LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1954, 10 January 1914, Page 3

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

RED FEDERATION TACTICS. Sir, —Owing to something Hint has conio to my knowledge during the past week, I tlunk it is right that 1 should let tho public know through flic medium of your valuable and much-read paper tho danger with which they uro threatened by the sccret and underhand tactics of tho Red Fodoration of Labour. It has come to my knowledge that tho main object at present of that body is to quietly introduco as large a proportion of the undesirable elements of their own order as possiblo into tho new Arbitration Unions, and to endeavour at all hazards to get a controlling inlluenco in those unions, so that in tho course of timo they might bo able to mould them to their own ends. During tho Christmas holidays I spent a week in Palmerston North, and at tho hotel I stayed at I made tho acquaintance of two men who, by their own admission, were trusted officials of the Federation, and thoroughly acquainted with, and instructed in, the futuro policy of that body. Believing mo to be a small work-

ing farmer of rather limited intelligence and a decided leaning towards their views _(th,mts to the persuasive manner in which they expounded them to me), and also as ono who might be able to assist them considerably among my own class, thoso men, believing that, they had thoroughly hoodwinked and' converted mo to their creed, let themselves go, and' gave tho whole show §away. They assured me that their leaders were as alive as ever, that they were working night and day to get their followers back again into tho next unions, with tho object of secretly and continually bringing what influence they could to bear' in the endeavour to undermine tho principles of tlie new unionists, and, abovo all, to instil a feeling of distrust into tho minds of tho new union,'and lead them to' believe that they will be sacrificed as soon as practicable in the interests of the old Federationists. When I said I had read in the papers that the Harbour, Boards and wharf employers had pledced themselves to give the new men tho preference they actually laughed at me, and said that I, along with the general public, knew nothing of what underhand influences were at work. They said they wero prepared to bet that before next election they would have at least twothirds of the old men back, and that

then things would hum for the othor 1 third. They assured me that bv using tho unreasoning hatred of membsrs of the Opposition to the present Government, and skilfully pitting one against the other, along with promises of sunport at next election, they had already secured considerable support even in Wellington from men who wero in a position to mako things right for them. But it was Lyttclton that they wero depending on chiefly to set tho example. They assured me that they had the secret support of half the public men in tho place; tha,t the new member, _ Mr. M'Combs, was a red-hot Foderationist and supporter of their organisation, whatever may be publicly stated to tho contrary, and that he had an easy timo of it owing to the absurd honesty and t-nist-ing nature i>f tho Reformers. lhoso are my two friends' opinions, v they said, as an instance, when tlie new union at Lyttelton wished to uso discrimination, and tried to admission to their union, Mr. M'Comb soon put a stop to that. _ Ho actually got the Crown law officers in Wellington to interfere, and put themselves out of tho way to inform the Lyttelton men that they wero acting illegally, and-' that they must tako anyone in who could pay the first subscription. The power to discriminate and purge tho unions-of the bad element was tho ot)ly_ thing tlioy I wore afraid of, as it mado it so much moro difficult for them to carry out their plans. But, I said, if it is tho law, how could the Crown law officere have helped themselves. The contemptuous reply I got was that tho law officers had only to take _ notice of Mr. M'Combs, give 110 opinion one way or the other, let tho new unions alone to fight it out thomselves, and thev would soon have put things right, and effectually got rid of tho bad element for ever, and if it was not law, at all events it would have been justice. 1 did not at the timo place, much credence upon what my two wou!d-bo friends ; told me, as I put a lot of it down to brag, and, when I left Palmerston, had almost forgotten all about it. -But , what I have since read in the papers has ■ convinced me that it was not by any i means all bluff, and has effectually open- i ed my eyes to the grave danger we aro 1 running into in believing that Feds, are dead. That they are still < very much alive, and able to do a tre- J mendous lot of harm, and if the new | unions aro not to be allowed to *j l3 : - criminate in thoir membership, they t will in a very short time be stronger f than ever.—l am, etc, j