MILITARY SERVICE BILL

Nelson Evening Mail, 29 July 1916, Page 7

MILITARY SERVICE BILL

ATTITUDE OF THE RED FEDS. THE GENERAL STRIKE. PROPOSAL. When the Federation of Labour held its Conference in the first week of July it decided to exclude the Press, with the exception of the Maori land Worker, and it appointed a committee to prepare official reports of the proceedings for circulation through,the newspapers. On Wednesday, July sth the following Press Association telegram, supplied by the Conference's committee, was- '(- ceived from Wellington: The United Federation of Labo.ir Conference was continued to-day. The official report stated that the Conference, in. committee, discussed the Military Service Bill, the discussion occupying the whole of the dav. The following resolution was - carried : "That we urge all. unions- to take a plebiscite vote of their members upon the following questions:— "(1) Are you in favour of the conscription of men as imposed- in the Military Service Act?" "(2) Are you in favour of a general strike as a means of preventing the enforcement of the Military Service, Act?" On Monday last the following Press Association telegram was received from Greymouth : At the Greymouth Port Watersiders' Union meeting yesterday. a letter from the Federation, of Labour asking whether the local union was in favour of a general strike as a orotest against the National Service Bill, it was decided, to reply in the emphatic negative, and that any further communication from the Federation would be placed in the wastepaper basket unread. When Mr Hiram Hunter, general secretary of the United Federation of Labour, was seen on the subject, bv a Press representative on Monday, he stated that no letter had been sent ly the Federation to any union on the subject of the Military Service Bill, nor had he received any instruction from the Federation of Labour to ask unions whether they were in favour of a general strike against- the Bill.

According to the?official report of the conference of the United Federation of Labour, appearing in the Maoriland Worker .of July 12th, a committee set up to draft a resolution! on the Military Service Bill presented its report urging all unions to take a plebiscite vote en the question of workers taking a week's holiday as a protest against the Military- Service Bill, if the clauses of the Bill were put into operation. Anamendment was moved : "That the question on the ballot .paper read: 'Are you in favour of a general strike as a means of preventing the enforcement of the Military Service Act?' " This- was seconded and carried by the Conference. After mentioning that it was resolved, that the National Executive be empowered to issue the ballot papers at their discretion, the report ends, a- footnote stating that it will be concluded next week. Asked by a Press representative to explain his previous statement in view of this report, Mr Hunter stated that the Maoriland Worker report was misleading in that it did not give in its last issue the whole report of the proceedings. What had happened was that after the report as a whole was presented for adoption the clause in question was re-committed on the advice of certain- of those present, and it was then struck out. The Press representative then asked why it was (hat the Federation had issued to the Press of New Zealand an official report alleging that the strike clause had been adopted. Mr Hunter stated that the Conference's Press Committee had issued this statement without authority, and had been severely- criticised for the action it had taken. Mr Hunter added that the only ballot paper to be issued to members of unions was in regard to the question whether they were in favour of the Military Service Bill or not. These papers had not yet been issued by him, so that he could not account for the action of the Grevmouth Waterside Workers' Union.