UNION NOTES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 464, 17 July 1909, Page 4

UNION NOTES.

[Thin column is edited by the Flaxmills Employees’ Union Executive. All matters for publication under this hpad must be forwarded to the Secretary of the Union,! FRESH BLOOD. We are informed that Messrs R, Wilson , and K. Dalrymple, of Bulls, propose erecting a mill at Himatangi where they will run. during the coming season. The latter should at any rate be a fair judge of green leaf, as his Bulls property furnishes the flax for Mr| Bell’s Waitatapea mill. TAKING TIME BY THE FORELOCK.

The New Zealand Flaxmillers’ Association has taken action on what would appear to have been a dream of either its Secretary or its Executive. In the Dominion, of Saturday last, there appeared a letter signed by the penname “Anxious One,” stating that he had received from the Secretary of the Association a letter enclosing claims to be made by the Union on the expiration of the present Award. The writer, after emitting an anquished wail as to the unreasonableness of the workers, proceeded to state that he “could not imagine” why an Award was granted to us at all, as we were mere unskilled workers, were decoying us to destruction. In dominated by plausible, men who reply to this anxious outburst our Secretary wrote as follows on Monday last to the editor of The Dominion : Unions and Flax.

Sir. —“I must apologise, for trespassing once more upon your valuable space with reference to the rather threadbare subject of flax. My excuse is a desire to relieve the too-obvious anxiety of your correspondent in Saturday’s issue, who rushed in (where “plausible men” like the writer fears to tread H trnder the nom de plume of “An Anxious One.” lam quite at a loss to know from what source the Secretary of the Flaxmillers’ Association obtained his information as to the claims alleged to have been decided upon by this Union. It was certainly not from us, as the meeting of delegates to formerly discuss the existing Award with a view to its approaching end, will not take place until the evening of Saturday next. I would commend to the Association’s Secretary the advice contained in the Irish proverb “Never shake hands with the devil until he bids you good-d y.” For the benefit ot your correspondent I may add that in the event of our presenting a “list of fresh demands for increases of wages” we do not recognise the in the matter at all. A printed copy is sent to each miller in the Wellington province, so your correspondent may rest in peace until he receives one of these. “Anxious One” complains that he cannot Imagine why our Union was recognised by the Court. It is not necessary that he should strain after , the insight for this. His Honour Judge, Sim did all the imagining that was required to deal with this point.” Up to the time of writing this letter has not appeared in the paper to which it was addressed. We insert it in this column mainly because we have heard from several local millers that all members of the Association have been the recipients of similar notifications from the Association.

THE OLD ORDER CHANGETH, GIVING PLACE TO THE NEW.

It is quite as deadly, from a sporting point of view, to make your effort too soon in the race as to leave it till too late. The latter has, up to the present been the Association’s policy, (vide the “large and influential deputation” which was to have waited upon the Government) and in the case above mentioned they have rushed to the other extreme. Whether this is due to the energy of their new Secretary, or the stronger personality of the recently elected Executive we do not know, but why not, hit the happy medium ? A SUGGESTION. The Wairarapa Daily Times, commenting upon the newspaper war at. present raging between two Wellington dailies, says that whilst 1 ,“an .independent press is the best guarantee for , the future weal of. New Zealand, as long as politicians are "'pouring ' tens of thousands of pounds into the journalistic melting pot, we can hardly expect the product to be the highest type of newspaper.” V Perhaps this may be the reason for the non-appearance of ourl letter in the Dominion ! The staff may possibly have run short of fuel for the crucible, and raided the room of the editor in search Of inflammable (or inflammatory) material. Ah, well! It would be a glorious ending to perish assisting to melt down “tens of thousands of pounds,” especially if they were the contributions of politicians. TO-NIGHT’S MEETING. We would call attention to the fact that any financial member of the Union is fully qualified to attend the meeting this evening. The fact of its being called for delegates specially, was merely to ensure representation of the outlying mills. Therefore Mr Greig’s “faithful 75 per who are tired of the award andanxious to lower their wages, should ■ roll up in force, and confound the, deep--laid schemes of the plausible agitators!