Strikes at Sea

Maoriland Worker, Volume 3, Issue 90, 6 December 1912, Page 3

Strikes at Sea

THE ICE WATER STRIKE.

R. C. M. Searby writes:—

On the last trip of the Union S.S. Co.'s steamer Moana to America,, the captain and the purser and the steward arid all the rest of the beloved Union Compaty's best-paid slaves were so busy that they forgot all about the grimy, thirsty firemen down in the coal bunkers, and in the Tropics handed them out lukewarm instead of ice-cold water.

The men were righteously angry, and demanded that ice be supplied to them at once. The chief steward, however, was busy at the time feeding the pet lapdog of a millionaire wtonran on board, and he ignored the order. So the men only pitched a spoonful of coal into the furnaces where before they had put in a dozen shovelfuls. Of course the boat began to stop, and in about 10 minutes the "coalies" were being supplied with ice-cold limejuice in bottles. A short time after the men were being fed on rotten meat. If the millionaire dog had been given this stuff somebody would have lost his job. Again, the boatJ slowed down, and the meat improved 6oinewhat. : And'do yOu know that after that the workers on the Moana would gather in their evil-smelling, tinve'ntilated hole bf'a biinkhoHse and talk about their two wonderful strikes as if they had done something worth while. They struck for the bare necessities of life. It never occurred to them that they might strike for deck cabins, an orchestra during meals, a course dinner, and a promenade deck. These things were meant only for their masters.

If this article should fall into the hands of some of our fellow-workers on the Moana, I implore you, comrades, to do a little more striking this trip too— but strike for some of the luxuries. If you come back from this trip without having been granted footwarmers and finger-bowls we ehall all be ashamed of JW-