The Otago Witness. (WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 1919.) THE WEEK.

Otago Witness, Issue 3414, 20 August 1919, Page 39

The Otago Witness.

(WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 1919.) THE WEEK.

WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED TBM SOUTHERN MERCURY.

"Nunquam allud natura, allud sapientia dixit" —-JUVBHAL. "Good nature and good sense must ever Jala."—> POPB. The tone and temper of the deputation from the Alliance of Labouri Politics and which waited upon the Possibilities. Cabinet in Wellington last week gives an indication of the lines on which the general election is likely to be fought. The conference between the mine owners and the coal miners having proved abortive—that is to say, all efforts at a mutual agreement upon a purely industrial basis. having failed, —the miners have apparently decided to carry the fight into the political arena. In this decision, curiously enough, they are reversing the process and methods of their confreres in the Homeland. The miners of Great Britain, taking their stand upon the conclusions reached by Mr Justice Sankey, chairman of the. Coal Commiluon, elected to enter the political artna with the object of securing the nationalisation of the coal mines. In this they have been defeated by. the advent

vote of Parliament, with the result that the "Triple Alliance" of Labour, including the miners, the railwaymen, and the transport workers generally, propose taking a ballot in favour of a general strike unless the Government promises the nationalisation of the coal mines. The President of the Miners' Federation at Home takes a very dark view of the situation. Speaking at Ayr, Mr Robert Smillie said that, if the Government refused to nationalise the coal mines, the miners must use their industrial power to force its hands. The industrial horizon was black, and he foresaw the approach of a bitter war between Capital and Labour. In this Dominion, partly owing to the near approach of a general election and partly because the political machine is more manageable in New Zealand than in Great Britain, the Labour party has apparently elected to try its fortunes exactly where the Miners' Federation in the Homeland has failed. There always lurked a fear lest, if the Coal Conference in Wellington failed to reach a settlement, that the miners would elect to use the strike weapon, and that the Dominion, on the top of an already pretty considerable pot of troubles, might be called upon to experience the loss and dislocations of a general strike. _ Happily, better counsels have prevailed in Labour circles, and the outcome of the latest move will be watched with keen interest and a great amount of curiosity. A deputation representing the railwaymen, waterside- workers, drivers, tramwaymen, seamen, and miners waited upon the Cabinet to ask the point-blank question, whether the .Government would consider the_ desirability of nationalising t-he coal mines on the lines of the railways and_ telegraphs Df the Dominion. It is significant that she . deputation declined to accept Mr Massey's personal opinions on the matter, and showed no inclination to listen to the Prime Minister's excursions into the subject of the cost of living; they did not press for an immediate answer, but asked that the Government as a whole give the matter their fullest consideration, with the view of formulating an .official reply. Mr Hampton, who was the principal speaker for the deputation, put the matter i.i a nutshell when he said, referring to the points in dispute between the mine owners and the miners: "We are here not to lay down any hard and fast conditions as to what will settle the dispute. Our sole object is to point out certain matters which are stumbling blocks to a settlement, and to try and devise some means of getting over them. We suggest that, if a pronouncement was made by the Cabinet -to the effect that the coal mines be nationalised in 12 months' time, and if some arrangement could be made for dealing with the men meanwhile, matters would be facilitated. The objection of the owners to deal with the matter nationally is a' stumbling block, and their offers do hot meet the position."

Here, then, is a clear-cut issue upon which to go to the country, and it is possible that the cleavage in the political parties at the coming general election will be around the question of the nationalisation of the coal mines. And the appeal will be made directly to the consumer, since .nationalists and nonnationah'sts alike will affirm that they are working in the interests of the general public. The main argument used by the mine owners in declining to accede to the demands of the coal miners is that the reduced hours of work and increased wages acked for would raise the price of coal to the consumer to an almost prohibitive' point. To which the coal miners reply: Nationalist the coal mines, and in •bo doing eliminate the element of private profit, and it will be possible to accede to our demands for shorter hours, higher wages, and better and securer conditions •of work, v. ithout appreciably raising the price of coal to the consumer. It is along these lines that controversy concerning nationalisation is likely to rage from now on to the general election, and it is a matter on which the general public, perplexed by the contradictory statements put into circulation, will have a difficulty in coming to a sound conclusion. On one point everyone must be agreed—viz., that it is impossible to allow matters to drift from bad to worse as they are doing at jfche • present time; a remedy of some sort must be found. The railway and other restrictions, consequent upon the coal shortage, are seriously affecting the wellbeing and the convenience of the public, besides interfering with the orogress and prosperity of the Dominion. The result of the Coal Conference has been to demonstrate the deadlock that exists between the owners and the miners, and the apparent impossibility of reaching a settlement such as will help to solve the problem of the present shortage'- of coal. And, although the situation is to-day aggi'avated by the seamen's strike in Australia, rendering the importation of coal difficult, if not impossible, the real crux of the trouble is within the Dominion itself. Mr Massey, when replying to the deputation, said that he hoped to see the day when "we will not have to go outside New Zealand for our coal," characteristically adding: "How that was going to be brought about I am not able to say." But, if Mr Massey wants to retain office, he mu3t find a way. What the Dominion needs is a man who is able to say how the existing coal sboi'tage can be remedied and the resultant problems solved. The Alliance of Labour have virtually gone to the Government and said: "Tn our opinion the only practicable solution of the problem is to be found in the nationalisation of the coal mines of the Dominion j we ask you to give serious consideration to the question, and make public your decision. If the Government decline to consider nationalisation without proposing some alternative remedy, they will play right into the hands of the Labour p~rty. The nationalisation of the coal mines will then become the rallying cajy of Labour, and the only hope of their opponents will be to have on hand some alternative proposal which promises to put an end to tho deplorable wtate of affairs at present existing.

Nationalisation or WonNationalisation.

The trend of public opinion the world over is in favour of the removal of the control of the necessities of existence from private ownership, and handing it over either to State or co-operative control; and for this obvious reason, that private ownership makes for profiteering. Indeed, in all denunciation of profiteering, it has to be remembered that right up to the outbreak of war profit-making, or profiteering,' was the recognised legitimate outcome of the commercial competitive system ; the man or firm unable to make a profit out of their business transactions inevitably went to the wall, and success was measured in the amount of profit made... The enhanced value of the shares in any profit-making enterprise was hailed with delight by the fortunate investors, and speculation added to the spice of life. During and since the war, however, public opinion has veered round, until it is regarded as well nigh criminal to make more than a bare profit out of the essential needs of the people. This would seem to indicate that ultimately the nationalisation or municipalisation of, -at least, the essential foodstuffs and fuel supplies of the nation will become a part and parcel of our social system. The arguments for and against the suggested change are familiar enough, and have been frequently canvassed. The example of the great trading trusts and commercial corporations has been educed as proof of the saving in management expenses and the economies in distribution which can be effected when all the ramifications of one business are under a unified control. And it is argued that, either by co-operation, nationalisation, or municipalisation, the same beneficial results can be obtained, without, as in the case of trusts, the danger of the exploitation of the consumer. The gravest objection urged against nationalisation is that it involves the creation of a bureaucracy which tends to become more tyrannical than private ownership, and which, engineered for political purposes, open the way to all kinds of corruption and abuse. It is undeniable that State ownership and control is no panacea against. Labour troubles, and that strikes occur in municipallyowned concerns. There is also. the astonishing fact, just cabled from the Homeland, that, owing to a threatened strike,, the co-operative societies of Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cheshire, and North Wales have locked out 30,000 employees. At the same time the fact remains that New Zealand has a reputation for experimenting in political and industrial ideas, her limited population and insular configuration rendering her a favourable testing grpund for such schemes. It is possible, therefore, that the nationalisation of the coal mines of the Dominion may be nearer at hand than many people anticipate.

Profiteering and Private Ownership.

T] lication of the report of the Eoyal Commission appointed to make inquiry as to the circumstances and cause of the introduction of pneumonic influenza into the islands of Western Samoa and the extensiop of the disease there may readily be realised in an exceedingly simple way. Let it be supposed that, instead of the island of Western Samoa being administered by the New Zealand Government, they still remained under the control of Germany. And if, as a result of neglect, or muddle, or apathy on-the part of German officials it was shown that "the deaths in Samoa attributable to influenza totalled 8500" ; and if, in addition, it was stated that "many people are even now suffering from the after-affects of the disease, while others are totally or partially incapacitated," it is easy to imagine the out-cry which would have been raised. If the Talune had been a German vessel and the captain a German; if the Public Health officer had also been of German nationality, no condemnation of their conduct would have been reckoned too severe. Had it been a German official, who in a moment of exasperation declined the medical assistance offered by the American authorities and closed down all wireless communication with. Pago-pago, and had it been the same German official who "acted hastily" in the closing of Papauta Samoan Girls' School during the epidemic, the sort »f strictures which would have been passed upon him can readily be pictured. And if the authorities in Germany, in their investigation of the scandal, after mildly reprimanding the people concerned, had rested content with saying, "It is easy to criticise in the light of after events the conduct, of individuals in a time of extreme stress," British condemnation of German official inefficiency and hardheartednesa would have known no bounds, and the publication of the report might have formed ground for demanding the substitution of British for German control in the interests of the natives of Samoa. Under the mandatory system the New Zealand Government will be required to render account of her stewardship of Samoa to the Laegue of Nations; the chapter relating to the influenza epidemic will be difficult to write and hard to explain.

The Samoan Scandal.