THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 1908. THE PREMIER AND THE BLACKBALLERS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9050, 27 March 1908, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 1908. THE PREMIER AND THE BLACKBALLERS.

The Premier has just discovered that there is a sh'ike on hand at Blackball—so one may assume from the fact that although it and the Premier have been on the move for the past month, the latter publicly referred to the strike for the first time on Wednesday last, dudng his political address at Onehunga. The apathy of the Government in the matter is quite intelligible to those who understand how the political machine is run, but the attitude of the men in defying the law has at length produced a mild remonstrance ! from the Prime Minister. The exigencies of the present political position, however, have prevented Sir Joseph Ward from making any definite pronouncement as* to what the Government proposes to do in the matter. It seems to be a case: of "letting 'I dare noi/ wart upon 'I would.'" The Premier thought it inadvisable to go into details of the Blackball strike just then, and all he could do was to express regret thtt the miners had taken the extreme step of opposing the decision of the Court, and to declare that those who had advised them to take the course they were following were not their wellwishers. He did not say what it was proposed to do to uphold the Arbitration Act and the dignity of the law. In a matter of this kind, political platitudes are worthless, and only prompt action can savej the position. By all means let the law be amended r if it operates unjustly; no well- j

wisher of the country desires to see labour unduly fettered, but so long as a law is on the statute book that law should be enforced. The Premier states that he will not entertain any suggestion for the repeal of the Act, but it should be obvious to him that unless his Government compels respect for the Act, the observance of its provision?, and obedience to the decisions of the Court administering it, the Act is de facto if not de jure repealed, inasmuch as it is rendered of none effect.