THE DENNISTON CASE. ARBITRATION ACT.

Evening Post, Volume LXXV, Issue 24, 29 January 1908, Page 2

THE DENNISTON CASE. ARBITRATION ACT.

VIEWS OF THE PREMIER AND THE HON. J. A. MILLAR. In an interview last night Sir Joseph Ward expressed astonishment at the criticism which had been levelled at tho Government, because of its alleged delay in dealing with the Denniston coalmining trouble. He said ifc was not possible for him to have taken action earlier. From confidential information, which he had in his possession, he learned that, failing a settlement, a position would have- arisen would have been of a very far-reaching character in' its effect. He had not been asked by either side to interfere, but he decided to take action, and asked his colleague, the Minister of Labour, to meet him there. As Prime > Minister, he deemed it best to make himself personally acquainted with the real situation, and to endeavour to have the matter settled without in any way reflecting on the Arbitration Court, or doing anything injurious to the reputation of the miners and tho company concerned. A good deal of hypercritical fault-finding had been indulged in, but the well-wishers of the country would recognise that an industrial calamity might have- arisen, becauso tho miners believed the Act of last session gave them a moral right to take the stand they did. The miners and the company, in his opinion, had acted throughout with remarkable forbearance. Sir Joseph denied that the Arbitration Act, in this connection, had been on its trial, and had failed. He was entirely opposed to the imprisonment of men under tho Act.' A much better course could be followed, and provision, for doing this, ho hoped, would be effected in the amending Bill next session. It was a matter of gratification to him that the trouble— -the end of which no ono could foresee — had been happily averted by the good sense of the employees and the employers. MR. MILLAR'S VIEWS. The Hon. Mr Millar also denied that the Arbitration Act had been on trial The men. he said, were acting under legal advice, and they intended adhering to the stand taken up by them until the question at issue has been settled by • the Supreme Court. fso far. as the alleged delay on tho part of the Government was concerned, he could cay that for three weeks he had been nego- j Mating to effect a settlement. "I felt," j he continued, "that thorc ought to be a compromise in tho matter, because there was a doubt existing in the minds j of the men owing to tho legr y l advice j they had received. When tho Arbitra- ; tibn Court upheld the award I then maintained that the Arbitration Court was right, and upheld its award as against the men, but as their attitude was not one of defiance of the court's award in tha ordinary senso, seeing the legal doubt existing, I did not feel justified in taking extreme action against the men for, breach of tha award until nil other means had failed. When tho time was ripe -for the visit to the West Coast to be paid, the Premier and myself went down, with the result that we were successful m getting an amicable settlement. Now the utmost good feeling exists between the company and the men." "GREAT EXCITEMENT." A Wost Coost paper states that great excitement prevailed in Wesiport throughout Saturday and Sunday, for it was recognised that' tho situation was one requiring extraordinary Liot .to avoid an end that, could, have startled New Zen land. Fou/ hundred* miners went to tho meeting determined not to budge an inch, and it was only by dint of much persuasive argument that a compromise was reached.