NOTES OF THE DAY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1360, 10 February 1912, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY.

There need no longer ho. any doubt as to tho reason for the ludicrous and pathetic "intervention" of the Pimiß Minister in the recent strike. With a unanimity that is not merely suspicious, but entirely convincing in its suggestion, the Government's papers "have been endeavouring to represent the Pruie Minister as the strong man who ended the trouble. They have, of course, been careful to suppress.the fact that Silt Joseph Ward's part wa* merely that 'of a messenger. That, however, matters very little. It was in (Jhristchurch yesterday that the. "intervention" of the head oE a Government notoriously hostile to the interests of the city that knows and despises "Liberalism" was clearly shown to have had a political intention. At a "Liberal" gathering there, at which all the speeches were party speeches, Mr. T. H. Davey concluded a laughably bitter speech by saying: "He had been delighted to see that the Prime Minister had taken a hand in the Wellington tramway strike, and that his mediation had led to a settlement. Sir Joseph Ward was the type of man needed in Parliament—a man who could see his way to help other people." Most people will be turned by the second of the sentences quoted to reflections upon the fact that if there is one thing that can be said about tho PnuiE Minister, it is that he has always placed political interests before the interests of the people. But our only object here is to give publicity to this convincing proof that we were quite right in conjecturing that the amusing "intervention" of the Prime Minister and his motor-car had a political inspiration.

The British Government has decided to set up a Royal Commission to inquire into the making of appointments to the' Civil Service. This is in response to a memorial signed by 400 members of the House of Commons. The memorialists stated :

It is twenty-five years since the appointment, of the hist Commission, and in the meantime the Civil Service Estimates 'have risen from £15,700,000 to .£10,787,87:., ami the number of Civil Servants has very largely increased, '('here is, ive think, evidence to show that a. movement is at work to dispense with competitive examinations in favour of the extension of the system of patronajje, as is shown by the recent appointments to the posts in connection with the Labour Exchanges, and the recent refusal to give an undertaking that the posts in connection with the coming insurance schemes shall bo filled by open competition. Members of Parliament were subjected to great pressure from constituents and others to use influence on behalf of applicants for posts in connection with tho Labour Exchanges, and we desire to be relieved from this undesirable pressure.

The movement to dispense with competitive examinations and extend the area of patronage has had a parallel in New Zealand of late years. Wherever there is a system of patronage, there is a danger that it will be extended, if not of set purpose, then through mere slackness, or what Burke described as "the degenerate fondness for tricking short-cuts, and little fallacious facilities that has in so many parts of the world created Governments with arbitrary powers." It is picasant to note that the House of Commons memorial was signed by members of all parties and that Mr. Philip Snowden, the Labour member who promoted it, said be had never been associated with anything that had met with so widespread an approval. The Stupid Party in New Zealand politics can no longer pretend that a Civil Service Board, the non-political control of the Service, is a "reactionary" idea. It is supported by the Radicals and Liberals of Britain, and perhaps the New Zealand public will agree that Mil. Asquitii and his colleagues are as good witnesses in a public cause as Ihe Bi'Ddos and W.-utus and M'KuxZIKS uf New Zealand politics.

AiiTiioi'GH the strike of the workers at the two large meat-freezing works is apparently not, a breach of the law, it is a breach of that "spirit of Ihe .Arhili'filion Arl" which used to be the. theme of endless rhapsodies by lljri tlrrnrHr-rn o.H.htit, uiifnrf.iinnUi "cxpcriuityiL"- Wa ha m>. iircn told-—

or, l-o be quite accurate, we were until lately accustomed to be told— that the Act would breed a- new .spirit of contentment and orderliness, that il; would purge away the ordinary instincts of the worker, that, in .short, it would bring us a Golden Agii of industry That the Act hud done, all these things was, until 1008, insisted upon—or rather, not insisted upon, but simply stated or implied as a fact long past all question—in thousands of articles in the press. The Act is simply a piece of waste paper so far as the preservation ol industrial peace is concerned, or the rendering of even-handed justice to employers and employees. The. employers iiiitxl obey it. ' If they dared to "lock-out," they would be fined; and if they wanted to reopen again they would in most cases be obliged to lake back the strikers under the "preference ,, clause. The law is thus obviously one-sided. That, however, happens to be only one of the smaller objections against it. It works injustice, it places a premium upon lawlessness, it is a cloud upon industry. It is pretty clear that the demand of the strikers at the meat-works is most unreasonable in respect of the overtime liours, p and flagrantly tyrannous as to the discharge of men who will not join the union. The, companies are prepared for a fight, and the sooner a firm stand is made the bettor. The affair is still another reason why the Arbitration Act should be repealed and replaced by other machinery.