THE GENERAL STRIKE

Hokitika Guardian, 11 July 1921, Page 1

THE GENERAL STRIKE

A RECORD OF FAILURE. SWEDEN’S REMARKABLE EXPERIENCE. The idea of the general strike was first formulated by a French Socialist, Tortelier, but its real populariser is the Ereneli Syndicalist, M. Georges Sorel, writes ’’D.P” in the “Daily Mail.” With a little humour Sorel (described it as a “myth” which must not be subjected to detailed criticism or actually employed. It was in fact, to be a weapon which was to terrorise but which lost its virtue when unsheathed. Sorel, indeed, saw- very clearly that, if the general strike by any chance

diould succeed, it must ruin the country and leave the strikers nothing but misery—wdiicli happened in 1917-18 in Uussin ; while, if it failed, the strikers

rained nothing. His prediction has ■snco he wrote been verified by the practical test of experience. There have been several general strikes, all of which have failed.

Sweden was one of the first countries to have practical experience of a general trike—in 1999. The actual cause of

lie struggle was a dispute in the woodonlp trade. But that was merely a pre■exr for a trial of strength which had 1-ccn threatening for some time. The industry and business of the country wore brought to a standstill. The internal traffic of the towns was stopped. Scavengers refused to clean the streets, and grave,diggers and undertakers declined to bury the dead. Theie was no electric light or gas; no telephone service, and the water supply was cut off. 'These conditions prevailed for about a month. Public indignation was intense. The citizens in all the towns held meetings and banded themselves together in a Voluntary Civilian Watch and Vigilance Corps, branches of which were established all over the country. The members undertook to carry on all public services, such as street cleaning, jrns and electric works, and hospital transport, and also to assist in the loading and unloading of food, seed, corn, coal, firewood, and the like. Undoubtedly it was they who put an end to the paralysis caused by the general -trike.

South Africa’s experience of the general strike was a notable one. Unrest began in the Witwatersrnnd with the great minors’ strike in 1913, when there was much rioting, arson, and bloodshed in Johannesburg, and along the Reef. In January, 1914. the men employed on the State railways struck, and enlisted the sympathy of the other unions. The general strike was timed to take place at midnight. But General Botha, then Prime Minister of the Union, resolved upon a bold stroke. People going to their business the next morning were astounded to find the whole of the big towns patrolled by mounted burghers, trho had been mobilised with incredible rapidity, many of them riding vast distances. No congregations of people were allowed in the streets. Every group of more than five persons was immediately broken up by the Union forces. Simultaneously the ten organisers of the strike* were arrested, lodged in gaol, and removed secretly in the deatl of night to the coast, where they were placed on board a steamer which sailed immediately for England. Australia had its general strike in August. 1917. It Itegau with it grievance of the railwaymen and tramwaymen in Sydney. The Government declared that thi' strike would be fought with all the resources at hand, and the response of the public was remarkable. Students volunteered to restart the tramway service, and schoolboys collected the fares. A great many farmers came in from the country and put themselves at the disposal of the Government, doing useful work in unloading cargo at the docks. After five weeks the strike collapsed. In France this sort ol trouble was experienced so recently as last year. On a previous occasion the Government bad i|Uelled a widespread strike on the railways by calling up the strikers as Army reservists. On this occasion also the Government acted with vigour. The General Confederation of Labour, which had organised the stoppage, was prosecuted and speedily lost its control of the strikers; more and more men returned to work, and the strike soon became a definite failure-.