NEW LABOUR PARTY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1413, 13 April 1912, Page 6

NEW LABOUR PARTY.

COMING OF AGE AND MARRIAGE, SOME FORECASTS, Tho delegates to the .annual conference of tho Now Zealand Labour party assembled yesterday to transact final details ol business. At opening, the chairman (Mr. W. IT Hampton) presented a number of branch diplomas to the various delegates. These were issued under the constitution of Iht Labour party, which has now been superseded. Mr. Hampton remarked that th< diplomas would now form nil interesting memento to the different branches of tin party which had taken such a prominent part in tho promotion of t(ie unit) scheme. The chairman moved:— "That this conference accepts and promises to loyally adhere to, and do, oui utmost to bring into full operation the constitution nnd decisions of the Unitei! Labour Conference which has just con eluded." Mr. R. Slater (Dunedin) seconded tli< motion. lie said that it was just 21 year; sinco conferences were started in New Zealand under the Trades and Laboui Councils' organisation. He had the lion our of presiding at the first conference No one else was present who had attendee! it except Mr. E. Tregear, who was intro. duced as a very good man to put at tin head of the Labour Department when il was instituted by the Hon. \V. V. Hr-evcs. The conference unanimously endorsed Mr Reeves's suggestion. Mr. Tregear ha< been a good friend to the workers of this Dominion. Mr. Slater stated that he had also presided at the first conference of thi New Zealand Labour party. The Laboui movement had come to full manhood, ant! lie hoped that it would be a very fine am robust manhood. The indications wer; that the new party was going to be no' only in name, but in reality, a Unitei Labour party. Jf they stuck to whai they had said they would sweep tin polls at next elaction. The difficulty hac always .been to bring the working, mai into line. They were now so near it tha he believed that practically all the work ors of New Zealand were ready for unitei action. Mr. Tregear spoke briefly of the inaugti ration and erowth of the Labour Be partment. _ He. liad taken off bis armoui now, lie said, but if in the few remaining years of his life he could do somethin: to' brighten the lot of a toiling man o: long-suffering woman, he would feel tha he had been of somo use in the world "Going to Capture the Government." Mr. J. A M'Cullougli said that witl so much unanimity and solidarity, lr felt happy in tho belief that they wergoing to capture the Government of thi country and control its destinies. H said this in no narrow sense. The doo of the organisation had been made s wide that every useful individual coul come in and find a place for his talent; Mr. Rosenfeldt (Woodville) said that h wa9 a farmer, and was glad that farmer had wakened up to thp fact that the; must bo represented in this movement The farmer could not sit on the rail am see which party was to be on top. The; wanted to be "in the party which wa likely to be on the top all the time. Mr, Hunter (C'hristehurch) said that tli mistake of the Labour party in tho pas had been in not maintaining its inde pendence. The success attained durin the past week was due to the fact tha Labour. 011 attaining its majority, ha declared its independence. Liberals ha taken credit for progressive _ legislatior but, as a fact, every progressive measm had been forced by the workers from th uarty in power, at the point of th bayonet. Mr. J. Smith said that a machine ha been built which must be useful. A Labour Marriage, Mr. M'Carthy (Dunedin) repudiated statements by , previous speakers that the old party had died, and a new 0110 had been horn. This was neither a. birth nor a death, but a marriage. (Laughter and applause.). ; , Mr.' Inglis (Gisborne) said that a culminating point had been reached in the labour movement. Mr. Kemp (Masterton) claimed that it was clear'that Labour must guide the destinies of New Zealand in future. Mr. IV. Jordan (Wanganui) commended tlie,spirit which had dominated the deliberations of the conference. The prevailing note had been "Come, let us reason tugether," and he believed that th& same feeling would guide the futuro policy of the Labour party. Mr. Walter (Marion) also congratulated the party on the position it had attained. Mr. D. M"Laren said that a spirit of devotion to the cause of Labour was the keynote of the conference held during the week. Men and women had bent their efforts on securing an effective combination on behalf of the workers. Ten, twelve, and fourteen years ago the flag of Independent Labour, no bigger than a pocket-handkerchief, was held up at street corners, and became a target for metaphorical brick-bats. But tile Labour leaders had persistently prophesied tho inauguration of a United Labour Party, It was not their policy to merely count head's without considering what was in them. He thanked the electors of this city for giving him a holiday from Parliament, and enabling him to devote himself to propaganda work. A Labour representative in Parliament was of little value unless he was prepared to enme out of it for his principles. Concluding, Mr. M'Laroii said that the press of this 001111 try would be wise to give Labour hope at the .ballot-box, lest it should be forced to resort to more violent means. The tnofion was carried unanimously. It was also unanimously Agreed, on the motion of Mr. Kemp (Masterton): "Thatit he a recommendation to the delegates of the New Zealand Labour party to urge the desirability of passing resolutions of con"votulatimi and endorsement of the iictinu of the National Administrative Council in assisting to brine to a successful issue Ihc proposal contained in the Unity scheme." Revision of Rules, It was agreed that a board of control should be set up to revise the rules of the partv and bring them into couformi|;v with 'the rules and constitution of the United Labour party. It was further i»reed that the present National Adminstratiivo Council should be the board of jontrol. - On the motion of Mr. J. A. M'Cnllough, ;he conference recorded its appreciation )f the splendid services rendered at the U'nitv Conference by tho Hon. .T. T. Paul, Professor AV. T. Mills, and Mr. D. G. iiullivan (secretary). A numbor of delefates heartily endorsed the motion. A vote of thanks to the pre.ss was passed, on the motion of Mr. E. J. Carey. The Labour people and the Labour party, 10 said, were never refused a report. The mv.s v;ere always willing to record anything in the shape of news. Labour, of ■oiirse, was criticised in all the papers, md' the only way to circumvent this ■niticism was to establish a Labour paper. It was agreed that eac.h branch of the larty should ho known henceforth as the — political branch of tho United jabour parly. Votes of thanks were passed to the sec■etarv of the National Council (Mr. J. iV. Kay), and to the president and members of the council. Tim mect.iiiij concluded with cheers for :hc United Labour party.