view.—W.