Mr. Higgins I would suggest that to summarise the paragraph on copper read on Saturday that the
table marked Table l, at the end of the section on copper be read. That will summarise
the report...
[The committee briefly discussed the sections on
copper, gold, lead, asbestos, chrome, salt,
petroleum, pyrophyllite, limestone, barite, nickel, mica, and marble. The Secretary
read the
section on cement.]
Mr. Smallwood When the report of the Local Industries Committee was brought in here, that report
quoted a special memorandum prepared for the Committee by the Industrial Development
Board, and I was particularly struck at the time by the reference to cement. The Industrial
Development Board pointed out what a great pity it was that the two main ingredients
necessary to make cement were separated from each other by roughly the width of the
country. One was on the eastern side of the country, and the other on the western.
The cost of bringing the two together was what caused it to be dropped. Now the Mining
Committee brings a different light on the matter. I remember after the remarks I made
when the Local Industries Report was being debated I ran into the Mayor of St. John's,
who was very enthusiastic about the matter. He told me that the St. John's Municipal
Council uses 50,000 bags a year.... That's only one case. If you could get cement
in this country at reasonable price there would be thousands of people using it for
foundations of their homes and for the erection of buildings of all kinds, with remarkable
progress in construction and industry. This is evidently one of the most important
sections of this report. It absolutely contradicts the report of the Industrial Development
Board.
According to this, in the Port-au-Port area there are very extensive deposits of gypsum,
limestone, and silica clay. These are the articles necessary for the manufacture of
cement. They are all within a radius of two miles. The only thing
is, you have to import coal to create the heat for dehydrating it, or else use hydro-electric
power, and we understand there is sufficient power in that vicinity for this industry.
I wonder if Mr. Higgins could tell us if anyone is interested, and if there is any
move on foot to start a cement industry, and could he throw a little light on this:
"The main question is, of course, whether or not cement could be produced at a cost
comparable to the cost of the imported article." What is meant by that? What would
be the cost? There would be the cost of mining and bringing them together to the point
of the hydro-electric development, etc., all which, surely, should not cost any more,
speaking generally, than anywhere else. Labour is certainly no better paid in this
country than in Canada, generally speaking, and certainly no better than in the States.
You can develop hydroelectric energy in this country as cheaply as anywhere. What
are the prospects of making cement? Is there anything doing?
Mr. Higgins I don't know if I can enlighten you more than I have on this matter. The last sentence
would be the cost of the finished product, that is the selling price compared to the
finished article. With respect to our contradiction of the Local Industries Report,
we are satisfied that the information we have given you is correct as far as our information
goes....
Mr. Smallwood Why not develop cement out there on a worldwide scale? Why not develop it for export
all over the world? In terms of that kind we have to think. I have been watching,
looking for possibilities of using up our own raw materials. I know cement is used
all over the world. When Mr. Higgins, Major Cashin and I form a government, we must
see what we can do with that.
Mr. Bailey I think Mr. Smallwood answered his own question. There is too big a cement plant
in Canada and the United States for us to have one.
Mr. Butt If the cost is too high, it is no use
492 NATIONAL CONVENTION April 1947
talking about it....
[The committee then discussed the sections on slate, molybdenum, gypsum, manganese,
antimony and bismuth. The Secretary read the section on brick-making]
Mr. Smallwood Mr. Chairman, it is quite an
eye-opener — two plants in Trinity Bay making
600,000 bricks each, 1,200,000 bricks, and
Mr. Dawe over at Makinsons, over 2 million
bricks a year. It's amazing. That's an eye-opener
to the country.
Mr. Higgins I believe that this Section was
prepared by Mr. Vardy, and he may have some
comments to add. He will have to be the one to
answer any comments.
Mr. Vincent Those Trinity Bay plants have
modern methods — has Mr. Dawe's plant?
Mr. Vardy I worked on this with the other
members of the Committee, but the plant at
Snooks Harbour, Mr. Smith's plant, has some
modern machinery, but they agree that it is not as
modern as it should be. They tried to get in some
machinery duty free but did not succeed, though
finally they did get in one machine. It is quite an
old industry, and naturally the people are very
proud to find that the tests of the shale showed an
abundant quantity, and it has proved very successful. We believe that the time is
not far distant
when the people owning the two brickyards over
there will amalgamate. The chances are they will
do that, and there will be a large company formed
to manufacture brick out of this shale. In conversation with Professor Hayes, he informed
us that
this shale was of a very high quality, and the brick
made from that will stand up against the very best
imported article, and he could not see why there
should not be an industry there employing from
100 to 200 men. One thing I would like to say for
that brick industry over there, is that it has gone
on continuously over a period of 40 or 50 years.
One of the older brickyards closed down, but
these other two yards have employed workers
right through. They paid reasonable wages, and
although the owners did not earn very much
profit, yet, at the same time, those employed
made a comfortable living and the owners of the
yards have always come through If there is any
further information I can give I will.
I may say I was responsible for the section on
slate. I have been through the slate mines in
England and Wales, and worked in a slate quarry
when I was so young, that when a Welshman sent
me in to see what time it was, I went in and looked
up at the steam guage and told him it was quarter
past 90. I remember that quite well. I did not even
know the time. Those quarries were worked for
the period given in the report, and finally they
found that owing to the very great cost of
transportation in moving the slate from here to
England, they could not compete with the Welsh
quarries. The last that was sent over, they finished
up loading the ship with cod oil in common casks.
The ship got out and met rough weather, and by
the time they got over there the whole thing was
slate dust. That finished it for Newfoundland.
There is some talk of having the quarries opened
to manufacture slate dust for mineralised roofing,
but the smooth roofing seems to have taken the
place of it, and there is not much hope of doing
anything about it, but the brick industry has a
future.
Mr. Starkes In connection with this report here
about Mr. Dawe operating near Brigus, it says the
quality is equal to the imported, and they have
also got a lot of machinery coming in. Further on
in the report is this, "We understand the company
is operating without any concessions with regard
to duty". Does not that machinery come in duty
free as far as all local industries are concerned?
Don't they get their machinery duty free?
Mr. Vardy No, you must be a large company to
get anything in duty free. A small industry does
not have a chance.
Mr. Vardy Yes, If you are a large company,
sure, you can comera few politicians and you are
OK for getting machinery in. I was for years with
the present government trying to bring in wire
netting free to dry fish on. A large American
concern offered to give it free to the fishermen,
the Philadelphia bankers guaranteed this firm and
they offered to ship it, but the government would
not consent to let the wire netting in duty free,
with the result that the company withdrew.
Samples were sent away, 900 bags by the Shaw
Steamship Co., and the company would have
done a large business in this country, but it was
turned down because the material which they
wanted to give away to the fishermen was not
allowed in duty free.
Mr. Vincent If they had modern methods at
George's Brook and Snooks Harbour, would
April 1947 NATIONAL CONVENTION 493
production he stepped up?
Mr. Vardy It is more or less the old crude way.
The clay is taken from the pits by wheelbarrow,
and goes to elevators and into the crusher, and
down into the moulds, and the bricks are cut off
by a string of wires passing through the moulds.
Afterwards they are taken out and pass to the kiln,
then they are sun dried. It's the old crude
methods, and I believe if they had more modern
methods the production would be stepped up, but
then again you are up against the imported article
being superior, and in order to make the industry
worthwhile you will have to condemn the clay
pits and use the shale.
Mr. Higgins Mr. Chairman, the duty on
machinery coming in for brick is free.
Mr. Smallwood Won't Mr. Vardy confirm the
fact that one of the gentlemen making brick down
his way went away recently to the States and
visited a number of up-to-date brick factories,
and has plans to improve his plant in Trinity Bay?
Isn't that true?
Mr. Vardy Yes, I understand it is true. They
have plans in mind to get together on it over there
and try to use the shale. There is an unlimited
quantity of shale.
Mr. Starkes The machinery for making brick is
duty free, and your Committee must have made
a mistake.
Mr. Vardy I have not consulted the tariff on this
myself. That was always my knowledge, and I
know Mr. Smith had trouble on that. Is that a
recent tariff?
Mr. Hickman Well this tariff is issued by the
Customs in June, 1946, and included quite a lot
of machinery for various purposes, including
machinery for making brick, and it's duty free the
same as cordage machinery for making twine,
that's duty free.
Mr. Higgins Its nice to know the Mining Committee made one slip!
Mr. Vardy I don't know of any local made brick
being exported. I know we are importing a lot of
brick, but I don't know of any being exported. It
has been stated that the main complaint against
our local brick is that it is very coarse and absorbs
too much moisture. It can't stand up over a period
of years against the hard brick. Of course, there
is the hard and soft, I may say they use the hard
brick for chimneys, but I think that's the main
complaint. The brick manufactured from clay has
been very porous, but the brick manufactured
from this shale can be hardened up so that, as the
report says, "it will be like steel". The opinion is
that an industry should be started immediately.
Mr. Hickman I don't want to disagree with
Mr. Vardy again, but there has been some brick
exported.
Mr. Vardy I said "to my knowledge"; I did not
say there was not any exported.
[The section was adopted. The committee began discussion of the section on water-power,
and then rose and reported progress. The Convention adjourned]
