INDUSTRIAL WAR.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 976, 17 November 1910, Page 5

INDUSTRIAL WAR.

$ ATTEMPTED DESTRUCTION OF MACHINERY. " FRIGHTFUL FOLLY." - STATEMENT BY MR CHURCHILL i. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. C (Roc. November 16, 9.45 p.m.) • . London, November IG. ij In tho House of Commons tho Labour I members hotly demanded tho withdrawal of the troops sent to Wales. They complained that tho polico interfered with picketing. ' Mr. Churchill replied that very determined attempts had been made to breakinto tho powerhouses and destroy the • machinery. He hoped tho miners' lead--5 ers would point out that it would be frightful folly if tho mines were flooded. The -strike may end, but the population of South Wales would bo faced with starvation, as it would bo three or four months before, they would bo able to work again. ■ He added: "I shall certainly exert my authority to sea that tho strikers havo. all proper liberty to exercise the peaceful persua- ' sion which Parliament has given them." Tho Labour members considered tho " reply unsatisfactory, and forty-ono 1 voted against the motion for adjourn- £ ment. J FIRES OUT. ) THE FLOODING OF A MINE. 1 (Rec. November 16, 11.30 p.m.) London, November 16. The Rhondda strikers persuaded the enginemen and stokers in the Britannic 1. colliery to abandon the machines. Tho i manager and officials re-started tho boil- | ers in order to prevent the flooding 'of tho mine.- In response to a bugle call the strikers reassembled on a hill overlooking . the colliery and lustily "boohooed" the workers. This proving fruitl less, they finally invaded the colliery and • gave the officials half an hour to put out 1 the fires, The officials, then capitulated. LAW AND ORDER. EMPLOYMENT OF . THE TROOPS. j. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright.. London, November 15. , In the House of - Commons tho Secrc-' tary of Stato for. War, Mr. Haldane, replying -to a question by Mr. Keir Harj die (Labour M.P.), said the troops had been sent to Wales at his instance', and would bo retained there, until the public safety and law and order ; had been assured. Ten thousand of the Aberdare strikers . rejected the proposals of the Conciliation Board! A. movement is dn foot to pro- | zvoke a general strike. . COAL-LUMPERS' STRIKE. WHAT WAS THE REAL REASON? Sydney, November IG. ' Employers seem ignorant of tho real reason oi tho coal-lumpers' strike. Several conferences were held- recently, and , it was verbally.decided to pay ono shilling and- ninepenco for work between six p.m. and. six a.m. This constitutes an 5 .increase of a penny halfpenny an hour. ■ The agreement was to be signed to-dny. , The lumpers were not aware of this. It ; is supposed their 1 action was caused by a r desire to give a strong hint that the negotiations were too protracted. . , Union officials profess surprise at the [ action of the men, stating that the strike has been organised outside the union. Normal conditions are expected to-day., (Rec. November 17, 0.30, a.m.) • ' ' Sydney, November 16. Tho coal lumpers are holding a mass meeting to discuss an agreement whicli is reported to have been made between the Lumpers' Union aud the employers, conceding Is. 9d.,an hour for overtime pay. , LABOUR CONDITIONS IN ENGLAND. , A SERIOUS SITUATION. . .The London correspondent of a local business house, 'writing by this week's • inail on the position of labour in Eng- ■ land, gives tho following . vigorously-pre- ; sented' description of the situation:— : ''A wave of tho most profound unrest has overspread, the country. I recognise that you'-have your file of the 'Morning Post,' and that little that I can add to what you there glean will greatly add to your appreciation of the situation. Yet so far removed from tho centre of events, you will perhaps realise in part bow baffling, how, perplexing is the situation to those whose duty it is to offer advice, and to tako action, in relation to purchasing of goods which in effect only find their market 6ome five months hence. The wisdom of any step may be defeated , by factors which none can foresee, and : the man who blunders on without thought is just as likely to. come out right as he irfio weighs and re-weights the probabilities of the future. "As. you will have porcoived from the papers, tho contending factors are not alone those as between Capital and Labour, but also between Labour and tho , unions which seek to rule and guide Lab- , our in tho mass. .Tho revolt against the unions is not easy to understand. It seems to be an expression of revolt . against any authority whatsoever, fostered by vague Socialistic teachings, and imbuing a great mass of ignorant men with idea that the earniugs of others are their property. The wholo standpoint is immoral and dishonest, and our political leaders are largely responsible for tho fruition of the idea. That moro prudent leaders see this well enough and are apprehensive, since tho salaries they earn are placed in jeopardy. , Capita! has its back to the wall, and, if tho policy of i lock-ouU in groups is persisted in, tho s Labour union funds will be depleted; co--3 hesion in the Labour ranks will be lo«t , and, under pressure of hunger, tho men will have to dribble back into employ-. ' ment at- wages, and on conditions, much inferior to those they enjoyed prior to ; this disturbance. Suffering there will be —perhaps riots and bloodshed; better so than that the country should be bled to death by demands which the economic situation makes it impossible to agree ro. "Iu Lancashire, deaf, to all argument, the men have accepted lock-out notices, and 150,000 become idle—and why? Because one man at one mill is dismissed 1 for insubordination, and the masters refuse to restore ,him to his post at the dictation of the men. . "In South Wales tho colliers havo been 1 in a state of incipient revolt for two ' years or more. "Tho Boilermakers' Union have, by breacli of an agreement, brought shipbuilding to a standstill, and, if thev don't ■ 6oon give way, I expect some of the big steel works to closo down altogether until ■ tie trouble is over. ! "Quite recently the men of our North > Eastern Railway stopped the lvholo system—and why ? Because one man refused ' to work .in one yard rather than another. 1 The ugly feature is that this sort of ■ thing lias wide-flung issues. It effeots other trades; it brings ruin to small shop- ' keepers, and inflicts horrible suffering on women, children and aged persons. Tlieso aro temporary effects, but it also diverts ■ trade to other centres, and trade so lost is only recovered by buying it back by undor-quothi" those who possess themselves of it during tho fight. "In Gcrmajiy a somewhat similar situation seems to exist, based on an argued Socialism, whilst here it seems rather to . bo an impatience of tho men over earning their living at tho expense of personal t effort. "Meanwhile 'Lloyd-Georges' in all tho j various shades of the,.blatant--demagogue r inflame the passions of tho ignorant, j 'Unearned increment' aud other catcht words aro paraded before men who can ) hardly read or write. The wholo gigan- , tic humbug is sickening to those who i havo nothing to win from political cliicv anery."