LETTER TO THE EDITOR.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 269, 6 August 1908, Page 4

LETTER TO THE EDITOR.

THE AUCKLAND TRAMWAY STRIKE. Sir, tho Special Board of Conciliators in the ' matter of the Auckland Tramway 'Strike. Sinco my return from Auckland I 'find that many deeply interested in ' the decision'given irt tho a l ove matter have an altogether wrong apprehension of that part which', .refers to -tho dismissal of employees. I enclose a copy'of the-decision, as I consider tho matter ono of tho utmost importance .to the public, to the employers, to tho employees, and to somo extent in fairplay to mysolf. This .is. my reason for writing to you oil tho subject. Much as I may wish it, by- reason of its importance at the present time, I hardly expect that you are ablo to find spaco in your columns for tho wliole enclosure, but doubtless you can find room for tho following extract, which states exactly my finding, and frq.ni. which a true conclusion may be drawn. Tho oxtract is as follows :—

"I have gone somewhat fully into this particular branch of tho dispute, in reply to what was said by. Mr. AValklato in his • ovidonco on tho .subject. It is not simply a matter between a private employer and his servant. It is a matter which concerns,, abovo and beyond tho master and servant, tho groat body of the .public. ■ Tho public are those who are most intimately- concerned in tho niatter. It is for the public good that thero should be tho, utmost confidence Between tho compkny. and its servants. Tho publio safoty and convenience demand that such confidence should oxist. Mr. Walklate's arguments aro applicable as between an ordinary master 'and his servant, but are not so, in my opinion, when a public. service is concerned. Again, tho company is fully protected by the common law in the mattor of dismissals, discharges, : and in the giving of characters. Relying upon tho principles contained in-the.foregoing, I am strongly of opinion tfiat an employee, on being.-dismissed from" the Service, should be given a valid reason for his dismissal." ■ •

'I' mako no .comment thereon, but leave lie passago to speak for itself. —I am, eto., August 5. - ' A. M'ARTHUR.

THE WOOL EXPORT. Sir,—Referring to the returns published in IThe I liopo tho two , firms' mentioned^ai'e. going to compare notes and- clear uj the}.' question of'.difference, because, ' ainbiife' "other "i reason's,' as it now stands it is oalclilated'to' create a fooling of distrust iii such returns.—l am, etc., . ..' . A. S. ALDIUCH. , . Paraparaumu, August 3. Tft'E' FARMERS' UNION AND THE ARBI- ; . TRATION ACT. Sir,—lt does not ,ofton happen that such unanimity exists as' was shown at tho Conference of the' Union, when discussing tho above Act; nor does it often occur that so many representatives so thoroughly understand tho principle and application of so foolish a measure .when it is sought to bo applied to a calling of so precarious a naturo as farming. Thoso representatives from .all parts of New Zealand have pronounced their opinions with no.uncertain sound, riot-a singV discordant, jioto', not a jarring string, nothing but Universal condemnation of an enactmont absolutely unfitted to bo applied to tho greatest .'and most important industries in tho country. Eyery farmer.' in New Zealand will rejoic'o at the' firm stand/they havo made— all honour to them. v

' •:It is,.'however,. diamotrically opposed to tho resolutions ;bf£ th(* Trades, and Labour Couno.ils,Vand;.also to the. insignificant trades unions.'"Which,'l ask, is the morereliablp atfthority, the fanners, .'many of- whom iiavo writer,, .-forty -cif fifty .years iiyHho/coimtryj'' subduing the Wilderness. :'and niatirig i| ijloßsom lilt,p,;-a rose, .or such, as .sssrs&Thorn, Kennedy, .Hick'ey,. Dowdall, wlio chiefly distinguish-Vthomselves by voluble , niere;;'i)resuriiptuous 4alk ? I am quito .qw{ire. that I 'numerous, resolutions havo D'een-'transmitted .to,'the Minister for Labour, froA persons j.wJio know: littlo; or nothing about farming, demandingjthat thoAet shall be made ..to apply'to'.;farming as, well as to :anythirig else.-If farming was likcr any .other occupation, which .it.;is not, thorp, would, bo a show of reason 'fcir "fjia'contentiqu. .. ' If a',;,Co'urti 'n'o jmatteii; 'how .'Constituted, could weatherensure good crops, and also : pi'ovide '-profitable' markets arid payablo prices; "then 'it 'might proceed to lay down regulations and.fix every paymont-, especially wages, which farmers .had to pay. No man or body of mon who ever lived, or over will livej : c'a'n*'foretell what may happon betwixt seed time and harvest. Past experience illustrates this too well'to allow it being accepted a-s possible. Why then attompt tjho impossible? Mr. Millar, I know, has replied to his bosom friends that it is not intended to exempt any from the operation of.-'his splendid law that is to bo. Tho Mitiistor, before lus eats his Christmas dinner, may havo quite;a .different- opinion impressed upon him, in' fact, tho same remark may oasily apply to other: occupants of Ministerial . positions. By favour of the Trades Councils tho. present party has been kept in power, they.,are now apparently intending to have a party of their own. It issaid that' , rats instinctively leavo a sinking ship, it may bo that it applies with equal i'orco to a. political /ship as woll —time will toll - •' ' " '

Mr. Leadley, in tho course of tho above discussion, ""nia'do""the statement that an intending manufacturer, .with a capital of £50',000j "dropped like a hot brick,"-all idea of starting here as socin as ho'was acquainted with tho Labour laws. I don't wonder. Ono has only to read carefully tho statement of Mr. G. T. Booth at tho annual meeting of tho Eniployors' Association to bo convinced of tho wisdom of that'gentleman's decision. Tho figures quoted by Mr. Booth aro a revelation,- and go to show whit can be done, or rather, what can be left undono by tho diligent application of industrial legislation. Tho reduction of even -with the addition of power and machinery, is stated to bo 12 per cent. At this rata of reduction it would absolutely roach vanishing point during tho -next decade;-meaiiwhilo I think it is quite likely that thoro would bo alterations; probably more holidays, more wages, and loss work, simply a3 a set-off. In such case, the sum of £205,000 as increase, invested in land, buildings, and plant, yielding tho magnificent sum of £440 as return for such'.investment, would never bo repeated, small though it is, the one-fifth of one per cent. ITio itaJJorts would, under such splendid i statesmanship, increase in still greater ratio. May I, through your honoured mediuln, ask Mr. .Booth and his friends if th 6 idea ever occurred to them that tho Government for years has been playing a doublo game? It is this, by pandering to the crowd by whose votes they retained •power, passing legislation to -placate them, and, at the samo time, stiflo as much as possible legitimate enterprise, it nevertheless inevitably causcd increased imports paying high-protective dutios to swell tho surpluses. Both theso'results .afforded means for boasting, tho country at largo was fooled, consumers not in a "position to pass on tho burden woro penalised, and bled —that is Liberalism,—l am,'etc;,- ( . • • ' AGRICOLA. August 4. • THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE TOWN BELT. - Sir,—ln a . recent issuo of your evening contemporary appeared a long lottef from Mr. G. H. Bayliss' protesting against itho Bill beforo Parliament, advanced by tho .City Council. It is always most amusing to read the adverso criticisms to any project that is proposed by others, particularly where the object may bo amusement. "I hav,o lived in this city now for over- forty years, and as for the* Town-Belt (with-tho- exception r of the Botanic Gardens, Queen's Gardens, and Newtown Park) it is in a worso condition now than then. The little native vegotation has been destroyed, and gorse.is rapidly covoriug the whole. , No attempt has been madoi|(except.;tho a.mall portions planted by the Scenery Preservation Society, to wliow

all credit should bo given for what thoy have dono) to improve any other portion. A scheme was formulated by Mr. H. 1). Dell, as mentioned in Mr. Bayliss's letter, for the City Council to. let, on building lease, certain suitable portions of the Belt, the lease to contain stringent covenants and conditions, tho revenue to bo applied solely to the improvement of tho Belt.- This ■Scheme was strongly opposed by your evening contemporary, ailu at that time it had some woight with the public. No proposal or idea was suggested by it, although one would have oxpected such, but only condemnation. 1 ask the public, as a whole, what harm is dono, or what deprivation do tho citizens suffer or are likely to suffer, should tho proposals to allow certain portions of tho licit t-o bo used by various clubs for out-of-door sports b'o carried? Tho Council, by stringent conditions in tho leases,- can prevent the misuse of tho grounds. I urge upon all lib-oral-mindod citizens, athletic, and other clubs, to do all they can to assist in tho passing of -tho Bill. '

Should tho. Bill be passed, the revenue to bo derived from the grounds ought to bo devoted to tho improvement of other portions of the Belt, as, after all, why should tho burdon of tho maintenance of the Belt, fall upon tho taxpayer only, when thousands of othors are willing to contribute?—l am, oto., IN FAVOUR OF THE BILL. July '27. ■■■■>■.' ,

THE " AMOKURA." Sir, —I am very pleased'to see that tho management and instructions 'on this training ship arc being brought : before"-tlio public. Nothing on tho ship is dono'in -comparison with tho " Royal Navy." -The"clothes are entirely unfit for the service. Tho food (bread and meat) has been-seen lying on tho steps at Thorndon, exposed to tho ( weather for want of a shed — no wonder it was reported as "mouldy." Theso'aro'facts-that cannot bo contradicted. It is high time theso things were altered. If: the ship is too- small for some! of tho 'drills; why not use the Esplanade, weather permitting. "Under l proper supervision; .tho -Ambkura should be a'splendid institution,-and>those in' authority should/Bee that it is .made so without further delay.—l am, etc., ' ■■■■"'• :' ■ '■. AN OBSERVER. August 3. QUACKERY r PREVENTION BILL. Sir, —Tho true definition of tho term quack is=Yqry little known in New Zealand. A duly qualified medical'practitioner prescribing any medicino which is unofficial is the true quack puj-e and simple.■...l know for a fact tnat:a great number,of medical men do prescribe'or adviso their - pationts to ■ take. tlio so-called quack nostruriis according to medical jurisprudence. .A number of our Coroner's qualifications can bo challenged by tho medical fraternity, thereforo somo of theso Coroners aro quacks. What chanco would herbalists have of getting a verdict in their favour at a Supremo Court against tlio evidence of Dr. Mason?' A New Zealand Judgo would place most value oh the doctor's - interested ovidonco, otherwise ho (the Judge) would bo practising quackery. •' Quackery is rampant throughout Now Zealand in overy trado and profession. .Why. I wonderj has Mr. Hcrnsby placed his valuable services in tho hands of tho doctors? Was ho always favourable towards them, especially in Wnipawa ? Afr. Hornsby stated in tho House that tho public wished hi 3 Medical Monopoly Bill to bo placed on tho Statuto Book./ Mr. Hornsby never mado a greater mistako in his life, but. at the samo time, Mr. Hornsby could mako a great namo for himself by introducing a measure to suppress two kinds of rascality: the first is abdominal operations, and the second is to suppress the. commission paid by chemists to certain doctors to sccuro their patronage. Dr. Chappie stated that tho only cure for cancer, was the knifo'twenty-four, hours;after it had been diagnosed. How absurd. : Th# public of New Zealand knows very well how much value to place on cure of cancer by the ! knifo—l am, etc., NO-MONOPOLY. August 3. .J " ' THE TIMBER QUESTION. Sir,— During ; tho course of tlio present crusade. against tho Now Zealand sawmil-l lers' request for. further protection against Oregon and other timber' produced .by alien labour,' it has been stated that' any loss of employment, by tho closing of local mills would bo moro than balanced by tho in : creased amount of, building, which would bo induced by cheap timber.' I do not! think this will appeal to any intelligent person as a logical assumption, llisplaco tlio- thirty million feet ol ordinary buuuing timber used annually inWcllington alono by substituting Oregon, and you will easily deprivo of work six hundred men. employed in tho production of our local timber. In tho face of tho fact that", there'is already an. outcry from all our largo towns from tlio unemployed, and a general tightness of money, how can it ho assumed that while .throwing theso men out of work moro houses would bo required, thus creating employment for an increased number 'of carpentcrs, plumbers, bricklayers,' etc. It certainly beats mo that anyone should .suggest that by crippling a producing industry and creating unemployed in the country districts, a demand is going to bo created for. moro dwellings in tho towns, unless thoso buildings aro for tho accommodation of t-liq country workers who aro out of employment. And surely our sawmill employees aro as. much entitled to consideration as the artisans in tho towns, more particularly when thoy aro turning an otherwise. useless incumbrance • to the land into a useful commodity.

• In Now Zealand the towns- population at least equals-that of tho country, arid seeing that we have '.no'town 'manufacturers who have aii export trade, it is clear that each country worker creates an occupation for a worker in the towns. This being so, tho fact that six hundred men, whoso labour us supplying Wellington. ■ with their building timber, are thrown out- of work will render an equal number unemployed in tho towns, and bo a dead loss to tho Dominion, unless work is found which' will creato an export or a dircct production equal ,in : valuo to tho. timber imported,. 11l .dealing : with tho, question I haVo taken the" case of -Wellington only. Our remaining seaports aro in exactly tho samo position, trmbor being jiist as cheap in Wellington', as ' it- is in .riiiy other-' coastal, town, of any.iisize.: .If, my premises aro correct, rit least' five- thousand people would bo deprived-of employment, it being quite impossible to. produce and deliver New Zealand-tiiiibor at our 'largo-port-s at' tho price lit which Oregbn. is'now'being landed. And 1 even should the dumping or Oregon bo onty the temporary' result of slump in America, Korean timber is in a position to take up tho runping from forest a-roas which aro now . being developed. Tho latter, would ,bo produced, entirely by yellow labour, but would, perhaps, .bo preferable to Oregon, becauso wo oould, by employing our surplus labour at fungus picking after tho bush had been felled and burnt, give the Japs and Chows a back load.—l am, etc., July 30. - RIMTJ.

: pTOURIST department. Sir,—On behalf of those'clerks who are at present unemployed at . Wellington, I would refer to a local which'appearcd in' your issue of Tuesday, to tho effect that ; >"Jackett, of tho British football team, would'''return to New Zealand (after Australian 'trip) and lake up an appointment in tho Tourist Department." It : would be interesting to know:— (1) Has Jackett passed tho examination in torms of "Civil Service Act, 1886"? ■ ■ (2) If not, what position is ho to fulfill as an expert ? (3) Who offered this appointment to him? Possibly, tho Govornment propose to appoint an expert on football. If so, why not try somo New Zenlander. It has boen proved that wo have nothing to learn on tho subject from our lato visitors. Tho gentleman in question may bo a' jolly good fellow, etc., but still tho question arises why is it necessary to go out of New Zealand to find an officer to honour the Tourist Department? Aro thero not members of tho Civil Servico ready to fill tho position now Vacant? Would onb of the Wellington members put a question on tho order paper, asking for some explanation ? It'is but fair to not only the unemployed clerks, but also to-thoso' awaiting promotion.—l am, etc., NEW ZEALAND. l'almcrstott North, July. 28. '