BIG STRIKE.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1955, 12 January 1914, Page 5

BIG STRIKE.

IN SOUTH AFRICA. CITIZEN ARMY CALLED OUT. 60,000 IN CAMP. MOBILISATION WITHOUT PANiC A GRAVE POSITION. By Toleirraph-Press AEsociation-Oopyrlgfe- ' Pretoria, 'JanuaYyTS/SB The drivers, have struck on the Transvaal; •ind have disorganised the service.?. The' Orange River Colony lines ■ are iji'much; the samo condition, but'ti».railways' are working in Natal and Cano Colanyd Tho Trades Federation, again controls the situation. Cabinet has again ..cmsidored the situation. General Smuts; Defence Minister, and the Hon. v : Mr." Burton, Minister of Native" Affairs'and Attorney-General, have left for Johannesburg. The Imperial officers leave with drawn swords. The troops will be used only as a last resource. ;' >■'?■'; Delegates from all parts of ; the iransvaal are assembling for tho Fed-r: oration Trades' Conference on Saturdays Tho Citizens' Reserves of the Trans-" vaal, chiefly tho burghers', 1 have 1 ; been" called out, and the sale of farms has'' been prohibited. ■,£■.;.-: ;;, i: ,^. A Committee of Public Safety' has' been formed, headed by the Mayor,'for.' the maintenance of order.'": s'-'$ Wado, the Labour leader, of '.Ger--miston, has been arrested for a seditious speech at Johannesburg. ' All .-tho. trams have- ceased on tho Rand, ,px-' ccpt tho mail trains. '«s.: . ;>■,.*£ A proclamation has called out "the' entire Citizen Army of the Transvaal,' on tho ground that serious disturb-' ances aro anticipated. Thov are ' now', guarding the coal stores. All is quiet'" at tho gold-mines. ;. Tho situation at Bloemfontcin :: " is serious. Tho men in all the workshops have struck, and an armed police-con-', tingcnt and tho defence force are guarding the station. . •;■;, ,-j.y. Only one-fifth of tho Durban ployees responded to the call to. strike. Tho remainder decided to await the result of a ballot. A ganger discovered' three sticks of dynamite detonators'i on the Luipaardsolei line, just before ' tho arrival of a- crowded train .■ from Zeerust. ■.>-«;.< r .£■ SEDITIOUS SPEECHES, #>■"'*

"SEND THE FLAG.TO HELLi^ (Ecc. January 11, 5.5 p.m.) r&Jflharmesfturg, January 10. " The Witband Collienes have closed through lack of trucks. Gcorgo Mason, a member of the Executive of tho Federation of Trades, addressing the strikers at Johannesburg, said that the' Federation did not intend to call.out the miners, though tho latter were dying to avenge the bloodshed of Jnl'y.' Their revenge would eomo later. He wanted his hearers to bo like himself and send the King,.'the flag, and the country to hell, They, wore as good a-s the King. (A voice: Yes, better!) A further dynamite explosion occurred on.- tho railway between- Johannesburg, and Cleveland. *:

There are only ten days' provisions in Johannesburg, but tho Government is confident of .its ability to keep the main line open for coal and foodstuffs for the Rand, and is commandeering motor-cars, mules, and waggons for the transport service. Wado has been imprisoned for twenty-.. one days under the Peace Preservation Ordinance Act, The Cape mail train was dynamited at Witwaterand," the front wheels of tho pilot engine being blown off the permanent way and.damaged. Nobody was injured. .-■*■''', Martial law is to be proclaimed tomorrow. Waterston, secretary of the South African Labour Party and Poutsma have been arrested for seditious utterances, also Field, assistant secretary of the Railwaymen's Society. . ' '..;.■■..■;:. STRIKE LEADERS IMPRISONED. MARTIAL LAW TO BE.::.tv';> .PROCLAIMED.....*^ Pretoria, January io; ? * Connelly, tho president of tho. Railwaymen's Executive, Carson, tho secretary, and Buckley, and othiir members have been imprisoned, and a quantity of papers were seized. The .; arrests caused a sensation. ■ ' The railwaymen are now advancing other demands, besides the reinstatement of the retrenched employees;-, namely, tho abolition of piecework, an eight hours' day, and a standard wage. They have summoned a meeting for. Sunday to considw The" Government has not yet prohibited.''tho meeting, hut is believed to bo considering the question of proclaiming martial law.

George Mason, in one- of the speeches at Johannesburg, declared that.-" tho workers were not afraid of deportation. The workers had brains, were in tho majority, and could work everything without the capitalistic class. A revolution of the workers was inevitable: ■ ■; .'■.'■■ Another speaker said they must realise that in this industrial warfarethey were fighting for bread and butter and their; lives. : ' : ;: .' ; ".■■,■.'■;■' ' The Citizens.' Defenee .Fores consists of picked men, well armed. 'The Government is confident that it will be able to dispense with the Imperial troops. ■'-.'? '■■■■ The Trades Federation's funds'-'are insufficient to carry out a general strike successfully. Poutsma exhorted.v-his. hearers to abstain front violence. ■■ /(.',-f.^ SOMETHING MORE THAN COMMON STRIKE FEAREn.,,-9 :s i^ GOVERNMENT Johannesburg, January 10."V Two mounted Union regiments at Potchcfstroom and two infantry regiments have hegun a march on the Rand/ The drivers of the trains at Potchefstroom refused fo convey tho police for., tho Rand. The police at Natal are now entraining for the Transvaal. Five', hundred of the Mounted Rifle Corps ; are quartered at Pretoria in barracks.;; The active defence form is to be main-, in protecting the railways.- " Glendo'n, Livingstone, Munroe, y and other Labour orators- have been arrest-; ed. The Federation of Trades threatens. 1 a general .strike unless all are released." The Government's energetic actionals' interpreted to mean that thev are.cou-; vinced thev will have to ' face-some-;' thing more'than a common^strike^iigs STRIKERS' DEMANDS;!fg|f RESIGNATION OF-MlNlSTßltlfer DISMISSAL OF .MANAGER^?;!; (Rec. January 11/ 5.5 p.ni.jy'ijj" Johannesburg,'' January? Itf^t The strikers carried a resoliitieii>'dc'-: : minding tho resignation.'of t-ho ! -HonV Henry Buxton, Minister of Raibo.'-Af*' fairs ami >ttomaJ.-f}«OTMiV.:?a*dfr£tta

:; 6F^MJ:; ; Bpy;^ '^■?\Ra.ilwnyJs'f*'*'^ |:' '.'vip! :^ V'■■■■:'.. ; , '" : ":'::;i^i > ipLV*||lf';B ?^; :;v ; ■ . ; .' -(lle^iiJaiiuar&lSf^ !:<. ■ l ! s£? ii icons'' 'defence? force., is £hiob'ii£ fijingsiiwitlii^^ iniain?!!ody^s ; Jcaiiip : ed;'civ the,,. Wander/ '.fiii-, theSccnt rofpU ji. posted', at, :.sti-atcgie!-points'- l \along'-Hlie ;! ciit| /• :;.G««oral; ? po;jLa'-Rey, wWsofvod with rtheffßoerJiorccs&ih-y ho;i South ? ; A friea n' jWar';:\'is^cominaiidiii^ .•Kirghersj-f includings;a from jtrßins¥dfiycn|by ; !»officerssof\,thi! Defence' swithotttf,eyidenee of- is esti-r ■ mated.. tb : -'produco sixty .thousand men, .thflirailway'hipnjriotified ■ 'striker's,.: who -(wereV.-'mem---f.bers': of .Jtiie" should;:: report, : themselves -£t0... tho.;if Khoriiics;if^ordered;>4^ ?SpHANNESBUR(V IN."A-'STATB ? 6fS: : is like a city ina'state' of Troopers and ; infantrymen are everywhere.:.-. The shops and hotels; have, beeni;barricaded, and the', publichouses are-closed.--''After a protracted discussion,.the Trades Federation recom<mended.: a'general; strike, and ordered a .ballot,of'■ 'all'■■unions by ; Tuesday.'' ■'■ .'■"■: ;;:.,' Thes.miners s'.would ..'practically' have ceascd;.work;6n.Monday whatever would. \be the Federation's' decision.' I '-' '-■■' '■■; ■.. IjvThe '■■ crowdiat id '"strike ..meeting prcr ..vented ,tho i'police". from ■■ arresting Bain',i secretary r>-:''of..;;the'' : Trades"!.,, Federation. 'Baitiyha-s.since remained atjthe.-Trades , : Hall,vprotectedsby-.'a''bodyguard;:':i;; i :;;;:V