Captain Fitch Gets His Slip

Back Again

AFTER years of appeal and argument, the Australian naval authorities at last have returned to Steamship Trading Co., Ltd., of Papua, the naval slip which the Co. built there in the late thirties, and which the occupying Australian forces seized soon after they settled in.

The use of the slip by the Navy was a reasonable and understandable thing while the Pacific War was being fought.

But it was neither fair nor reasonable after the war had moved away, and while the Socialist gentlemen at Can berra were taking advantage of post-war confusion to establish a non-private enterprise set-up in the Territories.

Canberra was resolute to direct and control all private shipping in those waters (thus robbing Steamships Trad ing Co. and Burns Philp of a large sec tion of their business); and all coastal ships were seized accordingly; and so (argued Canberra) what did STC want with a slip, anyway?

However, the Co’s managing director, Captain Fitch, kept pegging away; and now he has been given his slip back again.

This may be an empty gesture. A slip is not much use to private enterprise if there are no ships to go on it. On the other hand, it may mean that the plan to “socialise” coastal shipping is being abandoned. If that is so, the slip will be very busy, for under Socialist control, the coastal shipping of these Territories has very sadly deteriorated.