"AT FEVER HEAT."

Press, Volume XLIX, Issue 14723, 21 July 1913, Page 8

"AT FEVER HEAT."

THE GREY ELECTION. MR, MICHEL'S SECOND CAMPAIGN OPENED. THE REaL ISSUE. AN ENCOUNTER WITH THE "RED 3." (■PECIAi TO ''THE PRESS.") GUKYMOF'iH, July 20. Last evening Mr Michel, the Reform candidate, fired his first shot in tho second ballot campaign. Ho spoke at Taylorville, a township on the Grvy river opposite the Wallsend Mine, the population including a good proportion oi miners. Jn tho first ballot ?.Ir Michel polled SG votes at Taylorville, which was only four votes below the combined total oi Ins two opponents. An audience of at least 100 gathered, and the bulk of tiio.so seated gave the candidate an attentive h-.-anng but a number of Social Democrats standing at tho back caused irojiiont niti>iTU]>cions. Mr Michel said the issue was between tho Government and tho Federation of Labour, between clean admiristration and the forces that would destroy law and order. Mr Webb's supporters were now trying to stir up scuiariau slrifo in order to attract Mr llannan's supporters. Mr Mills had accused tlie speaker of changing «)is tiews, but, theie was no greater turncoat than the man who Had bitterly attacked tho Federation of Labour, and who had now come within its fold. JDospito the etfort of the Webbitcs to attract Mr IJannan's votes, it was a liicfc that, that day a meeting of hi* Indies' committee included a number of Mr Hantian's supporters, and on tho male side many of Mr Hannan's prominent supporters had ako come to I;is (Mr Michel's) support. If Mr JJannan had not got into wrong hands at first ho would now bo M.P. for Greyriouth. He allowed himself to bo persuaded to stand in the Opposition interest by two or three members of Parliament who attended tho funeral of Sir Arthur Guinness. Mr Michel proceeded to denounce the Federation of Labour method of calling on "genuine workers" to stand on one side of a line and "scabs" on the other. At this stage an uproar arose at the back of the hall. Mr Michel: "I have hired this hall, and if you don't like it you will have to go." Voices: "Its tintnie." Mr Michel: "Why do you object to tho secret ballot on question of striking." " : Voices: "Wβ don't." , Mr Michel: "You do, yonr Unity j Conference did. I will oppose any Go- { vcrnment • that -will not protect a minority of workers against a tyrannical majority." He went on to refer to the Blackball strike, which he 1 said was engineered by young men whe 1 six weeks afterwards were out of the ■ country, leaving the married people 1 and resident population to bear the 1 burden of the. strike. Young men * without responsibilities, men who could ; go away to Australia were the chief ' fomenters of industrial turmoil. "* With regard to tho Reef ton strike a ( settlement was retarded by the execu- ? tive of the Federation of Labour, which * refused Mr Massey's proposal to refer \ tho dispute to arbitration. - 1 An interrupter: "They could not do } that because they claimed that there * had been a lock-out." s Another wordy exchange ensued, and tho Mayor of Brunner, Mr Franklin, J who presided, asked tJhe intorrupters l to desist. t Mir Michel said the Federation of J Labour had avowed that it was out to s abolish the wage system. Such a pro- J gramme- meant tho expulsion from the t Grey district of badly needed capital, a and tho workers would suffer most, s Would the return of a candidate like a Mr AVebb result in bringing the capitn] t they needed? (An interrupter: "Would r you bring it?" Mr Michel replied that h he had just suoceedod in raising capital o for the Lake Hochstetter sluicing claim b in their district, and he believed that w ho could get capital for their Wallsend ti coal mine. (Applause). If ho could p not get the Government to take it up, b he believed he could get private capi- n tal to do it. What could Mr Webb do n for them in this direction? Mr Webb

waa opposed to the Government, to defence, to Christianity, to employers of labour, and to everything. Would such a member of Parliament do them

any good? The present Government stood for equal opportunity for all (interruptions). When asked whether ho would allow

15 men under tho Arbitration Act to tyrannise over 500, his answer was that he would not allow 500 to tyrannise over 15. The action of the Massey Government at Waihi prevented anarchy.

(A voice: 'It caused anarchy"). Mi Michel 'said they talked about policemen's batons, but when a constable was shot by a striker-^ —

A Voice: "Did he shoot him?" Mr Michel: "Tho Coroner's Court says so. and the Court ought to know more than yon." (Cries of ".No!")

Tho, new registered union at Waihi now numbered 500 members, and prosperity was returning, and .the union had telegraphod him wishing him success i< his campaign. 'If.Mr Webb had his way ho would reproduce here the events of Waihi. What did the

young men, now interrupting, know about the early Liberalism which Mr Mills talked about? Tho issue was

not the early Liberalism, but the policy of the Massey Government as against that of the Federation of

Labour. (Applause). Before the Unity Conference omled, tho number.of dele-

gates dwindled from 400 to 175. (A voice: "They had to go back. because their kayo was up")- •Mγ Michel repeated his statement, and added that in the past men had to pay strike levies or become marked men. The Federation of Labour had opposed all kinds of religion, and had ridiculed the sacred Sacraments of the Church. A woman (very excitedly): "Never! Yon ought to be ashamed of yourself to stand up there and say so." Mr Michel: The Federation's official organ did do so. Yon will Lave a chance to speak afterwards." Mr Watchman, chairman of the Brunner Miners' Union, referring to a remark by Air Michel that Mr Fitzgerald, a (Socialist, had engineered the i Ulackball strike, stated that FiteI gerald did not reach Blackball till about five weeks after tho strike. That strike arose out* of genuine grievances concerning ventilation and crib time, etc., and resulted in one of the greatest gains in the history of coal-mining. Mr Michel eaid that to the late Sir Arthur Guinness was. due the chief credit of the bank-to-bank law. What was Sir Arthurs reward when he addressed the State coal-miners at Jlunanga? Five or six police had to protect him. In the course of another wordy exchange on the question of the right of a second union to register where an older union had cancelled registration. Mr ilichel said the law might need altering, but while it stood, it must bo obeyed. A similar answer was given to a mother who argued with much natural

eloquence against tho Defence Act

She said that fourteen was a dangerous age at which to take a boy from his parents. Mr Michel expressed the opinion that while details might have to bo altered, the principle of compulsory military training was accepted by 95 per ceut n of the people. In answer to other questions, Mr Michel said he was opposed to any monopoly that was detrimental to th'p Dublio interest. The second ballot

should be abolished, and preferential voting should be substituted.

A vote of thanks was passed. Some of the interruptions aroused counter cheers in the candidates favour.

Reports have been current for some days of a eplit in the Anglican Cliurch here over the election. 1 understand tha-t tho rumours are exaggerated, but some trouble undoubtedly exists.

WILL THE LIBERALS JOIN THE "REDS?"

MR H ANNAN WORKS FOR MR WEBB. (special to "the tress.") GKEYMOUTH, July 19. The following statement was made to-day by Mr Hiinnan, ihe Opposition candidate, who ran third at the first [ballot:—"I have just informed. Mr Michel that 1 intend not only to vote for Mr Webb, but to support him, and to influence as many as possible of my supporters to do tho same. As I stood in tho Liberal interest, I would naturally sooner sec a Labour member returned than a Reformer. For that reason. I would probably have voted for Mr Webb in any case, but I am now impelled to go farther and to work for him, because of the tactics of prominent supporters of Mr Michel in raising the sectarian question, and working it for all it is worth. It was through those tactics that I was kept out of the second ballot."