The Evening Mail. THURSDAY, NOV. 9, 1876.

Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 173, 9 November 1876, Page 2

The Evening Mail.

THURSDAY, NOV. 9, 1876.

•• Wor:t»are tftinx-*. »"> I » <!r«;» of in!; fatlini upon a ChmvjrhS may f>c»du:u t(uc which make* thoiuariiL-t thiols.™

TaE struggle which t3 at present being atrruct on between the shearers ami their jinployers is one which should claim the +yiwpathy of every member of the community, and t' c threat flung at the heat's >f the men t'.at unless they accept the terms dictated by the wool lords their places will be mttd by the importation of Chinese labour, should be viewed with "enentl reprobation. Much capital has been made out of the statement that h arers at the rate of £1 per 100 an* itble to make a pound and over in the day; bt.t whin that assertion is made it s studiously kept in the back ground that to shear that number the eight hours' 1 ibonr which rules throughout the Colony is changed to twelve, consequently the w.ige for the day proper i 3 narrowed down to 133. 4d.; aud also that there are but few men who can shear that number, day in and day out. Let rs just make a little calculation of what the profit will be to the squatter upon the pound's labor of the shearer. It miy lie fairly estimate! that each sheep will yield at least 4sb. of wool, and, tak.n at an average for good and bad, it will fetch Is. 6.1. per lb., or at the rate of 6j. per sheep, so that it will be seen that the squatter receives £33 for t"'e labor for which he begrudges to pay one pound. Take off the proceeds 6G per cent, for cxpenaas, c'.arges on the run, t o.wd of the she.ir.ir, and any other outlay t! at may crop up, and the fortunate employer reaps a cLar profit on the labor of his hireling to the tune of 900 p.r cent. With regard to the lash held over the heads of the men in the shape of ths proposed Mongolian substitution, it is worthy o: the source from whence it emanated, and although we have no fear of the threat being carried into execution, were the scheme initiated it is one fir which t! e Colony would hereafter have deep cause to regret. California is now paying the penalty for her greedy absorption of the Hiaticn Chinee ; of course, at first, only in the most inerual offices of labor. When tic hor.li of yellow-3kinned and almondeyed adventurers first put in an appearance ac San Francisco, they were bailed with delight by all, save the laborer and the washerwomen ; but, as is usual, t.ieir interests were totally ignored by the grsat mass of the public, and the interest-

; ing strangers, who would work for ■ half-nothing, and live upon about ! the same, were received with open ; amis. 'Twa3 of no use the class *aggricved to complain; the cry was, "The greatest good to the greatest number," and, for a while, the shoe pinched but one corn. As their numbers increased, however, the Mongolian had a Si»jU.above.the common which had bcon allotted him, and he entered into cornpetition'with his white masters in the building of houses, the making of boots and clothes, the manufacture of jewellery and all t;ie other branches of industry. As in the lower grade, Joh>", in his new sphere, possessing material advantages over his rivals, was able to undersell him in the market. His expense of living was almost a cypher, and where the white citizens had large families and establishments to maintain, the Celestials could

" Live in a tent, And pay no rent, So they might double it every year." The shop-keep.rs who were thus enabled to get their wares made at a reduced scale of charges, then became jubilant in their turn, heedless of the sore which galled their late cmp'.oy ■* so badly; but a N; ar sis was still abroad, and ii was not, long until fieir turn came, foi wlun the Chinese began to trade upon s; large scale, and were able to undersel. their neighbors the cup was about full, the evil was duly recognised, and an ordu cf thi::gs which was hailed at the outset as a national blessing, '.'as stigmatised at a general curs?. Matters sines then havt gone from bad to worsj ; the Chinaman t:as outlined a foothold upon every roun~ of the social ladd.-r in California, and their numbers have been augmented to such an extent by a constant stream o. relays from the Flowery Lind, that at tht present time the gravest fears are entertained for the future of the country. Tou late the people s.c the suicidal policy adopted, and bitterly repent the narrowhearted, selfish-minded principles which led to its adoption. Already the Legislature of the Gulden State have taken the alarm, and calculations have been made t iat if te.e influx be continued for tht future in the same ratio as the past, tht Chin.-sj element will shortly outnumbei tiic whites by three to one. Once give them a footing in New Zealand as a rjcogn sjd class of laborers, and in time the\ will arrive in such shoals as to be a cans, of pji-phxity to t .use who now so earnestly j ray for t..cir advent. Let us pause iii time, and be not Ld away by the sp-ciout arguments of a class who have been Ion;, fattening upon the best of the land. We think tl.at notwithstanding the very powerful ring which has besn former against them, the men will still earrj t.seir point, and that they will do so ii. t .e earn st wish of all lovers of justice and fair p'ay.