LABOUR & MIGRATION

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 87, 12 April 1923, Page 7

LABOUR & MIGRATION

ANIMATED SPEECHES IN ,THE HOUSE SAFEGUARDS FOR CHILDREN NEW ZEALANDERS' "SCANDALOUS EXPLOITATION." \ . (WOK OUR OWK COBMIPONDWd.) LONDON, 20th-Februar;jv'"' Empire settlement was a subject discussed in the debate on the Address-in-" Reply, and Labour, members made; some animated speeches, which were not of » I very high intellectual order. Some of [ the repartee marked a decided degeneracy in the tone of the House. Mr. Muir, one of the Labour members, told the House, of New Zealand farmers who so scandalously exploit the emigrant boyi under their care as to make them milk cows betweaa 3 and 4 in the morning, and then again between 8 and 9!, '••'... "It is inconceivaple," said the Hon. Edward Cadogari, in a maiden speech, "that the Government should spend £!8,0Q0,000 this year on an Arab''Stats in Mesopotamia, when that money would produce far better results if spent upon emigration. My sympathies are less with j the Arabs of Iraq than with the so-called I Arabs of the streets at home, who ooristitute some of the most magnificent material of our race." Why could the Government spare £1,500,0(30 only for emigration this year, when so much wag be-" ing spent on "Governor palaces, aerodromes, motor-cars for the staff, and I whatever else they spend money .on »-in that wilderness where the only crop w« I ever harvest is trouble?" .•■■■ ;-- ;'■-" SPECIMENS OF REPARTEE.-.'V Sir. Hardie, who is a brother of Mr. Keir Hardie, said that Major Cadogatt ' had made a "pagan" speech. The"socalled emigration of children, he. said, was not emigration, but the tearing up of the love betweon mother and child. When the honourable member again used the expression "emigration of children," • Viscountess Astor corrected itto "young people"; and there were.;angry cries at the interruption from Labour members, some of whom cried,: "Go back home," to 'which Lady Astor retorted, "I won't." :'■''( The Speaker: "We have come hers to listen to one another." (Lady 'Astor.: r "Heai-, hear."). "Listening is as important a part of a member's duties as speaking, otherwise there would be no debate." • -

Mr. Hardie, continuing, insisted that every child was born with the divine right to live. Why should the children of the poor be denied access to this right because of the stupid individualist, commercialist system of society t In the previous day's debate reference ■ was liriads to the Royal birth. "We welcome all births," he declared, "we welcome all marriage, but why should 'the 'House have its attention specially called to.one birth? There are as good parents and-as good children throughout the Empire. I say more; it would be. much better to recognise the birth of a- producer than the birth of someone who is going to live on the produce of Labour. (Cries of •'Oh.") We have thousands of young iren and women who are unemployed at an age when they should get married, but they are denied the right because of economic conditions, and we know the horrible results that follow.',' (Interruption.) . .... . ■ .''.:;:; ': ,

"MANNERS OF STREET COENEB , ."" OATS." ■ . , ■•;• ..■■ Mr. Shinwell, of Linlithgow, said it had teen suggested that young men, and perhaps middle-aged men, and women aa well, -who might be regarded as useless from the point of view of. productive • capacity in this country, should be sent to the Dominions. When the Labour Party expressed abhorrence of that pro-, posal they were told that they were prejudiced. They were not prejudiced against the emigration of anybody who wished to emigrate. Bat so far from regarding emigration as a ablution of «the problem/ they called it a confession :of economic impotence and national despair; There should "be more equitable distribution of men on the land in this .country.. There was as much unemployment in the industrial centres .of the Dominions ;as in our own. • If they proposed ta send men into the hush or to potential agri-. cultural districts in Australia they must send the right kind of men. They -would have to draw from the beat of ,th© nation at Home. They should see how far'it was-possible to solve the problem here . without : soing\overseas. : ■■■- -._...'.-'.... At times the altercations were pushed to the point of gross- personal rudeness,. When Lady Astor made an indignantprotest against some outrageous..-.stafe-ment, one of the Labour members; shout-_. ed, "You have not the manners of-;* street corner cat. 1' . ••■ ■.. : ' ..'-'..',..,, A DIABOLICAL SCHEME... '^ Mr. Muir (Labour member for. "Glasgow) said Jhat if an Emigration Department for juvenile labour was to become one of' thf> inritutions of this country, the safeguards must be. made • as, tight as possible. Be was opposed to ; the whole thing as the most diabolical: and damnable which any Government had ever introduced. He was opposed" to the economic disabilities from, which', working people were suffering .being used as a whip to drive them 'to settli m ' other ports'of the Empire. There waja ' no free choice if there was no possibility of 'employment at Home within the limits of the present systenu : Was .'there- • any member on the Government' benches who would consent to- his bojp, . ox girl being sent? (Cries of "Yes.") ~-

LADY ASTOR'S FIVE SONS. Lady Aator: "On a point of order. I have five sons. By the time they get to 18 they hav« got to have a. moral senga if I do my work pioperly, and I would far rather they went to Canada than walk about Ihe. streets." (Cheers.) The Deputy-Speaker: "I am afraid that is not a point of order." (Laughter.) ' ~ . •Mr. Muir: "I think I am perfectly correct in saying there is not,one member on ths Government side of the Kout« or on this side who would voluntarily allow his boy or girl of 14 " ■■:,". .'■': Lady Aator: "Fourteen!" Mr. Muir: "The hon. member apparently does not know it is proposed to send out boys of 14. (Lady Astor shookii her head in dissent.) It is so, my deir* 5" lady."' (Loud laughter.) The Deputy-Speaker: "The hon. member must address the Chair. There is not yet a lady_ in the ,Chair:" (Laughter.)" Mr. Muir: "I am very sorry, but' it slipped out." (Laughter.) The Labour; Party would never give their' consent to ■ th« wholesale shipment of boys and 1 girls overseas so long as they were to 'be' exploited by private farmers. Emigration, whatever its intention might be, was going to make biff profits for th* shipping companies, and would ultimate:ly cause a. "boom" in real estate. f-i *: Mr. H. W. Sparkes (Tiverton, V.) 'pro:' tested against Mr. Muir's spsech, 'and' said that he;had made a wholly fantastic and fictitious grievance of what Vwas^ really a. tremendous benefit to people of his own class. Alluding to the. reference to agriculture in the K'iiig'6 Sneech'^ Mr..' Sparkes said he hoped that it. would: ba tha last time they would have such a pious "expression of opinion', in any ' King's Speech ■■'•■ Mr. Newbold (Motherwell,' Com.): "It will be the.last King's Speech, I hope."