In Our Opinion

Maoriland Worker, Volume 3, Issue 57, 12 April 1912, Page 1

In Our Opinion

"WHAT food Capiinlisin doles nut lo »1 the workers i> ycnvrally adulterate ii. IF an "Eu'.rlMimaii's home is his ea-1lo." tho majority "1 cas'.les have, a very nhaky foundation. ~ m " VS we go (o press, (ho various- Kaster conferences are busily coping wii'h their important business. * >11f m->-t issue will contain a review of tlio work accomplished. DI'\"HAM, Pivmier of Queensland, lias stated that ho intends to introduce legislation which will render .mode strike like that of Brisbane's General Strike, impossible. Greater men than Denham have attempted the impossible, and failed. l>nham will not Miece d. Kfilß H AERIE, so runs n cable message, in a speech at Bradford, said there was no essential difference between Syndicalism and Socialism, as both desired tho overthrow of the present form cf society. Now, what will .some of our ajiologe'i'c friends say to that? So cruel of fearless Ilardie to so express himself. A- . >TT is strange that the marvellous truths 'J. of science did not require divine revelation —they were the result of the invention of ordinary materialistic tools, +1k» compass, tlio telescope, the microBcupe. etc. It is only superstitious beliefs that claim divine origin. « Tjp.lS amusing to read some of the auioJL c.rats of the country press on phn=os of the strike and the actions of the (Strikers, jj"[-instance. On the use of inipendinry and seditious language: ''This ought; to be put a stop to, as it Juis been, stopped in India." ,I«il the seountlfels! On tho prevention of "-free men/ otherwise scabs, from working: "This is going too far and ought not to lx> tolerated." Call oat the millinery— no, tho military! Tire low and lay 'em out! . 4 IN a recent issue of the Auckland "Voice of Labor," Professor Mills criticises disparagingly W. I>. Haywrod. who was recently elected to tho National Executive of tho American Socialist Party. From what wo know of Haywood, and "from what we have observed, of Mills, the former does not suffer because of the hitter's attack. Mr. Mills might remember tho story of tho jackass that kicked at the lion—but the lion happened to bo several thousand miles away. npilß capitalists in various parts of I he ! X world. New Zealand included, arc talking of forming corps to protect their interests in strike time. This moans that tho corps will bo used to terrorise and scab upon the strikers. How about the workers utilising tho same means to pn-otect thomiselves against brutal iasBftult? Tho Bradford (Eng.) branch of the Railway Workers has recommended the formation of a Trade Union Physical Protection League, "to meet on equal twins the bullies of organised capital.'" Buch a move on tlio part of the workers will scarcely commend itself to the capitalistic, press. There's a reason.

\ T a meeting of the Mana- -*•*- Wiit ii Employers' Association, hold last week, the usual resolution was passed culling u i>un the Government to introdncr legislation to guard the interests of the employers. Mr. Pryor, general secretary of'ilie Employees' Association, and Mr. Scott, of the Arbitration Court, .said the N.Z.F.L. must be fought. That, of course, i>; nothins im'w. It, hns l>e*u fought right along (he line. Those, two gentlemen said that tli-e federation had four highly-paid lecturers and fwemty organisers in the field, boon use of which I'm t the employers must take a leaf out of the Fede!ra l ion's buok and actively organise, nml consolidate. Four lecturers and twenty organis* rsl- ah. if wo l>ut had them we would shake New Zealand. But we. hav<; only one organiser and he ran himself to a standstill and had to rest. Facts and Jlr. Pryor appear to be strangers. ON< E again we emphasise the value and need of each union, or geographical groii],! of unions. !ea\ ing no stone uutu'inal I'd send a delegation to the conference of the Federation tif I abor. "Wlkit work is before the delegates:" writes 11. Scott Bonn■-tt. "I think that the forthcoming conference will In- Ilio most important yet held. The inirodiiction of necessary machinery clangs is a matter of great urgency, and I trust that a good committee will !je appointed to thoroughly wrestle with the. whole matter." "ITYFTK Chinaman came to New Zea--JL land fe-r oemmoroiiil purposes * ,-iI v ** spurted from one of the fountains i>f wis<lom at a mooting of the Anti-Chinese League held in Clnjstihureh. Come 1o think of it, that's about all I he- British merchants and military inslnn-tors go to China for. And at the bottom of things, that's what General Godley and some, of his stall' came here for! , IT would appear, judging from Hi neriil Godley's address {o the Wellington >{<>ys' Institute, that the prohibition relating to military oflieers and conscripts addre-.sing nueiings. etc.. has been done away with. I'erhap* the General and somo of his stall are now at liberty to publicly debate Hip f|Uc~t,ions which he "dished up" to the Institute boys. Evidently he is not quite satisfied with his "duifv of drilling all that are sent to dim"—lie is after more. .At one lime he told us "ho would have none drn.gged ni'tn the ranks." Yet. for all that, prosecutions and jailings are still very much in evidence. _ 4 . ULSTETI Orangemen are drilling and route-marching on a large scale, says a London cablegram. Ulster, in the North of Ireland, is cursed with a pack of fanatics who hale the land of (heir birth with all that intolerance and bigotry which, is characteristic of religious mania. These deluded pawns of sectarianism are making themselves ridiculous by aping .the- bloodthirsty, swashbuckling soldier of tho dra.ma. Tt is passing .strange that in any Englishspeaking country there are yet bodies of otherwise ralional beings who, af the dictation of scheming parasites, are prepared, ail in the name- of Christ, to spill the blood of fellow'c.ountryinpn who refuse to bow the knee to injustice. Ireland will win Ilome Bub? before very long, tho military-mad of Ulster notwithstanding, , and its winning will mark the success of ono of tho most tireless efforts on the part of any race to be, free to rule in its own way. Imagine, for a moment the scream of fury from the pre.-s of the Empire if the Nationalists commenced "drilling and muto-marching" wi'h tho avowed object of spilling the blood, cf unpatriotic Orangemen. * rpTTE "Miners 1 Magazine" of Denver. .L TJ.SA., spoakiug of. tho agitator, says:—"The mortgaged press is against the agitator. Tho subsidised press would prefer that labor organisations would become like stagnant pools rather than rushing rivers. Organised labor cannot stand still, for standing still means its diooay and dissolution. Discontent founded on a>n intelligent conception oX tho brutal conditions which enslave human-

itj- actuates the oppressed victims of corporate anarchy to give battle to the economic wrongs 'that curse a civilisation that is wet with tears and red with blood. A labor organisation that would meet the approval of a class of privilegethat is maintained on the surplus proceeds that are* extracted from the sweat of toil, would be as impotent in fighting injustice as a broom in sweeping back tie mighty billows of an angry sea." Io which" wo c*ay, Hear, hour! A _____ . V THE Farmers' Union of Auckland Province, has brazenly declared that in the event of a strike in Auckland it will send to that city a regiment of "stalwart young fanners" to act as scabs or -scab herders. It is doubtful whether the Farmers' Union voices the opinion of the workers in the country—if it does then the Lord pity the asinine mentality of the yokel. This muddle-head-ed combination called the Farmers' Union declares its determination before a strike takes place to supply scabs or aiders and abettors of ceabbery. Apparently there is no inlenlion by Hayseed to question the merits or demerits of >vh6 case, but a desire to proclaim from the housetops that anywhere and everywhere the bucolic "backbone of the country is against the waeo-enrncr. Verily this backbone is rapidly degenerating into the fiinnybouD. A crowd of country louts descending upon Auckland with tho avowed inlenlion of thumping the skulls of its citizens might get more than they bargain for. ,— \CIIiCULAI\, devoted to a frenzied . attack upon the agitator, has reached this office. In bold, black type, it commences: "80 pe<r cent, of tho Labor Agitators in New Zealand hail from the Land of Strikes (Australia), and stiil they come. It must be a paying game to keep your coat on and spout. The worker pays all the time." It is really touching how the capitalist class and its pimps feel for the "poor working-man." To free him from the baneful influence of the agitator is tho summit of their ambition. But why, Mr. Capitalist? Is it fror.i 'ove of tlie animal? If so, there are a thousand better ways of showing it. If iiot for love of him, then JW what ivison? How these capitalists lovo tho worker with his coat—off. How they Jo , ■>> tho worker—when ho is working. If the agitators of New Zealand hail Ir<■:si Australia— and it is a New Ze.ilander who says it—it is scarcely to flio New Ke;r.lande'r'fi credit. Come on. you agitatory sons of Kangarooland, and «tir

up the populace of "God"? Own" as it was never stirred before. Wo want you and we welcome you. By the way, isn't it said in America that the agitators are all Irish? * BACK from a visit to his natal country, .Mr. Strassmeycr, an Austrian citizen'of Christehttrch, in an interview with a local paper, made it appear that conscription is popular in the land of his birth. The young won "look forward to it" and are trained "mentally and physically," while anti-militarists are tho'"scorn of everyone." H'ni! We liavp heard this port of talk before! Mr. Jl. V. Williams produced wme startling facts and iigures in refutation of the interviewee's statements that must have made that pentleman wish he had preserved the golden rule of silence. In the Austrian Army, it was pointed out, the suicide rate is the highest known. Owing to the cruelty practised, suicides in any European army far exceed those of the civilian ela<s. In the voluntary army of England there are three times as many suicides pro rata as among civilians, viz., 1 in 1702. In the Italian army of eoiTwipts 1 in -570. Germany 1 in 1881. while Austria tops the list with 1 in 827! Wherever cc'is.'iiplion obtains life bfco>m<?s intolerable for many, and there is a large accession to the cruelty practised. Yet it is certain that the cases that come- to light arc but a tithe of the oruelties endure"! by the conscript slave—cruelties and injustices so terrible that many are driven to seek release in death and others to fly the country. Incidentally, one might ask how great is the physical benefit of a system that excludes three out of four of those needing it, and is given to those who need it least? After all these years of conscription it is significant that Austria can find only our man in four fit to bear arms. Purely a better system might be found. As to inejit.il training, how long i« it since the soldier became a bright example of niroital development.? Such a statenent is the contrary of fact. If militarism docs anything, it hinders the free play of individuality and kills initiative. Evidently the mental benefits are. no greater in Austria than the physical, for Mr. Strassmeyer tolls us that crime is very great in tho cities, iobbery, miioido and tho knife being in constant evide-'ice. We.ll, what on ea-rtli would you expect? Any people so ignorant as to tolerate conscription mu«t be brutalized by it. A military nation holds life cheap. We are afraid the cx-Aus-brinn did not study the working of his country's military conscription. If he

did he would know that, like the con* scription of France, it is, as one promint'ut militarist described it, the "heaviest sacrifice the nation was called upon to wake." New Zealand, ware ©cnetiription!