THE HUNTLY MINING STRIKE.

Auckland Star, Volume XL, Issue 17, 20 January 1909, Page 5

THE HUNTLY MINING STRIKE.

POSITION MORE SERIOUS. •. ' AN ULTIMATUM THAT JAILED. (By Telegraph.—Special Reporter.) HUNTLY, Tuesday. A keen and bitter struggle lis now in progress at Huntiy, and the crisis which was foreshadowed by the events of the last few days has'been precipitated as a result of a conference which took place this afternoon between the directors of the Taupiri Minjhig Company and the officials of the Union. The directors issued an ultimatum to the union, -and stated that its contents covered the policy of the company as far as it was prepared to go. The company's offer was considered at a mass meeting of the men immediately after the conclusion of the conference, and at the end of an hour and a half's deliberation, they > decided almost unanimously to refuse the goffer, and to insist upon compliance with their demands. Till Saturday next the members of the union will take no hostile action, but if the directors then fail to meet with their request for the removal of the four officials to whom exception is taken, then war will be declared, and a bitter, struggle will be the result. At two o'clock this afternoon Messrs E. W. Alison, W. J. Ralph, and H. A Gordon, directors of the company, met Messrs. J. Fulton, R. Manning, and several other officers of the* Miners' Union. For two hours they sat in conference, and considered the following resolution, which was submitted from the Taupiri Company's directors: —" That, .the directors regret the demand of the union that Messrs. Herron, Duncan, Whorslcey and Hamilton should be removed frdm-their present position as officials of the company, and that a written guarantee be giveu that they will not be reinstated, as such cannot be acceded to; the directors are unanimously ■of the opinion that the demand of the union is unreasonable and unjustifiable, and they therefore decline to agree to. the demand of the Waikato Coal Miners' Union tha,t these four men be removed." As an outcome of the discussion which ensued, the directors agreed to so far alter their intention as to the promise that one of the deputies, Whorskey, should be removed, but insisted that if the officials who went out with the union and refused to submit to medical examination. (Skellern, Peckham and Nuttall) were to be reinstated, then the 1 other, three officials (Duncan, Herron and Hamilton) would have to be allowed to I remain in the positions they occupy.

This proposal emanated from the directors in the form of an ultimatum, and the leaders of the Miners' Union forthwith proceeded to the Volunteer Hall, where some 250 miners were assembled. Proceedings were closed to the Press throughout, but for the space of an hour and a half highly enthusiastic speeches were delivered, and the sentiments expressed were received by loud cheering and applause. Ultimately a motion was put to the meeting that the Union should stand firm, and insist upon the remova. of all four officials. Ah amendment in favour of accepting the company's offer was moved, but only found nine supporters, and the proposal to stand " for all or nothing" was carried amidst much excitement and cheering. M|atters have, therefore, reached a climax. Until Saturday night next there is a probability tluat everything will- remain quiescent. ShoiiH-the directors then fail to accede "to -the! demands of tb - men or bring forward some alternative scheme, which will prove satisfactory, then, in the words of a union official, "it will be war to the knife." In the event of the engine-drivers being called away by tho union from their post, the mines will be flooded, and it will be months before the da-mage could be rectified. It is considered by the more sober-minded members of the community that the men will never resort to this extreme step, for once the mines are flooded, the workers cut off all chance of earning a livelihood for a lengthy period, probably extending over some months. WAR TO THE HILT. Interviewed by a "SLar" representative after the muss meeting of.men, Mr. R. Manning, (secretary, of the Waikato Miners' Federation) said: "We have refused the offer of the directors after a loug and serious conference. We realise the seriousness of the position, and have fully weighed the possible consequences of the step we r _have taken. The members of the union' are practically unanimous in the opinion that these officials must be removed. At present we are anxious to maintain order and bake no extreme steps, but unless the company offers some immediate solution, the position will! become very serious indeed, and all the miners in the Waikato will be thrown out of work. The Miners' Union feels that it will have the unanimous support of the miners. Throughout the union, for the reason that they are fighting against nonunion labour, which has always been such a great drawback to unionism, the men quite realise what the step they are taking means, but they arc .confident of winning, and they realise .that by so doing they will secure the greatest victory for unionism New Zealand has yet known." "What will happen now!" the union secretary was asked.

"The men will probably remain quiet for a day or two," was the reply, "to see what action the company will take. If no settlement is forthcoming, then there will be war to the hilt. Already the miners have lost upwards of £2,000 in wages. I am quite confident, however, that ample funds will be forthcoming from outside sources to carry on the campaign for an indefinite period." "What about the working of the new Conciliation Act and its extreme penalty in the ease of a union striking?" was next asked. "There we are in a more satisfactory position than will- be generally understood. We claim that we are in a unique position. We afe not within the jurisdiction of the new Act, since, at the time of the present trouble, we were not in the employ of the company. They locked us out on December 31st, when they refused to allow us to go back to work without passing a medical examination. That is our contention." Asked would the union go' so far as to withdraw the engine-drivers, and so flood the mines, if no settlement was arrived at by Saturday, Mr. Manning refused to give expression to any opinion, and contented himself with-savins that hitherto they had preserved a conciliatory attitude, and hoped there would be no damage to property. MR. ALISON'S VIEWS. Interviewed after the conlerenee with the men, Mr. E. W. Alison declined to say anything in regard to the attitude taken up by. either side during the discussion, other than that the directors had pointed out how serious the loss was to the State, and how great the injury to the company, the workers, and i, the district of. Huntiy. A proposition was then submitted, which he thought

.-would appeal ;to the; men as an honest attempt to' settle "the" difficulty. Tho , -onion..had been given to understand that this C"was a final offer, and" that" in "the event _of their coming to terms, work would be resumed at once; but the com- • pany will make- no further proposals. The loss consequent" upon the cessation of work at-Taupiri is, Mr. Alison points out, very serious. The State suffers through a big falling off in the carriage of coal, the' cost. Of 'conveyaaee' to Auckland alone being 6/6 per ton. Then there is a big loss through the introduction of increased quantities iof Newj castle coal. Tremendous disabilities will bey experienced aUythroUgh. the Wai- | kato, and flaxmills .and dairy factories i will be put to no end of inconvenience. At Waihi and other goldfield centres, where large quantities of Taupiri coal are used, the: difficulty arising out of a shortage will be acute. In Huntiy the men have forfeited £ 2,000 in wages during the last fortnight, and altogether the difficulty is to be regarded as very serious indeed. THE STRIKERS. The 350 men out on strike have so far been exemplary in their behaviour At least half the number are married and settled in the district. They take the position very quietly, though a certain tense excitement prevails, and there is a. kind of "anything may happen" feeling in the air. The "miners' wives are openly supporting their husbands, and' it is rather amusing. to find that all concerned are bent ; on making more or less of a holiday of the occasion. Free concerts are given each evening, and to-night there is a crowded attendance at a concert and dance in the Public Hall. An entertainment committee devises something fresh each day, and to-morrow a river picnic is proposed. "We want to maintain order," declared one of the officials, "and the best way to do it is to keep them engaged, and by devising some form of entertainment each day to prevent them from brood- , ing over their trouble, and likewise keep idle hands out of mischief."