A rather interesting situation bo} has arisen in the Wing On Ca. in connexion with the food question. According to the employees, the Company formerly employed a Shanghai cook as well as a Cantonese, until a few days ago when, for some reason, the former was dismissed. No new cook was employed and all the food arrangements remained in the hands of the Cantonese cook. The Shanghai men were then "forced" to cat Cantonese cooked food which is different from the Shanghai. This is alleged to have continued for four days during which time the employees are said to have abstained from eating what the company provided. They could stand it no longer, they say, so they drew up a petition stating their grievances to the management.
"Instead of complying with our request, or even consulting us," the employees say, several of the-employees were called into the general offices and told that their services were dispensed with immediately. During the past few days, about 60 men have been discharged and we expect that many more will go."
When seen on the question om Thursday afternoon, Mr, George Kwok Bew, managing director, and Mr. Ma Joe-sing, sub-manager of the company, said that the dismissal of the men had nothing to do with food. The former Shanghai cook was discharged for stealing, and a new man had been installed in his place after one day's interval. The men were dissatisfied with the new cook and wanted the management to employ one of their own choice. "OF course," said the manager, "we cannot submit to all of their demands and claims, but we were quite willing to discuss the matter with them. Our conscience tells us that we are in the right and we treat them properly. We give them good and proper food. As to saying that we refused to employ a new man, this is incorrect. We did appoint one but they do not like him. That is the whole thing put in a nut-shell."
As to.dismissals, the managers denied that so large a number had been dismissed. We had a large number of superfluous men on the staff whom we employed to assist us at the time of the sale. Now the sale is over, we are dispensing with their services. Only a few men have been discharged."
Tue Chinese press states that on account of the rain during the past few days, more than 300 freight vans have been lying idle near Markham Road on the Shanghai-Nanking Railway. and Mr. Clifford See read a paper on "How Inventors Help us."
Messrs. Surtees and E. E. Page presented primary school certifi-}. cates, rolls of honour, and diplomas.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.