Abstracts and Brief Chronicles

Maoriland Worker, Volume 11, Issue 475, 21 April 1920, Page 1

Abstracts and Brief Chronicles

They are the abstract and brief chronicles of the time.— Hamlet.

"Force is the midwife of the new society pregnant in the womb of the old. "—Marx. Sje :!: v , :? * A sure way to increased production: Increase the number of producers. Has this idea never occurred to the scribes of the daily Press and the pharasies of the Welfare League? * * *' w * Every man,- woman and child in New Zealand will have to pay additional taxes of £7 per annum to meet war liabilities, including pension payments and interest and sinking fund on war loans. The total under the latter heading is £5,000,000 a year and the pensions about £2,000,000 a year. * * * * .# The Labor Party can never be unwilling to accept honest recruits.; but in view of Mr. Lloyd George's political record he can never be regarded as falling within that category; and any suggestion of a future'alliance between Mr. Lloyd George and the Labor Party could not be entertained for a single moment. We draw the line there. — Philip Snowden in "Labor Leader." * •>:• •» * « I.know Labor is narrow; I know she is aggressive; I know she arms herself with the best weapon that a corrupt civilisation furnishes —all true. Where do we gel these ideas? Borrowed them from Capital, every one of them; and when you advance to ns on the level of peace, unarmed, we'll meet you qn the same. While you combine and plot and defend, so will we.—Wendell Phillips. * * ■ * •:.- *, t It is possible, to cut $ man into quarters, \ind call each quarter a "section." But it is impossible to stick the quarters together again and restore the man. It is the same with n community. If a community is cut up into sections these sections cannot be expected to combine so as to form a true commiiuity. You c;in have either the sections or the community; you cannot have both. FTenee to talk of a "section" of a community is about as sensible as to talk of a section of a man. When sections oih a community are done away with, a true community will be possible,- but not before. •x- *' * *. * . Mr. William Tlolrnan, ex-Premier- of New South Wales, began life as a cabinet-maker. Then oralory, and soon' became a politician. Ue is w>w a.'lawyer, a l-Y&neh.scholar, an accomplished politician, on o.Kpoi-1 sw.orjsman, and polished man ul' Hie world, lie is about, to ''take siik" oilnM-wise become it King's Counsel-. All ihjs lie became by virtue of hi* connection with the Labor move-j meiit. What has he done for the Labor movement- The reader can pause for a reply. He 1-. no! likely to yet any. ***** "If it were possible that a people brought up under an intolerant and arbitrary system could subvert that system without acts of cruelty and folly, half the objections tp despotic power would be removed. We should, in that case, be compelled to acknowledge that it, at least, produces no pernicious offer , ls on the intellectual and moral character of a nation. We deplore the outrages which accompany revolutions. Bui the more violent the outrages, Hie more assured we feel that a revolution was necessary. The violence of those outrages will always be proportioned to the ferocity and ignorance of the people; and the ferocity and ignorance of the people will be proportioned to the oppression and degradation under which they have been accustomed to live. Thus it was in our civil war...." —Macaulay. i

Owing to the paper shortage, The Worker will find it necessary to curtail its size to six pages, commencing with next issue. By setting; the type closer more reading matter will be gol into a column, and every effort will be made to make up for ihe lesser quantity by improved quality. Contributors and correspondents arc requested to practise the art of saying much iufew words, and thus help to lighten the task of The Worker during the period of paper shortage. It is hoped in future to be able to make improvements in the journal Avhjch will render it still more useful to its supporters and the Labor cause. Meanwhile, we ask the hearty support of all readers in the present situation, and trust they will do their utmost to increase the circulation and influence of the workers' paper.