The Dominion. THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 1908. POISONING THE WELLS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 108, 30 January 1908, Page 4

The Dominion. THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 1908. POISONING THE WELLS.

An example of, the selfish 'and unpatriotic ideas of ,' what must be regarded as the least enlightened section of the Labour party in this 'country, was furnished-by the anti-immigration pronouncement' of :the Canterbury Trades and Labour Council a few days ago. To all patriotic New Zealandere nothing is more apparent than the need for immigrants of a good type, and no part of the Government's policy_ is more deserving of approval than its endeavours to attract desirable workers.from Great Britain. The population of the Dominion is much smaller .than it ought to be, and this is as prejudicial to full national prosperity as would be a population much in excess of what the patural resources of the ■ country' could support in comfort. Too few hands are as bad as too many. The highest point of efficiency and prosperity , is : that at which the population balances the natural resources, the point which, the best' use is being made of the country—the point, in short, of maximum productiveness thi'ough 'a population not in excess of what is necessary to do tho work. An'inadequate population means the neglect of a large area of wealthproduction,'just as an excessive population means short commons all round.

These are the simplest truisms, of course, but they require emphasis in view _of the narrow and selfish view that is taken by the Canterbury Trades and Labour Council. That body's pronouncement took the shape of a resolution in the following terms: —

"That this Council strongly protest against any scheme of immigration by tho Government, on the grounds that men and women in our own factories aro unable to obtain anything like constant employment; further, we consider it would not only be unjust to tho workers of tho Dominion, but unjust to tho immigrants who would have to compete with our fellow-workors for tho right to live by work, thereby reducing wages and prejudicing national conditions."

The Council has also set up a committee " to draft a letter regarding the condition of the, labour market in the Dominion, and forward the' letter to the newspapers in the Uniteid Kingdom." It would probably be a waste of time to point' out tp the Canterbury Trades and Labour Council that the workers in this country will not suffer in any degree, from the entrance of a considerable body of capable workers from abroad. It would be foolish to argue about prejudice, to national conditions" with a body of men whose acquaintance with the simple laws of economics is measurable by their advocacy of State paper money. and of ." the right to work." Nov is it necessary formally to express the disapproval which every sensible patriot must feel at the Council's selfish anxiety lest any outsider should share the advantages which the New Zealand worker enjoys. With regard to the Council's misrepresentation of facts, however, it is quite another matter. So far from there being a surplus .of labour already, there is notoriously a serious shortage in many branches of industry. The current number of the Journal of the Department of Labour establishes this fact beyond dispute. In Auckland we read that the " building trade is still very, active/' that " the boot-

trade is still busy in all brandies, and there is - no indication'of slackening," that the tailoring trade is " very busy, still working, overtime," that in unskilled lubqur, matters have been very satisfactory: " the demand for good labourers and ,farm hands lias been more than the Department ' could supply." . Froiri' New ; Plymouth it is reported that great difficulty is being experienced ih obtaining sufficient hands to meet reqiremcnts," while' " men are wanted for b.ushfelling, road-making, milking, and for butter and cheese factories;" ' , Indeed, the, same story is told everywhere, and every page relates that trade is '.'busy," " brisk," " Vei'y satisfactory;'' These adjectives, and the complaint of an insufficiency of labour'-;recur' with monotonous regularity, and nobody can possibly ' peruse the Journal without fit once becoming an advocate of an Active but judicibus .immigration policy. The Canterbury Trades and Laboui? Council is.iaking steps to tjell a completely different story to tUe English newspapers. We hope that the Government will not Idly look on while these £hort-sight<?d and selfish people circulate injurious . mis-sta,temeilts .through the British Press. The High Commissioner should be furnished at once with the necessary facts, that he may checkmate the impending attempt to poison the wells of British opiilion.