The Week at Waihi.

Maoriland Worker, Volume 3, Issue 87, 8 November 1912, Page 5

The Week at Waihi.

[NOTE.—Our Waihi report is written about a week before it reaches our readers.]

Tho report of the strike for the week is most encouraging. Every, scheme of the master-class has failed in defeating the miners.

Following on the Huntly miners taking a day off to demonstrate against the jailing, of their Waihi fellow-work-ers, the masters dismissed the executive of the Huntly union, and on the men refusing to return to work until their mates were reinstated the' Talisman mine at Karangahake closed down —presumably for want of coal.

This move was engineered by the gold and coal mine-owners, and they hoped for a twofold result —first, that a large section of the Karangahake minors would come to Waihi to scab; and, secondly, that a section of the Huntly minors would form an Arbitration Court union there and hurst up the present union. They were completely disappointed in both their anticipations. In the first place, not a single miner from Karangahako came to scab in Waihi, and in the second place the emissaries of scabbory were quite unsuccessful in forming a scab union among the Huntly miners. On tho advice of the Federation executive tho Huntly miners resumed work on Tuesday, October 29, and in the meantime the Federation will see that the victimised men are provided for. Let no one worry in connection with this action. The Huntly miners know what they are doing. To return to Waihi. The efforts of the mine-owners have been rewarded for the week by the acquisition of two more miners—one a shift boss from Reefton and the other a. half-caste Chinaman reputed to be a South African minor. 'This brings the number of miners they have secured so far up to 14, and this despite that every pressure has been applied to local men, that the Talisman mine has been closed down, and that thero is a standing advertisement in the Melbourne "Age" for miners for the N.Z. Railways; wages, lis. per shift and three years' engagement. I don't know whether this advertisement appears i} with the connivance of the New Zealand Government, but L do know that newly-arrived immigrants aver that they nre sent to Rhodes' office in Shortland street, Auckland, from the Government. Labor Bureau, and I know further that the police are hunting up scabs and go to Paeroa to convey them in brakes to Waikino.

x\ll the scabs are driven to work in brakes by the police and also escorted by mounted police, and to-day 110 were counted at tho mine entrance on the brakes and the trucks from Waikino. As already stated, 14 of the number are miners, including the halfcaste Chinaman and two men (?) over 60 years of age.

The remainder are a motley crowd in very truth. They are classified chiefly as half-caste Maori surface laborers, some alleged white laborers, a?bout 20 members of the scab drivers' union, about a dozen members of the A.S.E., some boys serving their apprenticeship, about a dozen carpenters, and two disqualified jockeys. Forty of the scabs enumerated are employed on the extension of the Grand Junction power-house and are really doing us very little harm.

Of thoso employed by the Waihi Co. some are engaged in trucking quartz out of the shrinkage stones and others are taking ore out, of the reserves.

I believe it hurts the company more than it does tho strikers to have this incompetent crew at work on the reserve ore, and one morning Superintendent Barry gave an exhibition of childishness that shows the strain is aflecting him. Walking u}i to the mine in the morning he surveyed the scabs assembled there, then turned round to the numerous crowd on the picket line and feigning to have an attack of childish glee, he clapped his hands.

The wits among the pickets then took to dissecting Barry and his leprous army, so he cleared out.

The Waihi Company are evidently prepared to go on for some time working at a loss tin an endeavor to wear us out, bub bearing in mind that they have, secured all the scab miners in tho Southern Hemisphere (14) and the spirit in which our fellow-workers are contributing financial aid, it seems to be a case of the longer they continue the fight the further they will have to climb down.

Monday was Labor Day, and on Satnrdiv one of the strikers said he expected the scabs to observe it. Today this striker is assuring eyervone he' snoko in jest,—THE REBEL'S SUCCESSOR.

How Fares the Strike?

Men Solid and Company Losing