Annals of Toil

Maoriland Worker, Volume 2, Issue 36, 10 November 1911, Page 15

Annals of Toil

In reply to the Labourers' ■ Union, the biggest contractor in Melbourne agreed to the labourers' demand for

10s. per day

The number of labour disputes in the .itJni-tcd I-Lingd'oni in 1910 aa-hs 506 (not including 26 carried over from 1009), involving 508,038 working people. Tlie controversies were largely in the coal, cotton, .and shipping industries. A more friendly feeling was shown during last year on the part of trade union organisations toAvarde the labour exchanges. The percentage of unemployed among 700,000 nembers of trade unions at the end of each, month in 1910 Avas 4.7, compared with 7.7 in 1909.

In the Commonwealth House of Representatives lately, Mr. Chapman (N.S.W.) asked the Prime Minister whether his attention had- been directed to the statements that the- Colonial Sugar Refining Company Avas now selling sugar in Australia at £7 per ton more than in. New Zealand, "that sugar was up £3 a ton ; that growers of sugar got. no-higher price; the workers _in the fields no more wages ; the operatives in the .sugar mills and refineries no iiir; creases in • their incomes, while consumers paid £3 more for every ton, and as they consumed some 220,000 tons per annum, this was to be a little extra present of £660,000 to the company. If these fact's were so, did he-propose to take a.ny steps in., the matter r*

The Westport Labour Union issued ; 150 ballot papers oh the question of ; running a Labour candidate for the Buller district. Of these 130 AA 7 ere re- ; turned, and the vote A\as: Yes, 107 * \ No, 23. j

For draAving three political cartoons for the anniversary of the death of Francesco Ferrer, Avho was killed for alleged conspiracy, a young artist, Lagrista, has been sentenced to nine years' imprisonment.

The foil?.wing resolution was carried at the United Labour Party S.A. Annual Conference : —That every .affiliated body do their best to induce their members to read and become shareholders in "The Daily Herald." And that they he asked to trade Arith those Avho advertise in that journal.

The State of Texas, on July 22, voted "dry" by a majority of about 50,000. Texas is uoav the largest Prohibition territory in the world.

The unions of Porto Rico are not ; only growing, but. new ones are being, established. During the iast two '' months twelve new unions have been j organised, Avith many others in pros- ; pect.

A Chinese Exclusion Bill will probably be introduced -at the next session of the Mexican Congress, inspired partly by the recent massacre of Chinese at Torrcon.

At a, recent meeting of the Victorian ,Coal Miners'" Association, PoAvlett River, it av»s decided thst 2s. 6d. levy be struck upon all members 'upon the death of a- member of the association from natural causes.

On July 15, Judge Whitfield sen-

tenced in Denver two officials of the United Mine Workers for picketing on the ground that "idleness begets lawlessness." Ail ivho are out of employment should noAV write to Judge Whitfield and ask for relief. •

The journeymen bakers' unions in i Ne-Av York, New Jersey and. Connect!- [■ cut have taken up the cudgels against j the control of the bread business in ■; Ncav York City by .any one corporation ' or commission.

Delegates from fifty-six locals of the Bakers' Union are organising the Tri-St-ate Anti-Bread Trust Conference, Avhich purposes to fight an alleged attempt to control the trade and drive hiuidreds of small independent bakers out of business.

The American Journal of Sociology says: Yearly 770,000 boys attain the age of maturity or manhood and yearly 440,000 of these boys are- attacked by the "black plague" disease.

Socialism -will absolutely destroy this horrible disease by giving to both men and ■women economic freedom, Avhich also moans personal freedom from enforced promiscuity.

During the last ten years every city in the United Sta J .es Avith 25,000 population and OA'er has absorbed 55 per cent of the total increase of the entire nation so that to-day 3099 people out of every 10,000 li\ r e in large cities.