The Daily News. FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 1920. THE WELLINGTON TROUBLE.

Taranaki Daily News, 27 August 1920, Page 4

The Daily News. FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 1920. THE WELLINGTON TROUBLE.

The trouble at Wellington is over—at any rate for the present—and the capital city breathes freely once. more. The watersiders have returned to work, after putting the whole city to considerable inconvenience and bringing many of ita activities to a temporary stop. The origin of the trouble was a difference over the rates of pay for handling a cargo of phosphates. The existing agreement specifies a rate of 2s 5d an hour, but for some reason 1 the men who started oh Thursday morning understood they would receive a special rate of 3s. During the day the matter was examined by the Disputes Committee, which endorsed the employers' proposal to pay the special rate for the first day, and the ordinary rate subsequently. The men thereupon declined to unload the phosphates, and the employers retaliated by refusing to provide employment on other vessels whilst the men boycotted the phosphate boat. This action caused, a deadlock, and Wellington, short of coal as it was, and dependent upon coal for the tramways a% well as for private lighting arid power, Eas during the past day or two been more or less of a dead city. In recent years the watersiders 'of Wellington have practically dominated the position, getting -practically their own way every time; but the action of jfche employers in this instance, in refusing to be dictated to and to be parties to the breach of an agreement, is a hopeful sign. No doubt only a j minority of the men approved of the extreme course taken, but this minority kept back the others from doing their duty by the city for five precious days. They succeeded completely in antagonising the rest of the community, and inflicting hardship and loss on their own class, the extent of which it would be hard to estimate. The firmness of the employers is a new and Welcome feature. To give way continually to an irresponsible and rash section, such as the

watersiders have proved themselves to be, would only have invited further trouble in the future. The employers, representing in this case the whole city, showed that two could play at the game started by the watersiders, and the lesson should not be lost on them in the future. The watersiders vehemently denounce those who are causing the increase in the cost of living, yet it is probably true that they themselves, by their capricious etop-work actions and go-slow methods, are the chief contributors to the cause they condemn. The recent statement of Mr. G. Mitchell, M.P., has not yet been contested. He said that taking the work on the Wellington wharves in IMS as the standard, the work in 1919 represented a lose in efficiency of 27 per cent. In 1915 the men handled "2511 lb per hour; in 1919, ISB4 }b, yfho are th» realjrofltewi?

WOMEN JUSTICES. When Dr. A. K. Newman raised tie question in the House last week of the desirability of appointing women justices, the Hon. C. J. Farr admitted that the time had come in this country when the work of dealing with cases of young children and of women should no longer be in the hands of ordinary magistrates, and he added that the Education Department was already considering this matter. Mr. T. M. Wilford gave his personal experience of the Women's Court in Sa.n Francisco, as the result of which he advocated, the establishment in the Dominion of similar courts to deal with all cases in which women were concerned. In addition, he suggested the establishment in the four centres of what is called a "City Mother" to deal with all applications for advice, relief, and assistance from young women, married women and boys, mentioning that in America these departments had saVed many young girls from going wrong, and had done great good by settling disputes between husbands and wives, etc. These suggestions are well worth serious con-

flideration. Women are now eligible to become law-makers; they have succeeded in having the barrier of disability removed from entrance for them to professional life; they have proved their fitness in every department of State activity, and it is satisfactory to find that the Minister of Justice intends to make inquiries into the working of these systems in America and elsewhere, and generally' to discover in what ways the services of duly qualified-women can be made of service to the State and the community. This is the natural development of women's emancipation and the recognition that there are certain spheres of usefulness hitherto closed to women that can with advantage be opened. It is quite conceivable that great benefit wou!ld be derived by utilising the peculiar qualities which women possess in tie directions indicated. The work of holding out a helping hand to those who need it sorely, but who would shrink from man's guidance, is one that has incalculable possibilities for good. It may confidently be assumed that if the authorities exercised reasonable care in the selection of women for the duties in question, the result would be a great gain to the'cause of morality and rectitude, as well as a benefit to the State. The issue at stake is so important that a trial might well be made, and the system could easily be enlarged as occasion required.