THE HALF-HOLIDAY.
I_i -_<"- — CONFERENCE OF 'fM THURSDAY D_X____JD TTPpH. • 'j^J The ooßference of delegate- -ppoinM 'J| by the local Councils in couuK&tm with' Vg* the haH-hohday, was held _t t_*> ,_st_r\\<*%| Counaa Chamber las. night. Tb. _p_. _:_, lowing delegates wet. * -;|sj Council: The Mayor /Mr _L F. Wi_f_m). t'Sond Crs. Macdooald, Smith, aiSflßiyl'Vljj Simpson, Morris and Taylor. «__!•_!. W .>J| Brighton: Cr. Wmny. I__w___: fS* yfje Mayor (Mr H Pearos). St. A__a__: U_ ?"%£_£ "Newton. Sumner: Cr. RowtlL ton; The Mayor (Mr J. GrubbK *W<w4- *f&m ston: The Mayor iMr J. Ric__n_ac«). *lfc? Sydenham: The Mayor (Mr J. B. &__}. vjfflf The space reserved in the Council rwm->' " %| for strangers was crowded to «_c«aV __& ~* 4? ; 5 tlw keenest interest was takes in 'ths> _£*• '" ->'" evasion. On the motion of Mr jf. _?. 7 ; - Smith, Mr H. F. Wtgram, Mayor of Christchurch, woe vote J to th* chair. -~ \*'' Mr W. Congreve, on behalf of the r*. ' ff ? tatters of Christchurch, presented & Jpa» tit km from a number off re-r-S-ta. of * vt£_f Cha.stchm.h and -arrouadmg -bttfifc*-.* asking the conference sot to _U*_''-__ '' }i weekly ba_f-hoUd_y from Thursday to fiat* urday. Eleven reasons were jpm&l'Wiif w" the change should: not be mad*. „ J „ - About thirty retailer- appealed _r»_pport of the petition, which bore _f},37- *.rs»_ signatures. , ] Mr Sorensen _irbmitt_d that th. nttftjoa .."*„>_•* would convince the canf-rcnea tha. tba people of the district did not. want the _-, Saturday haH-bolktay. The Jb__m__. irer* ?'*- the backbone of Chri-tchurch, and wtam the question of holiday -rose it «ti *_£> *£k visabie to consider whether a c__ags/wo_id * V<* prejudicially affect the city*_ bwßas* w&h - *> the farmer.. The local papers JMkd _•_(. * ?£ wit. the matter, and "The _-«_** t_ ,'\, fair enough to point out that th* <*tM|_ag ,--. ._,*,' up on Saturday would shot oat _ . } -^wjf Srt_an of the city's bu-ineea. Ths" cop*?■ence had no nght to shut out -Mr}"* 1 \\| business from ths city. He quit* t#M£> . ' f vt'wA that certain firms at pflmftt.Ub._re4 under a difficulty, but theia war*,, greatly MM in the minority, And t_* w_U___" <rf people _>a whole, -bo-Id fee and not that of a few tt_]y_ u 3 Auckland, and Wellmgt«,_s4 stick to the Thursday holidnr.. JHfc the conference wouw caref__y question,' and. that. in would not -ft ti» .*»W?%!-Ml|iM fising-of the, _olj^&'-^|||l^p_i_ii__s_a
_ ..m f___r-d_y had been advocated by about one-hundredth part of the traders o* Christchurch. Shopkeepers had to consider _ow best to servo their customers, and to close on a Saturday would be inconvenient to purchasers, and would disorganise trade. The result of the disarrangement would lead to the dismissal of about 25 per cent, of those employed in shops which were compelled to close on Saturday. Closing on a Saturday would cause a direct loss to something approach-, ing 95 per cent, of the shopkeeper, of Christoh-rch. Again, the greater number of citizens and country residents could best be served on a Saturday afternoon. He trusted that the oommon-sense of the Conference would carry them to a'straight and reasonable result. Th. agitation for a. change nod come from a limited number, and was not supported by the majority of the people. Mr Vv_r_ell said ihe matter had- never before _een put before the public, and the 2..000 signatures to-the petition should convince the Conference that the people as a whole did not want the change. Twelve thousand of the signatures had been obtained in the city retail shops, and the balance from farmers, country people, and Buburbanites. H? claimed that the Thursday section was in an overwhelming majority, and no more than five per cent, of the jpeople wanted a change. He regretted that several of the suburban delegates had come to the Conference with their hands tied. The suDurban councils had no right.to prejudge the question by so bindiug their delegates. Mr W_ki__on said that the strongest argument that could be put forward in support of the Thursday half-holiday the petition that was lying on the table. Ths city delegates were there as representatives of the people of the city, and tha peope of the city had declared themselves in support of tho Thursday balf-hoti_ay. The Chairman assured the deputation that the arguments advanced would receive due _o_-ide.-tion. In reply to Cr. Clark, a member of the deputation stated that the butchers' halfholiday was fixed for a Thursday. Mr Sorer_:en said, in reply to Cr- Newton, he could not guarantee that no children had signed the petition, but he did not think t__fc such a thing was possible. The Conference, however, if they wished, coud discount about 1000 signatures, in order to allow for irregularities. Mr Congreve explained that 12.000 signatures had been received voluntarily in the retail shops. Seven hundred and fifty had been obtained br canvass in Linwood, 890 in St Albans, "SOO in Woolston, 1400 in Sydenham, 400 in Lyttelton,. and the balance at street corners. The Chairman mentioned that he bad several! petif_o_s on the matter, which had been received by the City Council. The petitions were then read by the Town Clerk. Two hundred and forty-four Canterbury farmers, 23 h_ir__esser_ and tobacconists, 298 retail shopkeepers, and 7 master bakers petitioned in favour of Thursday, w_li.e 14 saddler*, and 5200 residents petitioned in support of the Saturday. The Templeton and West Melton branches of the Farmers' Union also wrote objecting to the proposed change. The Chairman., in his opening remarks, said the Conferenc. had a difficult and delicate teds before them. Both parties churned a numerical superiority, and he could not say which woe entitled to that claim. He thought that the present position was intok«r_ble—that annually there .hould be an intense struggle, with possibly an annual change. A number of members of Parliament ivere pledged to bring the matter before Parliament during the next session, and he suggested that the matter i<h-_ki be allowed to remoin as it was until Parliament met-. Wellington, Auckland, and Dunedin had adopted this course. Cr. Smith ■then moved—"That Thursday be the __y on which all shops in the city of Christchurch and the boroughs of Sydenham, Lsnwosd, St. Albana, Woo_stcu, ■ JSumner, Lyttelton, and New Brighton shall be closed as provided by the Shops and Shop Assistants Act, 1894."_ In view « f the matter cominst before Parliament, with the prooahility that a colonial half-holiday would be fixed, be considered it inadvisable to make a change in the meantime. A number of _i_istc__rc_ retailers had declared that the change from Thursday to Saturday would pr«ju_ici__y affect their b___esse_, seeing that f_o takings on Saturday equalled those of any other three days of "the week. People had become accustomed to Ihe Thursday, and little % business was doocte on\_hat day. If Saturday were selected, it would mean that another day would be shut up, with the result that practically __si_.e_s would only be done on four days of the week. This ' was a serious thing,"" not only for the shopkeepers, but. for the co__n__ity as a whole. The employees, in 00-sequence of' the change, might be seriously affected, for »>, nxrmoer of establishments- would have to curtail their staffs. The farmers around Christchurch made Saturday their day for coming to town, and it was no wonder that these people objected to a change. Then - over 20,000 petitioners, cfiiefiy those who did business in the shops, expressed them- * serves _s strongfly in favour of the present _r___gßm*_*. These objections were valid and real and -ktcere. He could find no valid argument for the change. All that could ba said for it was. mere sentiment, and the only argument he had heard of any account was that, of rp*w___t _njoyne__ on the part of the workers. Was that argument to work for the ruin of a number of establish____t_. in: t_e city? Mr Reeoe and Mr __r_u_er., who were advocates of the Saturday - closing, favoured the change on the understanding that it was to be a colonial arrangement. Other cities Aad tried Saturday closing, and had reutrned to another _fes/ at the first opportunity. Was it deftr_ble at a tan. when a united city was being worked for to create a spirit of bitterness between different sections of the «i__e__T While Christoh-rch was fighting and q_ftrre2li_g over che matter her trade would go to other centres. The evidence an favour of ra__rt_rning the holiday as at present was overwhelming, and he hoped that the Conference would have sufficient conxmon-sen-e to allow the holiday to remain as it was. Cr. G. Payling, who seconded the motion, s_id Mm. the petition presented that night out-weighed oonsiderably that formerly pre___ted. The .question was a grave one, and affected the tradespeople very vitally. He had been -lonely connected with the Christchurch retailers for 27 years, an_ it was always recognised that Saturday was a day on' which three times as much would be taken e_ on any other day of the week. When the holiday was first given, it was with the object of allowing the employees * rest in the m__dre of the week. Out of nine petitions presented only two favoured ___-r_ay, and of these one was from 14 saddlers. The other contained 5200 names, but the petition signed by 20,000 people cat-weighed that one- Ho hod watched the propre-s of the city. and knew that the Saturday trade had* been cultivated ever since Christchurch was a town. He thought it just as well that ft section of the community should be working while another section was having a holiday. Mr Winny asked whether a reply had been rec_rmd from the Government concerning . the'___ad« resorts? The Ch_ir_M-i replied in the negative. Cr. Clark moved an amendment that the (word "Saturday" be substituted for "Thursday" in the motion. He approached the matter from the standpoint of the solid in--tere-ts of the city. The business of the district was disjointed on account of the present split. He did not attach much importance to petition-. He had observed come of the canvassers seeking signatures to the petition pt_s__ted that night, and he notice- these men had no copy of the petition when they went on thear-rouods, but -imply a form for signatures. The opponent- of the proposed Saturday half-holiday were those who before hod opposed t-hJe granting of the holiday at oil A number of farmers favoured Saturday, and , tho Farmer-' Co-operative Company backed up these men- The employees were anxious that their employers should do good business on the remaining days of the week apart from the Saturday afternoon. Over 50 per cent, of the present Parliament had promised to vote for a universal Saturday half-holiday. Why, then, should not Christcha___ tab* __• iud and fix on Saturday!
The petition signed by 5000 people had com-mon-sense on its side, and solid facts. Saturday was a rational day on which to have a haif-hoiday. He was strictly in favour of Saturday, for he believed it to be in the beet interests of the community, including the ret_j.ers.
Cr. Newton, who oeconded the amendment, said that if t_e members of the Conference were earnest in their endeavour to make a general half-holiday, they should make it universal for all sections of the people. The inauguration and the proposal to grant a half-holiday was opposed by tha same people who now opposed the Saturday, but he believed that the retailers would find that in the long run the same amount of business would be done. He had come to the meeting with his hands tied, but ii his Council had passed a resolution favouring Thursday, he should not have bean thero to represent them. The joint opinion of a Council was of more weight than the individual opinion of the delegate. Thursday prior to the holiday was a good business day, and if Saturday weto adopted there would be a clear five and a half days for solid business. The {.ranting of the Saturday would bn of great benefit to the employees, for it would enable them to take excursions which before they had never been able to. A number of establishments in Christchurch had been closing on the Saturday afternoon as it was, including the large* retail business of A. J. White. He _-- not think that Cr. Smith was justified in explaining the intentions of Mr Recce and .Mr StTuthers, for thes» gentlemen bad oxpr«_-d their intentions by signing the petition. The Saturday petition was presented some three w.eks ago, and since that time it had been withdrawn from ciiculntionT He contended that there were a number of duplicate signatures on the Thursday petition. That petition had been forcibly pushed, but if the sam.' energy had been expended on the Saturday petition a la_ger number of signatures could have been obtained. The Thursday petition was by no means a representative one. The Canterbury Trades' Council, could claim to represent the factory hands, and tho Council supported the Saturday. The factory hands themselves who had ._e Saturday; "wished to extend that privilege to their fellow-workers. The result ot the change would be that an adjustment would take place, and exactly the same amount of business would be done. Cr. Simpson said that about twelve months _go he moved a motion at the HalfHollday Conference in favour of the Saturday. Since that time he nad changed his mind, end had come to the conclusion that it was inadvisable to change the day at the present juncture. The evidence in favour of things remaining as they are was overwhelming. 'Many.of the shopkeepers bad to keep more hand, than they required for ordinary days in the week, in-order to c<mt> with the busßM*- on a Saturday. If the work were more evenly distributed in consequence of the holiday being changed some of toe _rai-t_n~i would have to be di-dharged'. • There was therefore some soundness in the argument that the Saturday dosing would mean the casting out of employment of a cert_in number of assistants. . Cr. Winny «aid he would support the motion, but would do »o against his own private opinion. PersonalTy, he was m favour of th* Saturday, out he would support the Thtrrsday proposal, for the reaj son that it would be unwise to maka a_y alteration at the present time, in view of some legislative action being taken in *_c near future. Mr Grubb said that his hands were not tied. It was clear to him that it would only be a matter of time when the Legislature would fix a universal half-holiday. Cr. Morris said he was of opinion -_at Saturday was the most rational day, but in face" of the evidence adduced in support of the Thursday he would vote for tha 1 . day. O. Macdonald said that hi* private opinion was in favour of Saturday. That night, however, they had b-'fove than a pitition infinitely larger than the fiv*thousand ona presented to the Council three weeks ago. Ha thousht that tha matter should bs decided in accordance with the wishes of the majority of the people, and and for that reason he would, vote in favour of the holiday remaining as it was.; Mr Richardson said his opinion had been jn favour of the Saturday, but as a resiitof the evidenc. brought forward by the retailers, .be felt that he must vote for the Thursday. Cr. Taylor said he bad been in favour ot Saturday when he was elected, and he was not such an acrobat -as to change his opinions between that time-and the present. . Mr J. B. Sim (Mayor of Sydenham) said that the Sydenham Council had? received several pet it tons from local shopkeepers in favour of Saturday, and not one in support of Thursday. Therefore the C---c_ had decided in favour of Saturday. Cr. Smith, in reply, .said that the. whole burden of the criticism of Crs. Clark and Newton was, in the direction of disparaging the veracity and the honesty of their opponents. If:the same criticism had been applied against the Saturday petition that had been directed against the Thursday petition, there would hardly have been a name left on the former. ' The amendment was then put and lost by five to nine. The Mayors of Sydenham i and Linwood, and Crs. Taylor, Clark, and I Newton voted with the ayes, while ttie I Mayors of Lyttelton and Woolston, and | Crs. Smith, Payling, Morris, Simpson, I Macdonald, Wirmy, and Rowell voted with the noes. The original motion was adopted. Cr. Newton then moved—"That tbi* Conference petitions the Government to take steps to fix a universal half-holiday for the. colony." This was seconded by Cr. Rowell. Cr. Payling contended that the Conference could not deal with such a matter, for it iiad been called for a specific purpose, which had been disposed of. The Chairman' ruled that the Conference was within its rights in making any recommendation it chc-3 on the half-holiday question. The motion was put and carried by thirteen votes to one, Cr. Payl:_g being the only dissentient. A vote of thanks to the Chairman, moved by Cr. Winny and seconded by the Mayor of Sydenham, dosed the Conference.
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Press, Volume LX, Issue 11488, 22 January 1903, Page 5
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2,824THE HALF-HOLIDAY. Press, Volume LX, Issue 11488, 22 January 1903, Page 5
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