BUDGET FROM AUCKLAND.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1924, 5 December 1913, Page 8

BUDGET FROM AUCKLAND.

POSITION AT lIUNTLYt,

HOTEL RESTRICTIONS REMOVEtJ

STRIKE LEADERS' PREDICTIONS-' 'U!y Tolosraim.-Proea Association,! Auckland, December i. ' This morning the mounted special police_ who have been patrolling thy waterfront night and day for some weeks past were withdrawn. As the last detachment rode away ho.irty cheers wereexchanged between litem and the. foot brigade quartered on the Queen's Wharves. Evidently the departure of tho mounted men was just arranged by way of an experiment. Everything went on as usual during the period ol their absence, and they took up their pasts again inter in the- day. The city "spc cials" who remain on tho w'harves have made their quarters as comfortable as possible, and. many of t'hcni tire quite prepared to stay on tho waterfront indefinitely. About 200 mounted "specials" wcro discharged this morning. Of these, 100 Jiavo gono to their homes in tho Waikato and tho northern districts, while the remainder are staying about the city for a week in order to see tho Exhibition. There are still 400 mounted men in camir. Work is proceeding satisfactorily amongst the slapping. There seems to hi ample labour available, and cargo is being loaded and discharged expeditiously, Tho Waiwcra is to follow tho Maheito at' tho Queen's Wharf. Tho Homo steam*.) has a large cargo to discharge. Discharge i-3 proceeding at the White Star liner Zcalandic. (iho is also loading a qua-u----tity of produce. From Auckland t-h« Zcalandtc will go to Wellington and other southern ports. Tho Malumo is fixed to (sail for Sydney to-day. About, lot) passengers will go by tho vessel, and a "scratch" crew has been sccwedc

Strike. Committee Vlcura, Mr. Purtell, chairman of the Auckland Strilto Committee, said this morning that the local committee lias agreed to tho reference of the. whole dispute to Sir Joshua Williams. Tiio point.-at issue seemed io be that the employers woro determined to have no form or labour organisation outside the Arbitration Act. The casual observer, he said,' assumed that tiio strilto was broken because Auckland had got busy a at once, but there was. only one smalj coal mine working in New Zealand ana it was boyoiul tiio possibilities of an ordinary business transaction that the industries in New Zealand and tho shinpin" could bo maintained on coal supplies obtainable from .Japan or Africa. The Strike Committee realised, ho said, that conditions wcro far from being back to normal. There was also good authority for stating that Micro would be trouble in tho London docks when tho ships loaded during, the strike, reached London. The City Magistrates to-day derided that all the restrictions placed on tiro hotels in connection with tho recent strike trouble bo now removed as from to-day. Consequently liquor way now I be sold as usual for consumption oft premises. : Mr. Hiokey in the North, Mr. 1\ 1-1. Mickey, secretary of the United Federation of- Labour, paid a, visit to Auckland yesterday, and addressed meetings of waterside workers and seamen, lie left this moraine; for Uuntly and will return to Wellington this evening. Prior to his departuro this morning Mr. Mickey said that tho offer made by the Hon. W. M, Hughes on behalf ol'tho Australian workers to New Zealand employers was one which met with the entire 'approval of tho Executive of tho United. Federation. Ho commented briefly on ' tho persistent manner in which the employers in New Zealand referred to the "Federation of Labour.'* The old Federation of Labour no longer existed, he said, hut had been absorbed bv the United Federation which included tlw Arbitration unions as well as the non-Arbitration unions, and was so constituted as to bo able, to conserve the best interests of each. Speaking .tc I waterside workers yesterday Mr. Mickey said: "Unionism.is fighting for its life, i and all the workers should realise what this moans and play their part manfully. Tho employers have refused to | consider any proposals although tho ! United Federation has agreed to stand aside if a settlement is being arranged with the unions themselves, 'file employers appear to bo out to smash unionism, but the position of the sinkers is stronger la-day than ever."

Position Lively at Huntly. Several days ago the directors of the Taupiri Coal" Company posted a nntica at tlio mines at Huntly intimating that tho men would this moniivg have tlio final opportunity of returning to work. This morning when the whistles blew, only those who had been working since" tlio strike commenced sewn weeks ago put in an appearance. A% ail carlv hour the streets were Jim'd with pickets, and there must have been 200 men posted at tiio various points about tlio township. . Two men, wlra hare rognlarlv attuiukd work, wca escorted to the mine gates by a fairly large crowd, but nothing was said. As R o'clock a largo crowd collected in tho street.outsido ilalph's mine, and When it was found that no fresh men had started work a cheer went up. there was a' largely-attended mooting of tlio men on strike last night. It is understood that tlio proceedings were ot a somewhat lively nature. A question wt'i put. as to whether anyone present proposed to start work this morning, kvervone replied in the. negative, and arrangements were made tor picketing; tliis morning as descrmed. Threat to Shtort Alleged. An information has, it is understood, been laid by the Strike Committee against Mr." S. Dixon against whom the informants prefer a charge of threatening to shoot ono Henry Buchanan, It will be remembered, that Mr. Dixon played a prominent pari, in tlie formation uf the now union, and is ono of the few moil who refused to join the present strike. 'fie has received attention, from the pickets on varioiiK occasions, and it is stated that it was on oiw of these occasions that the threat was made. When secJi this morning, Mr. K. «'. Alison, chairman of the Taupiri Coal Company, stated that full consideration would iiim> to be given to any wove made in the direction of reopening iho mine, and at pro:.*nl. it. was not pe;sibk; to indicate what steps wore to •ie, taken. The question at issue was nor one for tlio Taupiri Company alone to deal with. It iiad hr-mme oi general concern, and endorsement by tlio people whose upprov.il was necessary woiiiil be obtained before any Miriilcpoliey was put into effect, AYhen (ho Minei's Union notified the company early in tlio week that the dispute was in the hands of 'the United Federation of .Labour the, directors decided not toiesuiiK', ?!- Ihuudi offers to work had neon rawed, and thus avoid possible trouble, it was announced that tuner arraugo-ineni-s would be updo bciovo reopening, and in the meantime, written application's; only for employment would he considered. Cincinnati is to have a municipal rat ami jnoiiso farm, whom rodents will m iirod for lira purpose of testing; suspected rood. Any suspected foodstuff will Vw given to tlio rats, and if Iho rats die, the food will lie condemned as unfit foi human consumption. Soldiers in the Italian army arc allowed, cigars as part of tlio daily rations,