THE Kaipara Advertiser AND WAITEMARA CHRONICLE. WEDNESDAY, JULY 3, 1912. MILLS-TREGEAR-TIMES.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 3 July 1912, Page 2

THE Kaipara Advertiser AND WAITEMARA CHRONICLE. WEDNESDAY, JULY 3, 1912. MILLS-TREGEAR-TIMES.

There is at this epoch in the history of the Dominion, a triumvirate as there was in the days of the Roman Republic when the fortunes of democracy began to sink before the selfishness of individuals. We trust there is no omen, and we pray that there may not be. Now who are the triumvirate ? Professor Mills of America (some part, we cannot say which) has a general ideal with himself at the top; Mr Tregear takes that ideal and makes it into a circle in which every interest in the Dominion is shown converging on the centre, and the centre is the " Dominion Council" of the, " United Labour Party." And the centre of the Council is Mr —we beg his pardon, Professor —Mills, with Mr Tregear (perhaps) in close attendance. The third of the triumvirate is the editor of the N.Z. Times, who gives Mr Mills a page for the vigourous prosecution of his campaign for the annexation of New Ze aland. Thu sis the triumvirate complete which is revealed in the pages of the New Zealand Times. The programme is generally to carry on the Liberal tradition on " broader, more vigorous, and comprehensive lines." The lines being widened, are to comprehend all men ; not merely the " workers " of the ordinary sort one meets in ordinary conversation, but all men who work —doctors, lawyers, bishops, commission agents, engineers, bankers, shopkeepers, merchants, pawn brokers, princes even, provided they work. The interests of all these people are to be looked after by Mills and Co., as per the circle of Mr Tregear. Mills is to be the big London policeman of the Dominion, controlling the traffic of all things, production, law-mak-ing, as also bread. There is to be no revolution, only as much change as the people ask for, and Mr Mills will take care that they for the right thing at the right times, and in the right way. If we do not all join this heavensent organisation under this tremendous fellow of a leader, God help us ! What do We want with Parliament so long as we have our Mills ? What do we want with programmes so long as we have the triumvirate and the circle, and the admonition against the backsliding gentry who keep out ? For the workers of the .old disposition of things, the handicraftsmen and the factory chaps, they will be saved from the bad state of things so unjust that they feel impelled, nay compelled, to slum their work and defraud their employers. But when the prophet hero Mills gets to the centre of things with the circular and faithful Tregear at his heels — close, mind you, if he is wise | enough to a void getting left —they will all begin right off to do a fair day's work for a fair day's wage. The other promises of the prophet hero who has landed among us and collared a moribund newspaper to push forward the cause of humanity, are equally vague but not equally attractive to the employers of labour, who at present are defrauded, according to the statement of their new mouthpiece. The best thing about this new regime which makes straight roads to Paradise for us all, for each man a road separate, shining and infallible, is that there is to be no leader. The circle of all men is only to be centred in the Dominion Council, and the centre of the Dominion Council is Mr Mills. Here we have the leader firmly seated like the formidable chief of the Council of Ten whom everybody was afraid to name for the simple reason that nobody knew what his name was. In this respect the centre of the Dominion Council has the advantage over his predecessor, which is good news for Mr Mills. Now according to the published programme of the Mills cult, we are to have arbitratiou very strong, and we are also to have the strike —but only as an appeal in the last resort —that is when the court gives it against the desciples, and then "havoc and the clogs of war." But as we are only asked to be-

lieve that there will be only barking at this stage and not biting, we must be ready to throw away the last scruple that bars the way into the new Jerusalem under the rule of William Thomas, the prophet. On the whole we feel disposed to the certainty that all men will at once join. Have not all the triumvirates of history been successful, from the days of Old Rome to Three Tailors of Tooley Street ?

THE OUTCOME. Much is discussed at the present moment about the chances of the Government and the Opposition. But very little is of sure prophecy. The Government with the majority of two handed on with or without the consent of the party, has undoubtedly done good work since it took the reins. On the other hand the Opposition has equally certainly shown itself solid. Thirdly there is Mr Wilford who wants to be trusted with the leadership of a young New Zealand Party, to be formed out of the debris of the Ministerial force he has specifically refused to join, and of the Opposition phalanx he has not yet tried to break. There comes Labour with this pistol at the head of all men to join them, this programme big with the abolition of Parliament and caucuses, bent on ruling direct through the committee of th» whole House acting as registrar, and holding out hope of restoring labour to honesty of effect with free trade and the transfer of all burdens to land. Here be four chieftains armed. There are besides, the chieftains who are skulking and sulking because of the neglect of the Liberal caucus to see their good points. The outcome ?—A series of no-confid-encejmotions carried in the House making a straight road to the electors. And then? What but the union of all moderate sane men, of all men set against the masquerading of the universe under the guize of " workers unit cd." The road to solid peace and enlightened progress with sane legislation lies through that series of no-confidence motions. It will be built by the majority, but the majority will not contain the heads of the United Labour or of the Anarchistic organisation known as the Federation of Labour. Professors from America and Home-grown circles are not going to get hold of the self governing folk of this Dominion. Neither are the rioters and rotters whose one idea is to starve the world into submission to their absurd behests.

THE STRIKE BUBBLE. We have already stated in a previous article that to a certain extent of reasonable degree our sympathies, during a serious criis, are with the workers ; but, it does not always follow that such is justifiable. In this respect we allude, at the present juncture, to the seething upheaval in Waihi —the great strike which emanated from puerile motives that can only be termed as a form of hairbrained obstinacy on the part of Messrs Parry and Company. In short, ever since the Federation of LaDour first saw the light, Messrs Demple, Webb, and several others —all of whom are rabid agitators possessed of questionable foresight in so far as the toilers are concerned —have been doing their level best to create trouble over the whole country, and as they have been successful enough to make themselves notorious, they are now suffering from abnormally-swelled heads ! On the other hand we consider that with regard to the unwarrantable actions of the Federation anent the strike, there should be no traversity of opinion among the intellectual members of the community at large. It will be recollected that the Miners' Union of the one-time flourishing Goldfields' township — which latter place has, of late, been thrown into a turmoil, and everything from mining enterprise to business generally, completely disorganised—not so long ago registered under the Federation, and because the engindrivers preferred to adhere to the Arbitration Act, the bigoted officials of the Miners' Union said they would not permit a split, and as the enginedrivers still persisted iiT"a v . logical resolve, a strike was the result. Could anything be more absurd in a British Colony where it is presumed the people are living beneath the shelter of the glorious old flag of red, white, and blue, which for generations has spelled justice, liberty, and right to every subject ? Surely the decisive answer must be " No!" And, further, we deem^hat the ridiculous attitude ta^^np by the Waihi Miners' in^^Hbn to the enginedrivers, as a^J^K^te act of unqualified coercion^Mmout precedent, if not a purewise of drivelling twaddle. '