16th April, 1925
CONFIDENTIAL
(Due to arrive Melbourne-16.5.25)
My dear P.M.,
I think it worth while to tell you that I have met a rather remarkable man in the shape of H. Seymour Berry, whom you may have heard of. He is a Welsh coal owner of great magnitude, and the Chairman of Lysaghts, who manufacture galvanised iron in this country and at Newcastle, New South Wales. He has immense interests in coal and engineering works and with his brother, Sir William Berry [1], has quite considerable newspaper interests.
Both he and his brother are comparatively young men.
He is evidently looking towards Australia as a field of endeavour in which to increase his interests. He tells me he is putting up a screw factory near Melbourne in his capacity as Chairman of Guest, Keen & Nettlefold’s. He hopes to visit Australia in the course of the next two or three years.
He has as yet no interest in shipping but appeared interested in asking innumerable questions in regard to Australian labour conditions, the Commonwealth Shipping Line, the Commonwealth Arbitration Court, and similar matters.
I am, Yours very truly, R. G. CASEY
_1 The future (1941) Lord Camrose, joint proprietor of the Daily Telegraph.
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