"GOOD OLD TIGER"

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 248, 19 October 1928, Page 7

"GOOD OLD TIGER"

SEAMEN'S CHAMPION.

Havelock Wilson Says Politics

Is A Dirty Game.

FIGHTING COMMUNISM.

(Australian Press Assn.—United Service.)

(Received 13 soon.)

LONDON, October 18,

"Good old tiger," was the delegates' greeting to Mr. Havelock Wilson on taking the chair at the National Union of Seamen's annual meeting.

In his presidential address ho said the union in the past year had been threatened with all kinds of pains and penalties, nevertheless it was still much alive and had committed no crime, but had pursued an intelligent commonsense policy.

They had discovered from their experi- j ence that politics was a dirty game. They had quitted it a year ago, result- j ing in the union's income being increased £1000 weekly. The decision had not j been detrimental to the union. | What right had { they when, either : by persuasion or force, they induced a man to join a trade union to die- I tate to him what should be the colour of his politics? There had been plots and schemes to disrupt the Seamen's Union. Referring to their expulsion from the Trades Union Congress xur. vv noun said the instigators were Communists and the minority movement. The man who said he could not get justice from the Seamen's Union was a liar. There was no tyranny in the union. He declared that no inquiry had been held by the Trades Union Congress into the circumstances of the disaffiliation of the Seamen's Union. The Trades Union Congress had said: "We are going to clean up the Labour movement," but they made a bigger moss than ever for they had elected Communists right and left to fill high positions. It was the Seamen's Union which should have been credited with purging the Labour movement of blacklegs and scallywags. "We are not afraid of Communists or anyone else," he said. "Now comes the mighty Napoleon, Ernest Bevin, who says he is going to put the seamen right, get rid of all corruption and wipe out this union in a few weeks. J "The shipowners once had the same idea, but after spending thousands of pounds they concluded it was waste and extravagance to fight us and commonsense and goodwill on both sides was the best policy. There has never been more unity and determination among the seamen than now. If we are forced to fipht we will give them all they want." There are numerous resolutions on the agenda. Mr. Wilson's proposed retirement from the presidency is viewed with alarm. Many delegates expressed the opinion that such a course would be suicidal at this juncture. It was essential that he should remain on the bridge, preserve a continuity of policy and direct operations.

Mr. Wilson said he would seriously consider their desire that he should remain in office.

A resolution was carried unanimously declining to accept his resignation.