Sunday's Demonstration

Maoriland Worker, Volume 4, Issue 146, 19 November 1913, Page 7

Sunday's Demonstration

AT THE OPERA HOUSE.

CALL FOR A GENERAL STRIKE

At a most enthusiastic gathering that fillod the Opera House to overflowing a call for a general strike was made. Mr. Farland was chairman, and outlined the business. Mr. P. H. Hickey said that practically the whole of transport, mining, and shipping was tied up, The press and the pmployers tried to make out it was thf» Reds against the rest of the country. It was a fight for unionism nnd tho right to organise" along what lines the workers thought fit. No unionist was at work in Auckland, only the taxi-drivers and policemen were at work. Arbitration unions wore with them, because they saw that it was.a question of Labor versus scabbery. The "Dominion" said the strike was sagging, that Dunedin was breaking up. He- read a telegram from .Dunedin: "Position here splendid. Masters tried to arrange compromise. No surrender : wo stand by Deimiston's resolution." He explained Denriiston asked for a fight to a finish, and no settlement except with the consent of the rank and file. Mr. W. T. -Young gave the terms of settlement which they proposed to Massey on Friday. He had agreed that their demands were reasonable; yet their proposals were rejected by employers, who said there was now an arbitration union in Wellington. They were not going to allow the employers 1o dictate to organised Labor. They had no quarrel with the small farmer. They weie bound to win if they stuck together. Mr. R. Semple said it was the greatest industrial conflict that had ever taken place in the southwfti hernirohere. E* pointed out the Iriog r*

ports of the Dominion" and the "Port." They would have no Arbit-a-tion Court and have to beg of Judge Sim and bis wig for sixpence a day advance. Ho related the proposal? put (o Massey. Massey said they wore reasonable, but ho was only a political jack-in-the-box, ns the squatters and the Union Steamship Company refused to allow a settlement; They ]iad refrained before from calling a general strike, but now it was iieeessary, and he asfced for every trade unionist to down tools. Mr. A. Fox, a farmer,, <"otuptained of tho lies in the press which ciroulateit in the backbl&cks which said the striktrs. wgre . running wild with revolvers and were dumping the ranners' good* into the harbor. He was boycotted and threatened with violence. His telepbonde and telegraphic communication j T<ere made public property. • Captain. Clifton, «f the Territorials, had spread it abroad. ELarry Millar, a large squat- ] tor,, wanted to rush him off in a motor car out «f tbo district Lothbrrdge, a squatter, had warned him for his fain'Jy's sake to get oat of bis house. A porson, who gave the Baxneaf "Jesse Underwood," Wellington, had 'phoned him, in his own district, saying that they had stilettos tor him if he showed bis face Many farmers who had mortgaged their property to the frH were in Wellington .as "specials." He asked the small farmers to go kack to their farms and join with organised Labor in fighting tho monopolists. Mr. Fox thoa moved- "That the employers, having refused the recent proposals for a settlement of this unfortunate dispute, this mass meeting of cititseii9 calls upon the Government to withdraw all armed forces at once." The resolution wns seconded by a member of the audience, and on » show of hands was < arried unanimously. Mrs. Donaldson gave an account of the.-relief work, and said committees had also started at Brooklyn, Petone, Hutt, and Johnsonville. Meat had been sent to them, and .the farmers of Otaki were sending (>0 gallons of mi'k a day for relief. Gavin Stove said tnat the employers had said that the Federation could nev<«r move; now they said it would never stop. It was a *ight to retain tho right, , ? and privilege? Won by their forefathers. W. T. Mills said that the employers and the press claimed to be the,real friends of leal unionism. They had their answer from the rank and file there were as many arbitration unions out a3 iederation men. The Farmers' Union had refused tc allow 50,000 agricultural workers to get an award under the Arbitration Court. Where was their love of unionism? He ridiculed the Wellington Citizens' Defence Committee, and asked who were its members, who were its where were their offices? The employers and Massey had thought that t'ey had killed the Federation at Waihi, but this was its resurrection. labor was united as never tefore. and never again would tb«y be divided. The unions attache;! to the United Labor Party were on strike with then. He appealed for all unorganised workers as well as organised to throw ,ip. their lot with them. During the last 20 years wages had risen 8 per cent, and cost of living '20 pc reent.