LABOUR AND WAGES.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 9010, 20 December 1907, Page 5

LABOUR AND WAGES.

(To the Editor.)

Sir,—l read with some interest, and not a little amusement, your editorial on the above subject in your issue of to-day. Although it merely reiterates tht opinions expressed by a correspondent to a contemporary, yet the subject is of sufficient importance to warrant another view of the question. To one who has been a close observer of the economic conditions that the dominion has evolved, and more especially the Labour aspect, it seems, that in dealing with the subject, you are taking a very narrow view indeed. To saddle Labour with the responsibility of the increased prices of commodities ruling in the is tantamount to shutting our eyes to the facts of the case, a condition which, unfortunately, our press is often prone to do. One would assume that Labour was the only factor in production, and if this wsre so, there would be some point in your article, but as you must know, and no doubt the writer whom you quote knows, that this is not so, but you and him in your endeavour to bolster up your case, conveniently ignore the other factors, , as is usually done by interested parties. Now, Sir, if we are going to inquire into this subject, let us have a fair and impartial statement of the case. If the subject is so important as you say, then the importation of side issues, or one-sided statements willoiily make: the subject more involved. You know, your author knows, everybody knows, that besides Labour, Land and Capital enter into the cost of production. If this is so, why do you ignore these? Why single out Labour if you are so anxious to come to a definite conclusion? If Labour has had an increase, has not the Land and Capital also? One would assume that the owners of land and capital were in a very bad state, inferentially through the reward Labour gets for its share of production, whereas it has only to be stated to show the hollowness of such an assumption. Has land not increased in value? Is your employer of labour, be he farmer, merchant or manufacturer, not in a better position now than ever he was in? Is it not a fact that your staple productions, such as wool, beef, mutton, butter, cheese, flax, wheat, flour, etc, are realising a higher price now than they have ever done before, and yet the Labour employed in the production of these has not received a proportionate increase in the shape of wages. Can this_be said of Land and Capital? As a matter of fact you only to look around this district to see the truth of this statement. To say that "Labour is killing the goose that lays the gulden eggs" is a complete reversal of the position. The boot is on the other foot; the goose in this case is Labour,, who, as Carlyle remarked, when a chalk circle was drawn around him, thought he was caged in, and to venture outside (hat line. Had your author published the context of Mr J. R. Macdonald's statement, he would have been acting in a fairer manner towards that gentleman, and also to thosa who have read his letter, but, of course, this did not suit his purpose. Macdonald has, on several occasions, referred to this matter since he was in the colony, to show that while wages had increased in an arithmetical ratio, the price of commodities had increased in a geometrical ratio, proving that, though nominally, wages were higher, really their purchasing power was less, consequently Land and Capital was absorbing a larger ratio than ever obtained be- | fore. You have only to look at the | satistics of Mr Coghlan, the New South Wales statistician, in dealing with this subject, as it affects New Zealand, to see this. He say«, that whereas wages have increased 8£ per cent, commodities have increased from 25 to 50 per cent, during the past 15 years. It was this phase more particularly that Macdonald wished to emphasise to show thatshort of Labour adopting a different course, there was very little hope of it receiving any advantage, pointing out at the same time that if Labour wished to have its position improved it was only oy putting men into Parliament who would see that State ; enterprise and control would substitute the present chaotic and wasteful i individual enterprise. We are evolving towards this position whether we ' like it or not, and irrespective of those interested in drawing a red herring across the path this goal must ultimately be attained if Labour is desirous of not only maini taining, but improving, its position. , —I am, etc , LABOUR. Masterton, December 18th, 1907. [Our correspondent reads into our article a good <Jeal that is not there. The point we directed attention to was that the ever-increasing demands of labour for higher wages and shorter hours hid resulted in increased prices of commodities, and that the increase was in geometric ratio to the increased pay. This our correspondent has failed to refute. — Ed. W.A.]