A THING TO BE RECKONED WITH.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1190, 21 December 1894, Page 11

A THING TO BE RECKONED WITH.

Lqndon, December 15.

Lord Rosebery, addressing a meeting at Stratford, advised the Independent Labour Party to coalesce with the Liberals, who were determined to deal with ~the workingclass questions thoroughly. Though unable to accept the Norwich programme, he promised to introduce a Bill for the unification of London. ;

The Norwich programme is the nationalisation of the land and of all''the means of production and interchange. Nobody expected Lord RoSebery to go so far, but the Independent Labour Party has a very decided mind of its own about its objects and its power. About the middle of October last, at a public meeting of adherents of this Party, Mr Tom Mann said plainly that there is no difference between the Tories and-the Liberals when it comes to questions -of radical reform,- and Mr Keir : Hardie declared,that the present. political division was passing away and would not last more than three genera*, elections. .. Both exhorted the Independent* Labour Party to keep its independence of both Tories and Liberals. Sir John Gorst very soon afterwards combated these ideas, and made "a bold bid for getting them into the Tory following. Lord Rosebery, at Stratford as above, is evidently on the time-honoured line of “ Codlings your friend, not Short." The promise to bring in a Bill for the unification of London is no doubt a promise that the Bill of last session will be introduced again next February. It is a very large question, and in some respects a burning question, but hardly the sort of thing a statesman would put before the Labour Party as a substitute for the Norwich programme. Sir John Gorst talked differently to them, though equally disavowing the Norwich programme. The probability is that Lord Rosebery’s speech has suffered at the hands of the condenser.

Sydney, December 13.

The Wallsend miners have resolved to resist the proposed reductions in the hewing rate. The Lambton and Back Creek collieries have virtually insisted on the reduction in the hewing rate. Washington, December 17.

The Convention of the American Federation of Labour has rejected the Socialist plank in the Federation’s programme*