A REMARK EXPLAINED.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXIX, Issue 7827, 21 June 1909, Page 3

A REMARK EXPLAINED.

To the Editor. Sir, —There appeared a letter m last Thursday's Guardian attacking Councillor Stewart for a remark mad© by him regarding a summons from the Arbitration Court, read at the last meeting of the Borough Council. The facts m connection with this matter are as follows: The Borough Council, together with other public bodies and employers of labour, were recently cited to appear before the Conciliation Council m connection with the award asked for by the General Labourers^ Union. At the sitting pftho Conciliation Council an agreement was come to between the Union and the employers, and the members of-the Borough Council were naturally surprised to find after this that they had been cited to appear before the Arbitration Court m connection with the same matter. It was then that Councillor Stewart made the remark that has called fcrth this anonymous attack. The words were spoken "m a jocular way, and were m no way directed against the Arbitration Court as your correspondent infers, though, had they boon, they were not half so severe as many we have heard expressed by various labour unions throughout the past year or two. As a rule, it is advisable to treat with contempt anonymous personal attacks; but m this instance it is due to Councillor Stewart, who, as chair-r man of the Borough Works Committee, devotes a large part of his time to the interests of the borough, to make the above facts known. ONE WHO WAS PRESENT.