LABOUR LEGISLATION.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1049, 11 February 1911, Page 6

LABOUR LEGISLATION.

■.-'"■■ • ■ ,;»" V — VIEWS OF"AN AMERICAN VISITOE, ; (Br Telegraph—Special Corrvsapondentl . ' N Napier, February 10. • Mr. Whitmore 'Preston, an American visitor who has been observaatly.travelling through\'the Dominion, sounds 7a word of.warning concerning our labour laws. ' In an interview with a "Tele-.,• graph" reporter he said:'•'■.'■ ■'.. "In-talking "with 'someof your prom- , y inent' nien, 1 learned ;'. how much the: 7 conditions' of a labouring man and his ;'": : ', family have been,improved byj.legisla--,. .- tion,"but when'l look at the increase. "J in the cost of living •I: am wondering' ■; if the worker realises that what ho is putting into one pocket ho. must'be > taking out of the other "and the best ■ thing for him,and thei country is a '' wage exactly in proportion to the cost of living. If-he receives mbre.'than his share someone else is not getting a square deal,. and a square, deals to. everyone;is a condition- which, makes . - for the greatest prosperity- of any country. By a square deal I mean-justice -■■.. in every respect—an honest day's- la-:; bour for an honest day's pay. :.To:ob-, ... tain this result make.every child bet- "■. ter than its>parents and see how that '• . would work out. In a.-few years you : ' svould have; a -constantly-improving. • grade of citizen imbued with the" ideal ; of not only getting the best'they can for- themselves, but-giving the; best, to.--the other fellow. -If New. Zealand labouring men increased the, cost of production by increasing the remuneration ; they receive for their, labour, they'.will •/... ultimately shut out. the rest, of.,the world as a market for their products. . You have here a splendid grade of wool ;- at a low' cost and can manufacture goods equal to the best, but_ the.for % ei<*n market cannot be found if they . colt too high. You want population; . i-ou must have capital; and capital can- . not bo induced to come to the country as long as it "can be invested to -.....- better advantage elsewhere. ■ You ;will ' say that you do not wish to place your-'., solves in competition'with the cheap : labour of; Europe, but if you "go top far ahead of tho surrounding countries (ou will bo isolated commercially."