BLACK LABOUR

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 3, 28 September 1918, Page 6

BLACK LABOUR

HINDUS AND THE WATERSIDERS<

"It has been charged against methatl I have employed black labour, and that therefore 1 am not worthy of the votes of working men," said Mr. W. T f Hildreth at the opening of his election, speech last night. "I want to deal with tliat charge at. once. I know .where tha ■•'rumour came from' and what gave -risa to it. Some time ago I chartered a. ship to take away. 200 tons of scrap iron. She was to load on a Monday; morning'.. I went to'..the wharves on Saturday and spent'an hour 'trying to get eight men to load my drays. I got two men. I went down again on ■Monday morning; and .failed:-to get any, more men to load my' stuff;' I had ten drays waiting in the yard, and I was told then- : that some Hindu bottlegatherers could be got. I employed some of theso' Hindus for two days, and I paid them Is. lOd. an hour. I think that was the time when the mosquito fleet was laid up. The Union. Company was iiot concerned in that trouble, and there .was any amount of labour.

..'.'Messrs. Glovei\and Bruce, whom I have Iknowii for. a' long time and'fouiirl to'be fair, straight men, came to my. office-'and said that, they had been de« puted to. inquire into the Hindu ques« tion. • They said the Hindus were likelyi to be a 111611800 40 Labour, and that) some .of them wanted tojoin the Watersido Union. They asked me if I. knew .how many of the Hindus therewere in Wellington.' I inquired for them and learned that there, were about 23. I ■put the case.before 'Messrs. Bruce and Glover : in;my office,' and; told therir ; the position I hid been in." : I asked; them what was"! to "do under sucli circumstances. They "said I could have done nothing else. The president of - the Waterside Workers' Union will bear ma out in that.

, An elector: This is news to us. .'Mr. Hil.dreth: Those were tlje words .and He. w:ill;not deny it. He. is a fair man. -I have .been employing 'labour for the : )a'st'.'..thtr.ty years.. in .this very electorate, arid. 1 defy.any 'man to .say that' I have ever paid' less "than' tho current rate of wages. . I have no man in my employ to-day, and I have not. had any'man-for the-last tw years, drawing less than 10s'. per day." • ■ Later h* the evening, in answer to a question, Mr. Hildre'th sfkl any statement . that .he .had employed. • labour, black or white;"at",7s,.'a day. was a "'((barefaced 'falsehood.'!''';..!!!.?:.' books wp'nld disprove any statement. of tha kind, and they w ; ere^pen'for inspection.