AN ULTIMATUM.

Taranaki Daily News, 10 April 1922, Page 4

AN ULTIMATUM.

I There is something refreshing about the ' ultimatum issued by the PostmasterI General to the P. and T. Association. Tt does not conceal its meaning in a plethora, of words, or mince matters in any way. It is straight from the shoulder and to the point. It plainly tells the officers who have been so misguided as to declare for affiliation with the Alliance of Labor, which does not hide its revolutionary aims, that" the Government is not going to permit them to affiliate with that body and so take their orders- in a time of industrial trouble from an outside, hostile union instead of from those who are custodians of the funds that pay them. The only regret one may have as that this definite and forceful declaration of the Government’s policy was not made before instead of after the voting on the proposal was taken. Possibly, however, Cabinet thought, along with many others, that an intelligent body of men such as comprise the P. and T. service would emphatically register their disapproval of such an extreme and unpatriotic step, hence no impediment was put in the way of their ballot. The j Postmaster-General, in any ease, is to be complimented upon the firm and expeditious action he has taken. No doubt he and the other members of Cabinet have measured the risks that may be taken, and are prepared to face the consequences. They need have no fear but that the public will rally to their support should the officers take up a bellicose attitude. The matter of who is to control the department—the Government or. the Alliance of Labor — may as well be settled now as later on. Clearly the officers cannot serve two masters, and they are being called upon to decide the question forthwith. Their decision, so overwhelmingly registered, to join the Alliance came as a great shock to the public, who had reposed a good deal of confidence in the department and who felt that if members had I any real grievance it could be settled by constitutional means. The firebrands in the service, however, felt they could do better by using unconstitutional means, that belief being the reason for the proposal to join the revolutionary Alliance of Labor. And this idea they succeeded in imposing upon the minds of the majority of members. In their organ. “The Katipo” —an appropriate name in the light of preseiit proceedings—they wrote in February: “It becomes apparent that the association has to look elsewhere than to Parliament for protection. As the Alliance of Labor offers the machinery you will be asked shortly to decide by postal ballot whether overtures shall be made to that body.” The machinery alluded to is the big stick, which was to be wielded upon the Government (and therefore the public) unless it complied with the association’s demands. One word more. The association has by its action shown base ingratitude. It enjoys many privileges, chief amongst which is the superannuation fund, to which the Government has contributed liberally, chiefly with the idea of ensuring their loyalty. How this and other privileges are appreciated is shown by the voting on the proposal to affiliate with a union whose avowed objects are to wreck the State and build up a system of Government on the lines of the Bolsheviks.