SHOPS AND OFFICES BILL.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 10186, 21 October 1904, Page 2

SHOPS AND OFFICES BILL.

SATURDAY HALF-HOLIDAY. J A WARNING TO LABOR UNIONS, j (Per Press Association.) ! WELLINGTON, thi* day. The adjourned, debate on the Shops and Offices Bill was resumed by Mr Graham, who pointed) out that the employees of wholesale warehouses were already objecting to be included m the Bill on tho ground that they are at present under better conditions than they would be if they were included m the provisions of the Bill. He hoped that the clause would be amended before the measure became law. Mr Dutliie said! that neither the House nor tho country had expressed any desire for the amendment proposed to tlie existing law. He would be very glad to see a Saturdiay half-holiday, but it was impossible to conserve the interest of everybody, and after all it was the duty of shopkeepers to consider tho interests of tlie general public. Mr Houston declared tliat this stirring up of strife by tlie Labor Department was causing a good dfea-1 of unrest m the colony. He objected, to the Bill being made to apply to country districts. Mr Mander urged that each community should have tlie right to choose that day for the half-holiday which suited it best. Mr Smith said he had voted against tlie Saturday half-holiday referendum m accordance with tli© desires of his constituents. Mr Lawry spoke strongly m support of a universal Saturday half-holiday, but urged that tho proper thing for the House to do was to pass a law to that effect and not shelve its responsibilities by referring i.he question to a referendum. Mr Symes, referring to the Saturday half-holidiay proposals, said that legislation was nob brought down m the interests of the laboring classes, hut m the interests of agitators of inspectors and of the Labor Department, for the purpose of creating billets, and m order that legislation should keep tho country m ai state of unrest. He did' not believe any | more labor legislation was wanted!, and! if they gave it a res*, for a few years it | would be a good thing, for the colony. Mr A. L. D. Fraser warned the workers m the four centres that ii they listened to the clarion-throated agitators that were occasionally heard m politics and at street corners they were simply tolling the bell that wouldl be their death knell, for the country and' the respectable section of the towns would rise up. and the result must- inevitably be that the clock of the Labor party's prosperity would be put back if not_for all time for many years. Mr Miller joined! issue with Sir Symes when he said that it was time to give labor legislation a rest. It was high time that country legislation had a rest. They had had quite enough of it for some years. The colony liad been pledged for some seven millions of money, nab for the interests of the towns, but for the country, and had a single Labor member, he asked, ever opposed it? Were they to sit idly by and see their constituents taxed' year after year for 18,000 Crown tenants, while three parts of the population had no legislation passed m their interests? They had petitions from 30,000 people asking for this legislation, .and they were told that it was wrong by the representatives of 18,000 Crown tenants. If that sorb of thing went on there would soon be a town and country party m the House, and if that did happen there would nob be much legislation passed, either for town and country. Mr Seddkm. m replying, said it- was inconsistent on the part of members to oppo.«o thc t referendum on the Saturday halfholiday, when they were m favor of the referendum m regard to licenses. Justifying the new proposals m the Bill, he expressed the opinion that with the shorter hours the employers would get even better work from their employees. The Bill had been generally approved, and was m accordance with public opinion. He added that within three months of Saturday being madie the statutory half-holiday (if that should occur) the people would conform to ib. and ho believed they would be better satisfied) than under the existing conditions. He believed the time was coming when they would have a universal Saturday half-holiday. Tho Bill then passed its final stages by 61 votes to 3.