LOOKING BACK.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 59, Issue 16, 29 October 1938, Page 6

LOOKING BACK.

FIFTY YEARS SYNE.

(From the “Guardian,” Oct. 29, 1888) Mt. Somers Notes.—The names of performers at Friday’s entertainment at Springburn were supplied to me as follows: —The Highland Fling and the Reel o’ Tulloch were danced by Messrs McLean, Cameron, Morrison and Bore, to music on the bagpipes by Mr McKay. The weather up here is now very favourable to farmers; it is neither too dry nor too moist, and the crops appear to be of grleat promise, the oats showing particularly well. The sheep are also fast recovering from, their distress of a. few weeys ago and shearing will soon be commenced. I hear that Mr Peters of Anama district, is going to make a start on Thursday. The stone traffic from our quarries shows signs of reviving. On Friday thirty trucks of limestone went down to Timaru, there to he shipped. Next Friday 460 tons are to he sent to Oamaru lor the same purpose.

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO

(From the “Guardian” Oct. 29, 1913) Motor Car Riecord—A Terrific Speed— London: Talbot drove a motor cay at Brooklands over 110 miles an hour—a world’s record. The Watersiders—lt was unfortunate that the waterside workers did not defer till after Labour Day, their dramatic exhibition of indifference to agreements and labour laws. The “dignity” of labour that Labour Day is supposed to stand for, is not at the present time very much in evidence for the dawn of the day symbolising all that is noble in industrialism witnessed the very unpleasant sp)ectaelo of two of the biggest strikes in the history of the (Dominion, and in neither case was a strike warranted. In the case of the waterside workers, not only is there no principle involved hut the men are actually out in. defiance of an agreement stipulated for by themselves .and sighed by the employers in good faith, and, further, the trouble that precipitated the strike had nothing to do with them. Under the circumstances, the signihcof Labour !Dlay is lost, andl the thousands of worloers to whom it has hitherto appealed as the national day of their emergence from chaotic conditions of labour to a state of organised and legalised brotherhood, can surely have little sympathy with the men who have shown so little consideration for the real purport.