UNITED LABOUR PARTY.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIV, Issue 98, 20 December 1912, Page 5

UNITED LABOUR PARTY.

A BRANCH FORMED IN STRATFORD. A meeting was held at the Foresters’ Hall last night for the purpose of forming a branch of the United Labour Party. Mr C. D. Sole presided, and in his opening remarks said lie was pleased to preside at a meeting that had the object of uplifting the mass of the people of the country. Mr iA. H. Robson addressed the meeting at some length. He said there was a great number of people who took objection to anything with the word Labour tacked on to it. Some people thought the United Labour Party was a labourers’ party; but it was nothing of the kind. It stood for the labourer, the lawyer, the doctor, the nurse, or the self-employed farmer. Provision was made tor all those who rendered useful service, but there was no room in the party for exploiters or shirkers. Mr Robson urged the necessity for organisations of all the useful people of New Zealand with one central head. The Labour vote throughout New Zealand had increased from 3747 in 1905 to 35,869 in 1911. He urged Labour to organise itself and to put representatives into Parliament to do those things which it had agreed to do and which were of common interest to all. He read the objective, constitution and platform of the party, briefly explaining each plank in the Parliamentary and municipal platform. At the conclusion of the address the speaker was? accorded a hearty vote of thanks. It was resolved that a branch of the United Labour Party be formed in Stratford, the motion being carried unanimously. The next meeting of the party will he held about the middle of January. A,t the conclusion of the meeting a hearty vote of thanks was accorded the chairman.