South Canterbury Times, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 1880.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2327, 1 September 1880, Page 2

South Canterbury Times, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 1880.

The railway operatives of Canterbury arc entitled to the thanks of every colonist for the prompt and determined steps which the}' have taken to bring the selfish and arrogant advocates of dear food, heavy taxes, and low wages face to face with a wronged and outraged population. The industrial classes in New Zealand have long been apathetic and spiritless, but this latest dastardly attack on the wages of hard-tasked and. by no means over-paid employees has apparently aroused the sleeping lion. The Dunedin men, plucky enough at first, show a disposition to be lulled by a feeling of false security, but the Canterbury operatives, we are glad to perceive arc not going to be beguiled by vague and treacherous promises. The reply of Mr Commissioner Conyers to the Dunedin deputation bears evidence of evasiveness, if not insincerity and deception. The explanation that “ no all-round reduction was intended, but simply a revision of the scale of wages on an equitable and practical system ” is transparent moonshine. The expressions of the Premier and his colleagues on this point are perfectly at variance with the alleged assurances of Mr Conyers. Every attempt to limit the operation of the 10 per cent reduction to salaries of substantial, amount has been vigorously resisted by the Ministry and their supporters. Tike Government in dealing with the redaction of wages question displayed a \asolution which might have been tcaiiicdl heroic, if it were not so tsiiriibly mean and heartless. The railway llandis are perfectly right in disregarding; any promise that the terms of the.*, scandalous circular which has beet* issued from headquarters will be waived; ini their

favor, unless that assatiance comes from the fountain head* If such'an. assurance is made, then a significant triumphi over tho. policy of' w •Parliament; which has. all along displayed a thorough', contempt for the just rights of labor will', have been achieved,and the beginning of ai happier era for the industrial community will have dawned.

This railway crisis wo regard of tine ! greatest importance to the working; j portion of the community. New Zealand- f is at present divided into two sections — \ the producers and the non-producers., j Advantage has been taken of a seasom 1 of depression to oppress the formeir' to the utmost limit of endurance. To* ( the everlasting disgrace of the Govern-- I ment of the country and an obsequiou s i and servile Parliament, the administn itration has taken the lead in a mercilc ss onslaught on industry. Enterprise ai id labor have been taxed—partially driv eu out of the colony—while monopolies at land and sea have been fostered. T be men who hypocritically cry out again;.:;'! | class legislation h \ c introduced that; I

kind of government in its most pernicious form. The necessaries of life—food and clothing —have been taxed almost to the point of prohibition, and relief works and soup kitchens have had to be inaugurated to keep the unfortunate victims of a dominant, selfish, and merciless political clique from absolute starvation. Worse than all—advantage has been taken of the sufferings of a crushed and oppressed industrial population, to squeeze out, if possible, the] little energy that remains. “ Sustenance wages” is the cry of the Government as they send men to improve the properties of their land sharking .friends with roads and railways. In no other country in the world has labor been so degraded and pauperised. Even Egypt and Ilussia with their slaves and serfs, fail to supply such a spectacle as black-men being swept from their native soil into gaol in order that the white slaves of a ruling administration may prepare a path for the land grubber. The Government is beginning to perceive that encroachments on the rights of labour may be carried to a dangerous excess. The. worm has turned, the Hon has been roused, and already the tail of the miserable cur which barked so loud in Wellington but lately, is twisting between its hind-legs. When Dr Lemon commenced the feud between labour and selfish oppression in the telegraph department, he found that his efforts were repulsed, but by dint of strong support from behind, his tyrannous tactics eventually triumphed. The railway operatives, however, are not likely to be coerced or conquered so easily. They have taken up an attitude quite as determined as that of (ho Government of the colon}', and if (hey only stick unflinchingly together shoulder to shoulder, the Government will have to yield. If we understand the feeling of New Zealand aright,there is not a colonist belonging to the industrial orders, but will esteem their cause his own, and thoroughly sympathise with and endorse tlici present action ; and if a strike should bo found necessary, that sympathy, we have no doubt, will readily assume a most substantial shape. The time has come for the industrial classes to stand to each other and to show the Government of New Zealand that the rights of labor will not he harrassed and trampled upon with impunity. If a railway strike occurs, every town, every centre of commerce, every trade must organise, and prove by their united action—by subscribing liberally if required—that a cruel and dastardly attack on any particular branch of labor will realise a determined opposition from the industrial community. We repeat that the railway employees of Canterbury are entitled to the esteem and gratitude of every working man in New Zealand for the opportunity which they arc now affording labor of vindicating its fair, honest, and unquestionable rights.