TRADES AND LABOUR.

Otago Witness, Issue 2289, 13 January 1898, Page 22

TRADES AND LABOUR.

CENSURING MR BUET. London, January 9. The Snnderlind Trades Council have carried a resolution censuricg Mr Thomas Bart, member for Morpeth, the former parliamentary secretary to the Board of Trada, for asserting that the present conditions of work were fair. MIKEES' FEDERATION. London, January 5. The annual conference of the Miners Federation of Great Britain has been opened. British delegates representing 407,500 miners were present. Mr B. Pickard, M.P., president of the federation, presided. In his opening speech the president said the engineers' strike Bhowed that it was useless to attempt to obtain the eight-hour system while the men were in conflict with the employers.

January 6. The Miners' Conference resolved to press for tha establishment of the eight-hours system.

January 7. The Miners' Federation decided to contribute L3OO weekly to the engineers on strike and locked out. A VIOLENT MANIFESTO. London, January 9. Mr John Bums has issued a violent manifesto against Sir Christopher Furness, the well-known shipbuilder, who recently contested a bye-election for Cork City in the Liberal interest. The attack is founded upon the action of Mr Furness, who is a member of the Employers' Federation, in ordering a lock-out of his employees who recently struck.

In connection with tho cost of the great engineers' strike it may be pointed out that Professor Walker, in his book on " Wages," says that, assuming the point at issue to be a rise of 5 per cent, in wages, the result will be as follows, even supposing that the strike succeeds : — The loss of one lunar month's wages will require to make up for it work for one year and three-fifths, even ah the higher rate of pay. Two mouths' idleness will demand extra work for three and cue-fifth years before the

money loab can bs made up. A six months' strike means that it will take nine yearg and three-fifths to make up the los 3 ; and if the strike goes on for 12 months and a-half, not less than 20 years of work will be needed to compensate the workmen.