SETTLED!

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 187, 6 February 1912, Page 5

SETTLED!

WELLINGTON TRAM STRIKE. PREMIER INTERVENES. SATISFACTORY TO BOTH PARTIES. By Telegraph—Press Association. Wellington, Last/Night. ' The tramway strike is settled, and the cars resume running to-morrow morning. The City Council met shortly before 11 a.m. to consider the position. Before the meeting took place, the Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward) arrived, and he was engaged in conference m committee for about an hour with the members of the Council.

At 11.40 a.m. he emerged from the Council Chamber and motored to the Trades' Council Chambers, where he had a conference with the strike committee. While he was upstairs a great crowd of people gathered, and as he came out' of the building shortly after 12.20 p.m. he received a hearty greeting. Hn motored straight back to the Town Hall An anxious individual walked up to the car and said: "Fix it up?" ' "It will be fixed up all right," Sir Joseph smilingly replied. When he reached the Town Ilall, Sir Joseph went straight into the Council Chamber, where the members were still sitting in committee. A few minutes later four members of the strike committee arrived at the Town Hall, and they were accommodated in the Mayor's room, pending the Council's determination.

In due course, the members of the subcommittee of the strike committee met a sub-committee of the Council, with Sir Joseph Ward in attendance, and just before 1 p.m. all the members of the Council and the other parties interested filed out of the rooms. , ask^d^ a^'S a P re ss reporter

It s all over," a councillor quickly responded.

Sir Joseph Ward walked downstairs accompanied by the members of the strike committee, the councillors and a number of officials.

As the Premier reached the Town Hall steps, he was greeted with hearty cheers, and the hundreds of people assembled pressed closer to hear what he had toannounce.

I am very pleased to announce," said Sir Joseph Ward, "that this unfortunate strike, which has existed for some days between the tramway men and the City' Council, has been setued satisfactorily to both sides. (Cheers.) The terms and conditions on which that settlement has been arrived at will be announced by those responsible, to the men and not bV me, at a meetingto.be held in the Kine's Theatre at 3,p.m."

He added that as a result of reason and without loss of prestige or dignity to either side this settlement had been achieved. The representatives of the union had done their, duty and the terms of the agreement arrived at unanimously must -be satisfactpry to the organisation that these men represented. As already stated, the terms of the settlement would be placed before the men at 3 © clock, and he believed that the meeting to endorse them would be purely a formal one, inasmuch as the details had been unanimously agreed to and without friction or trouble. He hoped that , any differences which had arisen during the, dispute would be entirely forgotten, and he felt perfectly sure that the corporation would allow nothing untoward to occtir to the men, who had been involved in the trouble. (Applause.) He congratulated one and all on the ending of the difficulty. t , Sir Joseph Ward was given three ! cheers, and at the call.of .a man in the l crowd three cheers were given, for "organised labor." THE AGREEMENT. '

The agreement arrived at bj the strike conference and referred to by Sir Joseph Ward was read to the press by the town clerk as follows; . , .

"As tlie result cf the conference between the delegates appointed by the City Council and the delegates appointed by the Tramways Strike Committee," it has been mutually agreed as under—(l) that the removal of Inspector Fullej to some other position in the tramway service, as' originally'.requested by the Tramway Union and" now desired by the officer himself, be carried out; (2) that it be an instruction to the electrical engineer, in settlement of tie. dispute, to have Inspector 'Fuller placed; in a position where lie will not have any dealings with the members of the Tramways Union; (3) that the Council guarantee that on the resumption of work the' men 1 involved in this trouble shall not be subject to victimisation, but- shall be reinstated in their employment without loss of status."

Signed on behalf of the conference by J<?hn Smith, G. Sliirtcliffe, D. McLaren, R. Fletcher, A. E. Atkinson (representing the City Council), and W. T. Young, P. H. mickey, M. J. Reardon, and D. Daltou (representing the Strike Committee). Witness to the signature of both parties, J. G. Ward.

The agreement was put before a meeting of the Tramways Union in the' King's Theatre at 3 p.m., and ratified. VJEWS OF COUNCILLORS. The Acting-Mayor (Cr. J. 'Smith), when asked by a Post reporter this afternoon for his opinion of the settlement, said there was really nothing more to add. The terms of settlement spoke for themselves. He was pleased, however, at the happy outcome of the unfortunate deadlock.- thought that under the cireumstancelfihe setilemenfc-was eminently satisfactory, and would meet with the approval of citizens. It had been a very trying time to all the councillors, but they were now gjad it had all been settled and "by-gones would be by-gones." Other councillors expressed equal satisfaction with the They were congratulatory in the opinions of the agreement which was drafted. It had been a strenuous time for them. Many had sacrificed a good deal in -regard to their time by constant attendance in conference. They were glad it was over and that the trams would be running to-morrow. Mr. Young (chairman of the Strike Committee) declined to express an opinion on the settlement.

EXTRAORDINARY SPEECHES. THREATS TO CLOSE UP A NEWSPAPER., Wellington, Monday. At yesterday's mass meeting, Mr. Young, chairman of the strike committee, who spoke first, said if the Dominion newspaper says much more with regard to this matter we will take away its material so that it will not be able to say anything at all. (Applause.) If it is not very quiet we will close its doors just about as effectively as they can be closed. We are going to have fair play, and if that malicious Tory paper enters into the contest too severely it will regret it. (Great applause.) Mr. Sutherland, secretary of the Tram Union, said the whole trouble had been brought about by the Council itself. It had taken up the attitude that it would not _ be dictated to by any union or •organisation of whatever class or creed. 11e ventured to say the Council would be dictated to on this occasion, or would see the commencement of a that was fjoing to be bigger than they anticipated. In seconding the resolution by Mr. Carey, that the Council should accept the strike committee's terms of settle ment or resign, Mr. P. Hickey said:'

"You are on the brink of exactly the same proposition as they are up againstin Brisbane. They were going to -fight the Council will all the weapons at their disposal from Auckland to thb , Bluff. There was only going to be one verdict—unqualified victory for the men." .