MR. FACING-ALL-WAYS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1918, 28 November 1913, Page 6

MR. FACING-ALL-WAYS.

The public wc should imagine long ere this must have realised that it has bficn a very unfortunate thing for city and country alike that the chairmanship of the Harbour Board during the present industrial crisis should not,have been in the hands of someone better qualified to grapple with the emergency. Throughout practically the whole trouble Mi:. Fletcheu's attitude has been such as to give rise,to the suspicion that he has failed to recognise the obligation resting on him to actively assist the authorities in the task of breaking down the blockade of the port se 1 : up by the Federation of Labour.. His efforts have given the impression of half-heartedness and a disinclination to offend, or run counter to the wishes of,'the strikers. In _view of the very great powers which ihe board appears-to have placed in his hands, his attitude necessarily was •of more importance than would have been the case had the board itself as a- body exercised a closer supervision, and taken a more active part in the handling of tho trouble. We are impelled to make these references to the matter now because of Me, Fletciiek's blustering attitude at the meeting of the' board on Tuesday evening last, when certain members raised questions concerning his expressed views and conduct during the strike. Mr. Fletcher has had so much of his 6wn way, owing to the weakness or indifference of members of the board, that he appears to imagine that anyone who dares to differ from him or question his actions is guilty, of an offence warranting further high-handedness on his part and indulgence in objectionable references and threats.

There are two points in particular on which the chairman's bluster will avail him little with the board, and less with the public. The first and less important of these, is his contradiction of a statement, published in our columns to the effect that the manner in which the.strike had been handled by the board had aroused the resentment of some of the country settlers, who had threatened to ship their wool through the port of Napier by way of protest. The statement added that some wool had already been diverted in that way. Mr. Fletcher gave this statement'a flat contradiction, and said it would do the board a lot of harm. Now. Mr. Fletcher's assertion is either true or untrue. Our informant in the matter was a well-knownscttler, who stated that he was sending bis own wool as mentioned, and that others of his neighbours were going to do the same to show their disgust at the conduct of the board. Settlers in the Waira.rapa wo know have discussed the matter, and we believe it has been brought under the notice of their representatives on the board. Mr. H. Nathan, a Wellington member of the board and the. representative of a shipping firm (with whom, by the way, wc have not bad any communication on the subject), confirmed the. statement published by us from his own experience. He stated that some of the wool usually shipped through his firm at Wellington had gone to Napier. What has Mr:. Fletcher to say lo these facts'! Will be venture now to contradict liiom? And who is to blame, if, lo quote his own words, "it will do the hua-r'd n lot of harm'"! The chairman of the board himself, who was given far too much latitude by his fellow members, and who failed to rise to the occasion and extend that full measure of sympathy and assistance which they deserved to I he men who came to aid the city and the Harbour Board against the lawlces

forces which wore paralysing trade and commerce. The second matter to which we t.'ike exception is the attitude of the chairman of the Harbour Board towards the Arbitration unionists who stepped into the breach in the time of emergency and enabled ilia working, of the port to be carried on. .Mn. Retuhek's remarks at; the board meeting on the question of standing by these men and continuing the in in their employment after the strike collapses were quite on a par with his conduct throughout. The same IvslMicai-tedness, the same lack of generous appreciation characterised his replies to the quest'ons put' to' him 'by members of the board, who desired that it should be made clear beyond all doubt that the men who had laced , insult and injury and rendered the greatest; possible service to the community would find the Harbour Board, as well as the other employers of labour, standing loyally by them when tlio trouble has ended. If there is one thing more, than another upon which, public feeling, outside the ranks of the strikers, is most active and unanimous, it is in a determination to stand by the men who stood by the community in its time of trouble. Mi:. Fletcheb need not deceive himself on that point. If he thinks he can further his political aspirations by playing "the game of Mr. Facing-all-ways, he is making the mistake of his life. He is not likely to win the support of the Lab-our-Socialists of the Red Federation, and he certainly will arouse the antagonism of all other classes of the 'community.. On Tuesday last he prevented Mb. M'Faklanb moving that the men now at work should be given preference of permanent employment, We would suggest that a special meeting of the board should be held as soon as possible and the decision of the board on this point placed on record in ekar and unmistakable terms, The board owes it to the men and it owes it to the public to do this,