Respite for the Uncalled.

Hydraulic cranes, smoothly, almost silently, are lifting tons at a time from a ship's holds—but their steadfast efficiency gets not the slightest heed from a few light-hearted men at the end of the wharf. When the morning call came for the waterfront tasks it was not their luck to be chosen. But they fretted not, nor did they fume. They set about doing the next best thing. They cast out sprats in the hope of catching vagrant snapper or kahawai. page 7 Care-free peace was theirs for an hour or two. With no worry about the rise or fall of commodity prices in distant markets, the line-slingers had the temporary freedom of the sun and the breeze and of the seagulls that were trying to steal their bait.