NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 724, 25 January 1910, Page 6

NOTES OF THE DAY.

'.. 'If .the Newcastle ! coal strike Has the'effect, :as Premier of New "South' Wales,, hopes, of killing the occupation of'! tHe: agitatpri' the ill-wind' again have blown.somebody; good. p .It, will 1 have' benefited: the employers,- .who 'ire the. objects , of .'the. agitator's, fulininations, . but: it will have/blown 'most good, to .the workers,, who .are always: the worst losers by;.the, ill-corisideredjv'foolish; and unnecessary strikes which aro ; generally ■ promoted,, by: paid ; agitators. •:.The ■ professional -agitator ; isi always eager;. to foment ■>. industrial trouble, for when there-is no trouble there', is: always the;.contingency thai he.,may: have, to :work, .instead ■: of. merely talk, to make living;" ;Mit. Wade -, described ..to .our representative .who , interviewed; him'/how'. the; Broken Hill stiike,' was brought about by .Mr/ JpMrMAM?,.inducing the irresponsible and youpger men to votofor'a EFriko .by a.show; of hands, , whilst .''the, older and more '■reasonable:, and experienced: workers, were threatened with all the' obloquy i at-taching-to the; terms 'blackleg , .and 'scab'; if they, dared 1 to assert their views against the strike.". -The Sydney tramway strike and the ;two. Newcastle • coal strikes of: 1907;\and 1909, ,tq/'Mb. Wade, . originated in the,, same'.way.;;, One 'remembers how;'during- 'the;'^bakers'' strike: in - Wellington > i-.Ma; Maot,' who. had. nothing . whatever .to' : lose, strove.;to!,exacerbato :tho' strikers, who had.theirall. at stake, in what was for tHem- a'.most.; unfortunate, conflict./■ Legislation recently.; passed. in New South-Wales provides:drastic penaltiesVfor;.tb,e -agitator';who foments a strike, andthe New-Zea-: !'land: law has ■ alsoHbeen. "amended i sinco -the bakers' - strike ;to for 'that: person's'■ punishment; even .though he was not a worker in:the trade concerned, y The K promptness with 'which 'the 'New.'-"'South. Wales, industrial tribunals- can > now 'deal, ivith disputes is thought' to be another, heavy' blow; at; the', agitator's calling .in that: State, and.thb'new Industrial Councils in: New Zealand should have the same . 'effect. The itinerant: agitator, of; course',, is not the only .evil. A proportion of the paid officials. of trades unionism are apt to'demonstrate their' energy "in the. cause": by' needless stirring up of strife.. In' - its own interest Labour must be very careful not to bo led into, rash, courses, 'as were the miners at Newcastle recently, by men who have nothing whatever to lose as the result of an upheaval. ''

There is a singular item : of news in our cable • columns to-day.' H Pollowing upon a : police order forbid- i ding speeches against the ; vodka monopoly of the Russian \ Government, twenty-four persons have, been arrested for attending the AntiAlcohol Congress in St. Petersburg. Our local advocates of No-License will realise from this astounding act of tyranny the vastness of the gulf that separates Russia from the countries of free institutions. But there is a moral oven for Now Zealand in this: peculiarly Russian method of stifling private opinions upon-pub-lic questions. A State liquor' monoSoly would not be maintained ; in ew. Zealand by such means as are adopted by the Czar's Government; men would-.probably be as. free as! they are at present to express .any views they choose cither upon alcohol or upon a State monopoly 0f....th0 manufacture or sale ,of alcoholic liquor. At tho Bamotiino it cannot >

be denied that, there is. a certain logic in. , the imprisonment of the twonty-four temperance delegates in St. Petersburg. The State has there assumed the control of a certain "national" business, and it is really the duty of: ; the State either, 1 to protect that business or abandon.it. It is obvious that true frccdonH-frec-dom not only for individual opinions, but also freedom for the State itself-to act as it deems most truly wise—can only be secured by the State's abandonment of tho. vodka monopoly. And this, so far as the principle is concerned, is true of all State trading; ' State.-.trading is hostile to the best sort of freedom. Before utterly condemning Russia, wo in , New Zealand should remember that even in: this "free" democracy there have, been faint re-: flections of the methods of Russian State Socialism. , When Sir Joseph Waud thrcafens that he will make it a- criminal offence to "slander" the country—he means by "Blander" free criticism of the bad-results'of'some .State enterprises—what is he doing but thinking .in the manner, of tho Russian Government? \: :

■ The latest, news:' concerning the New. South Wales : coal strike is a surprisingly •prompt confirmation of the ;view expressed by .Me. Wade, Premier 'of. New 'South , .Wales, to our representative,' that .the strike ■was near; its ;.end,\ and that the men would have to;accept-thc:-positioh : as indicated!' to /them two months ago—namely .'\that', they should 1- go back to ■work' as a condition precedent .to. having "their grievances investigated';;■ and- redressed. Mr. AVabe's statement,was. published onlyyesterday," and to-day wo- publish a cable message; stating ■ that at a inass meetingof,the miners Mr. Bowling, President qfptheir •.Federatipn, v,adyised the men/ to : resume work;andseek an open conference' with the ■employers.'. ;M_E'i Ht/ghes, the." messagestates, i.eonsiders-> the/strike-is now ! ripe.. for .settlement.-.-Nothing, can be gained by , , prolonging, the , strug-/ gle,- Me. :BbwLiNQ's proposal is regarded as a' conditional surrender.: The simultaneous news? from 'Melbourne that 100,000; tons of British and coal are estimated to'be afloat for . Australia will. - probably prove a final argument with the mcn : as .to , the. uselessness of : continuing: the struggle.;; l-Apart;-from;the,-slow-ness of their'.prpceedings, which was largely excused'bythe-necessity. for; moving .very carefully, in order, to-.avoid.the'-risk of '-'precipitating: fur-, thef trouble, Mn; WADE.and;his Government are to;bs congratulated on the .manner in "which they, dealt 'with this 1 strike/. Prom first:'to/last their attitude .was firm, and dignified;, the Government did hot , follow, the :'examplo'of:Sie; Joseph Waud"in this country by saying. tha.t it'would not any. of.th,e: strikers,, and it did- not, 1 by: unwarranted•poncessions, hasten to bring l about a settlement only likely ;t6.be:durable, until; more ,, concessions were idesifeifl. There is now every 'prospect.:that:the, firm, attitude adopted by; the Government, will\lcad to 'it 'termination' .of : : the, strike' on; terms that will be- honourable ;tb bpth parties; Me.; Wade may. express envy of New,: Zealand's rainfall and' natural: advantages, .but. in the , treatment ;•. of;. strikes .this; Government .can-take a lesson from New South:Wales..;:i;;"•;;';-'."i-;-;;-.. '^-A,'■ ;- -J: