THE SEDGWICK BOYS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 232, 6 February 1911, Page 2

THE SEDGWICK BOYS

MR, T. E. TAYLOR'S CONDEMNATION. I A very pronounced statement of liis>lI views on the subject of the recent arri- ; val of a party of boys brought out by ! Mr. Sedgwick for farm work in New ! Zealand was made by Mr. T. E. Taylor, M.P., at his meeting at Christchurch on Tuesday. "It is a dangerous thing," said Mr. Taylor, "to encourage private sentimentalists like Mr. Sedgwick to bring boys—the failures of the large cities of the Old Land—to add to our problems in this new country. I am opposed on broad general principles to the bringing into this country of the human failures of other countries. We have got our own problems, and we have no right to increase them by carelessly aid- ( ing and abetting men like Mr. Sedgwick. Even if all the boys Mr. Sedgwick is bringing out or is likely to bring out ' turn out good men, then the fact rei mains that we have the right to conf sider our own population first. I am confident thai a large percentage of these boys will practically become 'white slaves' on the farms to which they go. You may say that is too strong, but I would point out that it is difficult enough to secure proper living conditions for lads employed in the farming industry whose parents are in New Zealand and can look after them, but there is a grave danger of these boys degenerating into a servile class for the benefit of the farming community. There is the great danger, and I think my protests -on the matter led t the Government to refrain from making any monetary contribution to the scheme."

GIVE THEM A CHANCE. Both Christchurch papers on Wednesday disapproved of Mr. Taylor's attitude on the question. The Press strongly attacked Mr. Taylor for his utterances, and remarked: "It is a matter of common knowledge that farming is almost at'a standstill in some parts of the country for the want of labor, and that moire adults could be employed in our factories if more boy labor was available. Anyone with a spark of real human sympathy would welcome the experiment of lifting a few decent boys out of the grinding competition of the Mother Country to give them a fresh chance here, and would try to make it a success. Mr. Taylor actually takes the credit to himself for having, as he thinks, prevented the Government from granting any monetary aid to the scheme. He should at least, however, refain from throwing mud at these poor boys and trying by unfair means to create prejudice against them now they are here. That is a dastardly act which we feel sure the decent .working men and working women of this country will resent as much as anyone." DEFENDED BY HON. J. A. MILLAR. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Christchurch, Last Night. Referrin'g to the allegations made regarding the lads brought to the Dominion under the auspices of Mr. Sedgwick, the Minister said there was no foundation for the statement that they are of an undesirable class. There was not one of them a slum lad, that is, not one of them was criminally tainted. The Department possessed a complete record regarding the previous history of each lad, giving the employment he followed and wages received, and also details regarding his environment. Personally, the Minister did not think that more lads should be brought until the experiment had boen tested for twelve months.