NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1932, 15 December 1913, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

After many doubts and uncertainties the present session of Parliament is now definitely about to come to an end, and members of all parties frankly admit that they arc very glad of it.. Many of them are desperately tired of the tide of talk that has rolled fur nearly sis months past; and it is not at all surprising to learn that they are exceedingly anxious to get away to_ their homes, and forget about politics for a 'time. Government members na--tin-ally are well pleased with the result of their labours for the session. The Statute Book for. 1913 will he an abnormally heavy one, practically the whole of the Government programme having been put through. This is, of course, a distinct triumph for the Reform Party, _in face of the amount of and obstruction in which the Opposition has indulged, and no doubt Ministers have occasion to be very pleased with the manner in which their followers have stood by them. Government members emphasise _ the fact that much of the Opposition obstruction was aimless, and seemed to arise from a desire to hinder business in general, rather than to concentrate opposition on particular policy measures. This is true enough. During a great part 'of the session there was an inordinate amount of talk by the Opposition upon nearly every item of business that camoup, I no matter how unimportant it might be, and the amount of time wasted in this way whs, in. the aggregate, enormous. But for this obstruction the session might easily have endocl nearly a month ago.

Mroii comment has been excited in the lobbies of the House of Representatives by the fact th.it the Labour Disputes' Investigation Bill went through all its stages practically unoppuscd.. The clauses which it contains were fiercely denounced by the Opposition members and their newspapers, and also by the extreme Labour section in the country when they were first brought down in the Industrial Conciliation Arbitration Amendment Bill, but there was no corresponding outcry in the House when the actual details—provisions for tho secret ballot and compulsory conference' prior to strikes and lockouts, and so forth—came up for consideration on■■ Friday last. . There was-a-good deal of wild arid mischievous talk during the second and third reading.debates on tho . measure,.but on each occasion the strike was the principal theme, and the Bill itself came in for only cursory and-passing notice. The second reading was carried by'f>4 votes to -I, the.-.thi!'d'rending on the voices, and jwas considered in, ■^Committee','- I claiisfVvjby -.clause, not a ■ single vdivisioiii^viiS-eyeni.called for. ■lt:-3s. ; ;:ani!isirig ; ;:tiifreca)l:,that a few . of ■ ; the;?dppositipiiSJind?.othcr.- -journals of ab'use ..and ;vilif!caHiui|rif^the,;.? ; for : : wdiicb;^now|jrieet»3;iti%tlrefeai)]M'qval ; : o f■■ t "f e?-' 7 '^*''? P P"?'^' <■'.° n '■'fj" <' ' 4hewaiiiu)?'lftsjin:i ; hiiiioiis,;o_hdor?einent. spf*t.!« : -Houie^ ji is 1 tAari'b Uic.Vyjivi 1 lust ra tic iife;^£j

y>f;>|nusne\^ KToyenu»<:yji't,.£^ 35'iWi liiyl?niijsin i si:»?|s'reKonli ng£|M i u i£< :'\v 11 If lo'%?decoi vi iig fl/Uio: r i|'ii:!)lit^Sniur^,!creaUiigi4 i iagai n ■"•eUun'fbf": the'.'Opposition' Krcssvliiis-JiKiliioiilySfiiilo'dN-ith the but. :!c.?;o.nV.lhose.it.supports are. driven' in is¥l'tV;d3op!<;c;'to'(iiso\vri 'and- discredit' *its;shSniclps:s ■ misrepresentations, .,,;;

i;?Tuif Supreme Court gave a very. liTnpori'ifiit. judgment last week ._with , ■reference''to the use of Trades Union funds.-;,.1t appears that the Wdlinsjtori •..Typographical Union (which is registered under ...the 1 Arbitration ■ v ■'voted £100 in/ :'ai.d--5.-:' : ofj. ..' the. ■.■■■Waterside Work.ors';:;' ■' : :.at' ' '.present on . strike. .There being some doubt as to whether this "could be legally done; it was decided, to test the point by bringing a . friendly action in the Supreme Court under the Declaratory Judgments Act, with the result that the Chief Justice laid it down that it is not lawful-for the defendant union to apply' any of its funds for the purpose of assisting the unions mentioned in the proceedings, or their dependents, while, the members _ of those unions are engaged in a strike, and that the union ' cannot make levies on its members for that- purpose. The Chief Justice stated that the union existed for the purpose of protecting or furthering the interests of workers in connection with the special industry of It was not a general benevolent society, and was not formed for the purpose of aiding workers in other industries. Mr. Justice Chapman took the same view as the Chief Justice. The decision lias a far-reaching effect inasmuch as it presumably _ applies to other industrial unions in New Zealand. From a common ;sense point of view at least, the decision ox the Court is eminently just. It would be a most improper thing if money contributed by the members of a union for the special purposes for which the union was formed could be diverted by a majority vote to quite a different purpose such as the assistance of strikers belonging to other industries. If individual members desire to make donations to extraneous objects they ought to do so out of their' own pockets. The use of the union funds for such purposes would be equivalent to the establishment of a system of compulsory charity, by means of which mem-bers-might be compelled to contribute to objects of which they disapproved. The way would be opened to grave abuses if the funds oi unions could be devoted to any purpose foreign to the purpose for' which they were established. The new Waterside Workers' Union has takon special care to make its position perfectly clear in this matter by passincr a resolution declaring that all tnc funds over and above actual workinp. expense shall be put aside for a sick and accident fund, and in no case shall they be used 'for any other purpose than the relief of suffering caused by accident or sickness to members of the union.