North Otago Times. PUBLISHED EVERY WORKING. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1908.

North Otago Times, 26 September 1908, Page 2

North Otago Times. PUBLISHED EVERY WORKING. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1908.

THE RESULT OF STRIKES. Whilo our own Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act Aniendmont liill is having a stormy passage through the Housq of Representatives, I he Ast that it supersedes does not seem to ali'ect tho disposition of men to leave of? work or defy the terms jnd conditions of an award. When men are determined it will tako more than an Act of Parliament to hold -hem to the terms,of the judgment of a Court, even should that judgment be made for their advantage. We have seen this statement substantiated by events over and ovor again. It isthi3 spirit that iuipols the great unions in the Old Country to reject all proposals for tlio substitution of conciliation or arbitration for strikes, Tho spirit,' of combativeness is strong in '.lie human breast, and mon will not forego the right to hurt others, even if in doing so they hurt themselves to an infinitely greater extent. It is not an ennobling trait of human nature, but it exists as strongly now as it did when our forefathers roamed tho valleys ai)d mountains of the Old Country dad in skins. A spoil of depression has settled down on tho Old Country, and those carrying on great industries feel disposed to pull wages down, but those working for the aforesaid wages arc not inclined to accept any reduction. On this account strikes are in progress and strikes arc about to tako place. One large strike has just concluded'in the Old Country -that of tho engineers, who havo lost waijes to the extent of half a million, while' the strike pay dolrtl nut to them amounted to, about half that sum. lit this strike, as usual, the mia. wore bcuten, and had to accept the terms of the masters, Now Lanca- : shire is perturbed becausvi tlio spinners' have gone out on strike, and as this industry mid the progress of Lancashire ai'o indissoluljly intorwoven, the gravity with which a striko is viewed that alfocts 150,000 ' people can be readily grasped. Tho spinners have chosen a bad time for their'strike, Tho wholo world is experiencing a setback from tlio prosperous times of the past six or seven years, and, as' tlio cables say, the masters will' not offer any strong opposition to closiugKloiviij their factories in order ; to reduce, stocks of goods on hand. Thus, tho strikers, instead of injuring their employers, are. in effect assisting the.it to nwlfO money. The universal depression is affectingievery market,,nn'cj owing to the apparent stringency of money consumption has fallen away, with tho natural'resulting factor that prices Ins, vo also fallen;." Tho qno is thq inevitable consequence of tho other. Thbsa things lessen the profitß of tho employer and throw the employoo out of' work, but yet,' as in tho Old Country, men, boys, and WW qro as anxious for an industrial " scrap " as nf there-whs somotTmig to wo made out. of it. It is this romnant of barbarism that wo aro, in this Dominion, aiming at suppressing by\u means of; legislation ; but that -legislation proves just as ineffective in 'this country ns . thewant of it does in- Great Britain. Here - men strike in - spite =.of law, and m the Old Country they strike with the fullest liberty to do,so, and will •not aban([on' i tliat. liberiy i at any. price Oura'' is system t ould only obtain' a strict adhcionce

to/{lie lettSt of ( itho'*,lnff. But that seems to'Vo impossible}' for emplojeia lommit bieaohea ,sof the law -by lengthening the hours of labor v ant. surreptitiously, reducing wages, while employees go out on •an occasional Htukp l'be Members of the House of Boja-esentatives;, are at:- the presont lime*engaged in.a /struggle' with ■ the provisions of the Eon. J. A. Millar's'lndustrial Conciliation' and Arbitration Act Amendment Bill, and were it not for tho• restraining- influenco.of the forilis 6f the House a " strike " of quite anl exceptional character would be in progress, r so keenly do members who dopend on'the labor vote feel as to the intentions of \the Minister. The Minister is viewed with a good deal of suspicion just now, but'why. wo cannot say. "