, • special allo,vance. The Minister has been asked in Parliament, but has not yet ·replied. Services Rendered by Staff. The High Commissioner makes much of alleged reductions in absences and improved services. All this can only be judged from the precise details when they are published. l\tfeanwhile the recurrence of delays in the train services (to such a degree that an official explanation had to be issued, November 9, 1923), and various ' collisions, etc., are not calculated to reassure. Economies. Some have been effected simply to the injury of the staffs; such as the abolition of compensation for malaria, the suppression of soap and towels for the staffs, and so on. Others are doubtful :- (a) Repairs to Rolling Stock. An important part of this is automatic, since the first years after the war had in1mense arrears to make up. A further automat:Jc saving as against past years accrues from the fall!ng prices, enabling contracts to be revised. A third economy in expenditure is possible through allowing material to deteriorate. The Commissioner's promised economies are_worth nothing unless he proves at the same time that the condition of railways and equipment is improving. (b) Coal: 30 million lire is claimed to have been saved in six months. After the vvar, however, coal leaped up to 800 lire the ton ; now it is about 220. In 1920-21 it averaged over 400. On a year's consumption of 2½ million tons, even 100 lire less per ton means a saving of 250 million lire. A further recent advantage, owing to the invasion of the Ruhr, is the substitution of British for the greatly inferior German coal. (c) Metals. The Commissioner admits that this is due to falling prices and reduced purchases .. 45 Biblioteca Gino Bianco
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTExMDY2NQ==