The Daily News. FRIDAY, MARCH 12. THE UNIONISTS' OPPORTUNITY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 40, 12 March 1909, Page 2

The Daily News. FRIDAY, MARCH 12. THE UNIONISTS' OPPORTUNITY.

The Unionist party ia Great Britain h keenly desirous of bringing about a | dissolution, at the earliest possible moincut. Its members seem to be confident of success. Important as the social reforms effected, by the Liberal (.Joveminent have been, there were mauy of its measures which aroused immense oppo- | sitio.ii and much more tlnin the usual party antipathies. The Education Bill and the Licensing Bill, to mention but

;t\vo of the, proponed Liberal measures, created, and that throughout the country, antagonisms of a strong and decided character against the Government. It is quite idle to pretend that the Hou#»e of Lords alone barred the way against this particular legislation. The voting in the House of Commons revealed the strength of the opposition, and members who voted against the (io-

'vernmen.t doubtless believed that they ih'ad behind them a safe majority in their respective constituencies. Though •the House of Lords, like a great many more undent institution*, i* not exactly what it should be, or even what it might be, still, it would scarcely be just to execute it for offences which are mainly hypothetical. Everything said against the Horn* of Lords may be true. It may block Liberal measures and all Bills of the Unionists; it may iavor the Unionists and flout the Liberals. But when all that is said a<id agreed to, it mutit be acknowledged that at the present time tli<e House of Lords, in opposing the two Bills mentioned, had the support of a very considerable number of the British electors. The reform of the House of Lord<s, however, remains unaffected by thatcimmista'nce. Against the present Ctovernment will probably I be counted some of the means by which I they carried the general elections and got into power. The fact cannot be well concealed that many of the Liberal can- , didates then indulged in indefensible I exaggeration. A large number of eon- | etitueneies were worked up to a fever heat of indignation- by the descriptions

given them of the Chinese on the Rand, j Their life there was depicted as slavery; .posters appeared showing the Chinese laboring in chains. We have no great admiration for the Chinese as workmen, and we believe their introduction to the Raiul mines was a very grave error. Tlie situation was quite had enough without exaggeration. It is just possible that the British electors are now aware oi' the fact. Tho Protectionist section of the (Unionists, in an especial degree, seems confident that Mr. Asquith's Government i% very far from being invulnerable. Xor has tariff reform ibeen preached in vain. Some of the ablest publicists in England .have expounded tins rather intricate and really difficult question fully

awl with the display of much erudition mill no small ability. Tariff reformers have appeared on many platforms, and the issue of several by-elections bliows that their deliverances have not been without their effects upon the minds of ■the people. In addition to the propaganda work, tariff reform promises to lie materially assisted by the unfortunate position of British Labor. A prominent Labor member —Mr, Arthur Henderson—stated tlie other day that the year IIHIS was the most disappointing period which Labor had experienced for many years pa«t. Exceptional trade depression, involving niueh distress and suffering; long and serious struggles between Capital an,d Labor; the defeats oi Labor and Socialist candidates in Parliamentary and local elections; together with tlie evidence of disunion in the ranks of Labor, have, lie states, been the means of producing "a most disquieting and disastrous effect upon the spirit and prospects of the organised workers.'' The disquieting effects are resulting in bitter attack* upon the (jo■vcrnmeut in power, Uibor would appear to be playing into tlie hands of the 'Unionists. Labor discontented is the Opposition's opportunity. Mr. Balfour has declared ill the plainest terms that ■he does noit look upon tariff reformthat is, protection— a<s being capable of banishing unemployment from Great 'Britain. Therein he discloses caution and foresight. But many of his followers are less prudent. Nor do they hesitate to tell great popular gatherings ili'at protection is the one panacea for all the illn that industry is Jieir to. Can it be wondered, therefore, that the ranks of the Unionists, recently so sadly depleted, should lie resuming the proportions of former years'/ The noveltv o! tariff reform will 110 doubt appeal to many, more particularly to thosu of the younger generations. The acute Macauhiy observes that in all societies is found a class of men "disposed to think lightly of the risks and inconveniences which attend improvements, and disposed to gke every change credit for being all improvement." No one can well belittle the powerful weapou which the condition of British trade has placed in the hands of tariff reformers. Last year was not far advanced until it almost appeared tfliat •this trade was undergoing a definite change. Imports and exports showed a decided fall, mid Labor was in consequence prejudicially affected. The alarming extent of the depression may be gathered from the circumstance that in March tlio percentage ol' unemployed was higher than it had been at any time for more than ben years. With

rack succeeding month the depression deepened until October, when the per ventage ol unemployed had risen to tin somewhat startling figure of 9.5 pei cent. In England there is always a residuum oi unemployed; their lack ol work is not always due to fluctuation* in the markets of the world. During tiie past five vcurs, and in the month of October, the percentage of unemployed in England has been: 11)04, 0.8: lilOo. 5.0; 1!J06, 4.4; 11)07, 4.7; and last year! as stated, !).fi. Nor do these figures reveal the whole, truth of the situation. 1 licy relate only to those trade union's which disburse unemployment benefits; they take no cognisance of the vast army of unorganised, unskilled workmen, No statistics we-know of tell the tale of the precise number of genuine workmen who during 1!)0S in England i were subjected io periods of enforced idleness. There was a, scheme set up

'by the Act of 11105 for ascertaining this very information, but it has been proved that its machinery is, for the purpose, altogether inadequate. Organised labor in England during the same period was most unfortunate in its, numerous conflicts witii ca.piUl—a fact which is not likely to sweeten the disposition o! iJabor. There were no fewer than 31!) separate disputes betwixt masters and men, 4(i1.1i-!7 workpeople were involved, and 0,777,800 working days were lost. We would, in passing, commend those figures to tlie notice of our able critics ■ of New Zealand's industrial legislation —to those who seem to think the heavens are about to fall when workmen defy the law and go on strike. Though much lias been accomplished by I'tlie Liberal (lovernnieut in ameliorating the conditions of the working classes ill ♦ireat Britain, the Labor party is dissatisfied with the Ministry, anil, rather 1 petulantly, demands something which i U]i to the present hat; not been very \ clearly defined. The I'nionist party has, : therefore, abundant material to mould ' to its own particular form. What is of ' moment at the, present time is, when Mr. ■ Asijuitli is likely to make his appeal to ■- the country. .Mr. W. IT. Tjiicy, we oh- I

serve, writing from' London in the middle of January, says thai unless tile Lords throw out the Budget lie will not depart from liis expressed opinion that there will lie no dissolution this year.