The Press. MONDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1901. TRADE UNIONISM IN GREAT BRITAIN.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 11101, 21 October 1901, Page 4

The Press. MONDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1901. TRADE UNIONISM IN GREAT BRITAIN.

The proceedings of the Annual Congress of British Trade Unions are of interest to New Zealand in-so-far as they illustrate the tendencies of Trade Unionism in the Old Country. The delegates present at the Congress represented no less than 1,250,000 members, so that the decisions arrived at may fairly be said to represent the feelings of the great bulk of Unionists iin Great Britain. It. was only to be ! expected that what is known as the Taff Vale decision of the House of Lords should , occupy a very prominent place in thte I deliberations of the Congress. This dcci- ' eion renders the funds of Unions liable in damages for the illegal acts of their agents. The House of Lords, in fact, hae declined to sanction "the creation of numerous "bodies of men capable of owning great "wealth and of acting by agents, with "absolutely no responsibility forthewjougs "they may do to other people by the "use of that wealth,and th« employment "of those agents."' In other word*, the law is now declared to be that & Trade Union, registered according to the Acte erf. 1871 and 1876, is liable to be sued in its registered name. To the Trade. Unions in Great' Britain this decision is naturally ! not a very palatable one. It destroys the j -*eid feeling of security and irresponsibility in reference to the legality op otherwise of thfe methods employed by Unionist* to render a strike successful or generally to force the hand of their employer*. The Taff Vale decision, in fact, is recognised by the Trade Unions as most seriously affecting their powers of acting for the coercion either of non-Unionist workmen or of employers who refuse to submit to the ; dictation of labour leader*. The Trade Union Congress decided, after some discussion, that a test case should be | brought before the House of Lords to' ascertain- far 'picketing , may be c*r- '• "ried on without infringing the law 1 and "rendering tfce funds of the societies " liable," and also that the rule* of the so- i cieties should be amended so as to with- ] draw as large a proportion of the funds as possible from tbe operation of the law as now laid down. A proposal that the Unions should use their beet endeavours to get tbe law changed was also carried, although it was generally agreed that Parliament, as at present constituted, waa not a* all likely to carry legislation in opposition to t£e decision of thte House of Loids. Another interesting subject discussed by the Congress was a proposal by Jtr. Ben Tillett in favour of compulsory arbitration. Mr. Tillett gave the Congress the benefit of his New Zealand experience, and made a strong plea for compulsory arbitration. Hβ failed, however, to carry more than one-third of the Congress with. him. The general view seemed to be that the projposal, m> far ag Great Britain was conceroed, wae premature, and would at the present juncture adversely affect Trade Unions. The Congress "emphatically condemned" the attitude of t&te Government with regard to education, and demanded "the inauguration of such a system of na"tional education ac will afford the chil"dren of British parents opportunities at "least equal to those enjoyed by the chil"dren of other nations; the cost of such "a system to be a charge upon the Na"tional Exchequer"—a reasonable enough request, and one which shows on the part of the workmen a recognition of the importance of education. On tie subject of old age pensions, the Congress agreed that the only legislation that would solve the problem presented by eg* and poverty in modern industrial life was that -whicji reoogniiied the pension ac a civil right, which, any citisen on reaching a given age might claim. But tb» Congress went further th*n merely, "passing a pious opinion* , on the subject. It was unanimously decided to call a Conference of Trade Unions, JVieadJy, wed other eocietiee, forantate a | satisfactory pension scheme, and then com-j pel the House of Commons to paw it, "in "spite of the present Colonial Secretary, "strong as he was." The assertion tJ»at "no power on earth" couW prevent them jetting such a me&snre through Parliament was greeted with cheers. It will be interesting to *cc tbte result of the Conference's deliberations. If it can formulate ft satisfactory universal pension scheme for the whole of Great Britain it will have succeeded in a task which so far has completely baffled English statesmen.

BRITISH TRADE PROSPECTS. I The pessimistic views so often heard girding the luture of British trade are certainly not justified by the latest trade statistics. So far as the general condition of trade is concerned, the total of Great Britain's exports and imports last year was "the largest volume of commerce ever "transacted by any country in the history "of the world"—we quote from a speech made by Lord Avebury, president of the Association of Chambers of Commerce of the United Kingdom. Statistics may not be conclusive, but they are at least suggestive. In this case they can hardly fail to strengthen the more hopeful feeling ■which is now growing up in regard to tfie prospects of British trade. The statistics of exports and imports, special trade, excluding bullion and specie, show that the change last year as compared with the year before was as follows;— France, a falling off of £7,000,000; Russia, an increase of £7,000,000; Germany, an increase of £39,000,000; the United States, increase £66,000,000; and the United Kingdom, increase £67,000,000. Great Britain, in fact, continues at the head of the list. As compared with 1895, the figures for fcwt year show an increase in British trade of £169,000,000, which is £21,000,000 more than the increase in the United States, in epite of the great strides made by the latter of lecent years. It may be that the value of the exports of a country is the best criterion of its trade, and here also the British statistics are very satisfactory. British exports last year showed an increase of £27,000,000 for the twelve months, while comparing the exports of last year with those of 1895 the differences were: —Russia, . increase of £4,000,000; France, of £28,000,000; Germany, of £55,000,000; the United. States, of £120,000,000; and the United Kingdom, of £66,000,000. In other ways, too, the situation appears hopeful. The iron and steel industries of Great Britain are said to be prospering, and the railway traffic returns also sup- • port a fairly optimistic outlook. As "The Times" points out, the sharp reaction which was to be expected after the recent period of great commercial activity, has pot taken place. But Great 'Britain canj not on that account afford to relax her ' exertions. One of the ohief faults laid at her door is an inclination to rest upon her traditions, instead of seeking out new I methods to meet constantly-changing cir- ! cmnstances of trade. Her foreign Consuls point to the British lack of adaptability to foreign wants; to the scientific training of the Germans; to the need for more British commercial travellers, a less intricate coinage system, and a better acquaintance with foreign languages; and also to the difficulties of completing contracts as quickly as foreign firms. These are matters which will have to be grappled with by British manufacturers, if the United Kingdtan. is to hold her own *in the great commercial war between the. leading nations' of the world. "CHRISTMAS GIFTS ON THE VELDT." Wβ we very much indebted to those of our readers who have already responded to our appeal for subscriptions towards sending Christmas gjfte to New; Zealand; troopers fighting in South Africa, but we want many more to come forward and 3»lp. There are dose upon two thousand, young New, Zealanders engaged in one of the most harassing tasks ever undertaken by British troops, and we do not want; them to feel that they are altogether neglected and forgotten by their fellow-colonists. They are doing their duty nobly, and upholding the credit of the colony ; and that credit must never be tarnished by any imputation "of ingratitude or dosefistedness on the part of those who are staying at home and watching tine war from afar. We- know that the business men, of Christ-, church have had unexampled demands made on their purses during the past year, and that they have responded with the utmost liberality. We therefore do not ask them for five or ten guineas on the present occasion, but we do hope that they will spare a. modest five or ten shillings. It mustj never be said that we grudged "our boys" a little chocolate and tobacco to cheer their "Christ"mas or the veldt"