The Taihape Daily Times AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1920. A DEGRADED SITUATION.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3422, 28 February 1920, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1920. A DEGRADED SITUATION.

With which is incorpc;.“.te" “Tho Taihape Post. an '1 Waimmino News.”

‘ Industrial problems, though they lshould be easiest. are proving the ‘most difficult to solve. Irrespective ‘of the costs of ‘production necessaries [of life, food, and particularly clothing land boots, are bounding upward in [price quite regardles-s_of the Wages ithat are involved in production. Record of national indignity Was odespatched from Britain to New Zealand in the apprisal that the British Authorities were , appealing to manufacturers and traders to bring their demand for profits within the limits of inational safety, but the only response [received here‘ is that cotton goods prices are being increased one—t-hird more than "their prestent selling prices; that boots are about’ to further.go up in price, and that ‘ bootmanufacturers are at last‘ turning ldownthe standard boot arrangement made with the Board of Trade. No .one is surprised about the abandonment of the Standard Boot proposal because nobody ever :believed boot{manufacturers were ever sincere; uthat it was merely a year or so of ‘marking time while huge ‘dishonest

‘profits were being raked in. In New Zealand, Government is appealing to traders and manufacturers to bring their trading within decent limits, but up go prices of bpots from five to ten ‘shillings a pair because hides are [fetching a higher price at auction, ‘but is it not the users of hides that‘ S are bidding higher for-hides, and why iare they doing it if it i.s not to furn[ish another excuse for increase of the price of boots‘! We are using boots as an instance, the same facts apply to almost everything else required for [the preservation of health in human- ] kind. Appeals are being made to cotjton manufacturers in England to adopt a more sane attitude in priceraising; the Prime Minister points out to them that the position they are creating is already very grave, but they heed not nor care not -how grave the national situation is, their c onscienceless exploitation must run the ifull criminal gamut. Who are the ‘people in England, in New Zealand and in other parts of our Empire, and (of the world, that are robbing and ‘starving the masses? Did they go to the War and fight for-‘their right to live and to trade in freedom? Not‘ one of them, they are the men who stayed at home and robbed, as far as ithe law and the public temper would *,permit them, the wives, children and dependents of the men who did fight. 4 If the dishonesty, graft and overbearing of these same men precipitates another war, or rioting and social revolution, where will the detestable exploiters and extortioners try to get‘? Just as far from the scene of war and trouble as they’ can; the bully was ever a coward and the thief ever possessed the yellow streak of the cur. They will exercise all the ingenuity and cunning their corrupt natures are capable of to save their skins, there is not a spark of true courage in a thousand of them. Will Governments continue to appeal instead of putting, the law into operation‘ till . what is happening in other countries becomes rife in our Empire, V From Italy, Spain and Berlin there came cable messages yesterday, stating that syndicalist outrages were proceeding, accompanied fby bomb-throwing and the

‘murder of employers; that anarchy wvas rife; -that. shops, factories and warehouses were plundered, while" in France there is a complete nationzwide Strike of railwaymen. How lmuch further will unjust extortion in ‘the British Empire go before it progduces like resul-ts? Britons" are more long-suffering, but they are also more lthoroush. Whether it be amongst ‘employers or labour it is seen that extortion is practiced by -those who used every mean device to avoid goiing to the war. A. cablegram from Australia, also received yesterday, advises that the Federal Government has found it essential. in the interests Of Sol3i€l‘s to cancel preference to unionists. They say that preference to unionists is not legal, as soldiers have the first claim to preference. Do we nbt find similar determination of unionists in New Zealand who did not go to the war, using unionism to keep {partially disabled soldiers from earning something at their ‘trade wherewith to augment their small pension, which is not enough for -them to live upon. If the proportion of the sexes is ever to become normal; if population is to recover its natural normal increase, every man must be able to f‘ earn suflicient to keep -a wife and {family on, and if men will not marry _there should be a heavy lbatchelor -tax levied upon them, in accordance with their income. The whole situation, however, undeniably centres upon the cost of living and‘ the ability to live. .While the orgy of trade robbery aprolceeds -and Governments can do no more than appeal to the robbers to cease, or ameliorate their nefarious life destructive operations conditions will become worse and worse until the unbearable stage is reached. then something will break. The p.er-si.st-ency of greed in every quarter is getting on the national nerves, and there will be a national nervous breakdown unless the cause of nervousness is removed. A very extensive organisation, the New Zealand Welfare League is endeavouring to solve the industrial problem, but that League must realise from the outset that the seat of ‘trouble is not the demand -of labour The League must go further [and ascertain whattmakes labour demand higher pay. Until traders and.‘ manufacturers» are ‘prepared to‘ trade and manufacture honestly there can’ be no solution of the labour problem. How far is the battle of thetclasses to go? Is it to proceed till the murder of employer «stage is reached as ‘it has been reached in Spain, ..Russia,l Austria, and other countries? Is it to [continue till, like England, France "and other countries," New Zealand. railways will be idle owing to Dom|ion—wide strikes? Mr-Massey is justly ‘jubilant over the settlement of the ‘coal trouble. but is it not a nsatural fact that immediately present‘ living costs and conditions become more difficult, a change will be required by miners? In fine. is it ont a fact that the whole problem is only solvable by la return to national and trading honlesty; by a. return to the ten cominianclinents -as advocated by Archbis‘hop O;’Shea the other day. Immedilately a man becomes a profiteer he becomes an unbelievable liar; extortion is a system’ of thieving and lying, and yet we see the gang of thieves .and liars marching off to church to camouflage their wickedness; is it lany wonder the masses fight shy of the churches so desecrated by thieves and liars? The whole question is one iof honesty; the Empir-e—the worldis. bankrupt of honour. Dishonesty and greed convulsed «the world with war, and it is now well on the Way to engulfing it Wholly in :2 revolution in which the great sin is being rudely punished with murder, confiscation and degradation. The New Zealand G-overnment, the British Government, like the Government of South Africa, may be ever so clever, but as General Smuts tells the South Atrican Government and the profiteers, extortioners and liars of South Africa, there can be no social res-t while revolu-7 tion is within sight which can onlyi . be staved off by a return to honesty‘ and sanity. There are too many peo— ‘ ple now-a-days who will not think‘ these gl'€‘a-’E problems out for them-tse-1"€S; they rather attach themselves ‘ to some combine, confederation or‘ association and they are prepared to Sink or swim as the fortunes of such J bodies dictates. Everything comes to; an end in this world; even profiteerl ‘"3 and I.Villg cannot last for ever. The Coalition Administration in Bri-I tain which claimed such ‘abnormal! ‘successes at ‘the elections, is having! it seriously demonstrated that their‘ election successes were of the .spurmus ki“d“9llgilleel-ed successes, and the Nemesis Of Public opinion is just‘ about..to overtake them, as it looks extremely Probable it will overtake] Wll6 New Zealand administration that, secured ‘DOWGI in precisely a similar‘ fiashi°n- 111 -only a short nine profit-I eering will force Govermnent into’ the hands of the profiteered and then I What will happen? These are views’ and questions -that call for consideration now. The Welfare League has discovered the incongruity of the growing system of cannibalism in:

labour; it favours the books of labour being open to public inspection, and -from its failure to denounce it, it gives; consent to Government actually refusing to -allow labour to ope‘ra.te on its own funds in a tSate Bank, but it sees no incongruity in allowing emplayers to refuse to have their trading records examined, and” until both classes are placed on a footing of equality the ‘power of the franchise will grow in the hands of the masses, and exploiters will thereiby Work their own destruction. In Britain a. sensational change is approaching, and industrial and social problems in New Z‘ea.land_. South Africa and Canada are similarly Working ou-t their own solution. '