Labour Items.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume IV, Issue 265, 4 October 1902, Page 3

Labour Items.

MR BOREHAM BEFORE THE CHRISTCHURCH TRADES AND LABOUR COUNCIL. (FROM A COKKESROX DE-NT.) The fallowing is a digest of Mr Boreham’s speech in support of the council taking up the business of efficiently organising the agricultural and pa Rural workers of the Canterbury industrial district. After thanking tho council for their p oferred assistance financially and for the courtesy extended to him during his stay in Christchurch, he said the council could not possibly be aware of the great danger to town workers that existed owing to the fact that such a low rate of wages was paid to the farm hands. It was a notorious fact that the New Zealand farm hand was the lowest paid man in the colony. As an instance lie said that not many miles from Christchurch he found a man engaged to follow a three furrow plough and diive six horses for the sum ot 12s Gd per week. He dealt exhaustively with tho question of boy labour, pointing out that boys from the age of twelve were employed to do a man’s work for a boy’s wage. He submitted that farmers were unknowingly cutting a rod for their own backs, besides forcing into the ranks of labour in’the towns men and boys who should, and would if ft reasonably fair wage was paid, be contented to work on the land. But, said the speaker, wages were so Inv that men and were forced to rush anywhere in order to bett t their conditions. “ Ah, and even in some eas'-s to uaol,” for in his opinion a mai working 66 hours a week driving snx horses in a plough for the sum of 12s 6d was often, owing to such conditions, tempted to take to the profession of betting on horse racing or stealing other people’s property. He said there were at present no inducements for the parents of boys to let their boys go to work on farms, the c msequence was that boys and man congregated round street corners and became a nuisance to the police and a source of danger to the community, instead of being profitably employed tibing the land from which we derived all our wealth. This state of things was also a source of danger io town workers, and consequently to the Council, who were the guardians of the interests of those employed in the towns. For this reason men and boys would not work in the country for the low rate of wages prevailing when they could get a higher rate in the towns, consequently farm labourers were not to be got when urgently required, and when they were got they were not up to the standard, with the result that the farmer growled and complained that the men were not worth their tucker, forgetting that he (Hie farmer) was responsible for the inefficiency of the farm hand that was knocking round. Mr Boreham concluded by saying it was not the man who came into towns once in six months and spent his money in drink, nor was it the farmers’ sons that cut down the wages ; they had nothing to fear from those men ; it was the cigarette smokers, the noodles who purchased bikes . on the hire system, the would be men at the age of sixteen to eighteen, who were periodically forced into the country that brought down the wanes for the farm hand. He would, finally, impress upon the Council that it was the duty of the Council, as representing the organised labour of the towns to assist the country workers to organise 11 and tjhus bring into existence a better class of farm worker and establish harmony, goodwill and contentment where at present chaos, hatred and disconient were the prevailing characters* tics.” ■ Moving a vote of thanks to Mr Borblum, Mr Newton said that the address just delivered was an eye opener to him, in fact it was education, of an e'ementary kind. He hoped to see Mr Boreham a member of tho Council at an early date. He would be a decided acquisition to thranks of the Council Mr Johns, Pres dent, seconded the motion, r ad besides endorsing what the

J secretary Baid, veufured t<? say that Mr JJ ireham was an able, well informed advocate of the c>use of the agricultural a.d pa.-foral workmen. He thought he would he expressing toe opinion <f the council were he to say the council had listened with pleasure and edification to Mr Boreharn's address (applause). Mr Boreham thanked the council on behalf of his colleague and himself and withdrew. There were about forty members of tire council present. Subsequently the council considered the questions raised by Mr Boreham, the result of. which has already appeared in our columns.