THE World of Labour

Sun (Christchurch), Volume II, Issue 562, 27 November 1915, Page 12

THE World of Labour

Conducted by D. G. SULLIVAN

TRADES AND LABOUR COUNCIL HALL. MEETINGS FOR WEEK. SATURDAY, November 27—Typographical Union. SUNDAY, November 28 —Christadelpjiians' Mission, 11 a.m. MONDAY, November 29—Amalgamated Society of Engineers, No. 1 Branch; Painters' Union; Tailoring Trade Union; Saddlers and Harness Makers' Union; Tinsmiths and Sheet Metal Workers' Union. TUESDAY, .November 30—Coachworkers' Union; Plumbers' Federated* Council. WEDNESDAY, December I—Trades Hall Management committee; Canterbury Carpenters' Union. ; THURSDAY, December 2—Plumbers and Gasfltters' Uniou; Canterbury Gardeners' Union. FRIDAY, December Drivers and Firemen's Union.

NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Labour Representation.

I recently had the opportunity of hearing a deputation from the General Labourers' Union to a local body on which there is no Labour representation, and the incident convinced me of the great value from the industrial viewpoint of having such representation. The depijtation stated its case with-ability, tact, and moderation, and, having answered various questions, departed leaving no one behind to fight its battle. The result was that the dominant Conservative view prevailed, the subsequent discussion turning not upon the justice or otherwise of the request made, but in the direction of an enquiry into the various motives, real and imagined, that prompted the deputation. The old spirit of hostility trade unionism manifested itself, and the chances are a thousand to on i) that no settlement will be arrived at, and that an appeal to the Arbitration Court must result. The kind of discussion that ensued upon I the departure of the deputation was! such as is never heard to-day on! the City Council, where Labour has' ■ a considerable share of the representation, and would not have been heard on the body under discussion had there been a Labour man sitting on: the board. Our local body re-1 ferred to would be benefited by the infusion of some Labour representation. * Stagnation. There is a great deal of apathy in the Labour movement at the present time. On the political side (Jin Christchurch, anyhow) it is having a long, long rest, and sprang into a precarious existence for about five minutes to welcome Mr Fraser, the National Organiser. On ~tKe industrial side the position is not quite so bad. The union meetings are still being held, but are poorly attended, and. enthusiasm is down to zero. The war, of course, attracts the attention of all classes, and the general apkthy, if undesirable, is understandable. It is undesirable, first because there are many questions of importance to the workers up for consideration at the present time, and secondly because, when the war is over, the old fight .against social injustice will have to be resumed. It is important that we: should win the war against the Germans, but it is equally important that we should win the war against social evil. Consequently, we must not let our movement die. A Notable Democrat. The death of Keir Hardie is being mourned by organised workers the world over, and many tributes Jo his work and worth are appearing in the Labour journals of the world. I append two, both from his old colleagues, Ramsay Macdonald and Philip Snowden. Macdonald says: "Keir Hardie's life belongs to the history of the British working-class movement, and its meaning and significance will be revealed only as -That movement produces its results. I hope that, without delay, a proper biography will be written which, provisionally, at any rate, will tell what Hardie has done, and will

A Column for Workers

gather together the facts, which might otherwise disappear, of the struggle through which he helped his fellow-men. "To-day we mourn his loss. He fell crushed under burdens at an age when most men are still young. He never spared himself, and the phj< sical toil which he ungrudgingly undertook was made overwhelming by the grief of heart with which he was so often paid. But he stands out as a great, courageous figure whose eye saw far and whose goal was fixed' away beyond the attractions and the applause of the moment. He was born to strife, he lived in strife, and died in strife. How can the life of a leader of workmen be better summed up? Solitary in Trade Union Congresses in those early days when the young generation had to challenge the old and lead Labour into new ways; solitary in the House of Commons, coming into its easy respectability as a John the Baptist voicing the contempt and the antagonism of the self-respecting poor, solitary in the State, declining to accept old and meaningless creeds, and stifling political allegiance; in a sense solitary to the end. A Sensitive Nature. "Hewn from the rock of the hardest and most rugged Puritanism, he nevertheless had the most sensitive of souls, and only his intimate friends knew how dark were the waters which flowed over him when the malignities and misrepresentations of enemies assailed him. His discouragements may never be known, but his determination and steadfastness have made the Labour movement as we have it. It was he I who pointed out to the working classes the way of self-respect and ) self-reliance; if ever he flattered j them it was only to council them to be worthy of his praise; arid in i his own life he set them an example jof the strenuous thought and work | which is their only way to freedom. The cause of everyone oppressed, from the people of India to our women at home, was his own, and< his tender concern for children ini spired all his work. The war killed him; his name belongs to its casualty lists. He thoroughly agreed with us in this matter, and until illness made him withdraw from our councils he was always with us. "In bidding him farewell, the I.L.P. is like a youth going out into the world from its paternal-roof. How few of our younger members know how much sacrifice and mar- j tyrdom lies at the foundation of their movement or can understand what intense meaning the older ones attach to the sacred words: 'The despised and the rejected of men.* He rests from his labours whilst the night is still upon us. The I.L.P. will guard his memory, and toil on towards the dawning." Labour's Sheet Anchor. "Under the emotion of the news of the death of our great comrade it is impossible to give proper expression to our appreciation of his great services to the common people, and to our deep affection for him as a noble and exalted character" (says Mr Snowden, M.P.). "When the history of the democratic movement of this period comes to be written by the historian who can estimate the true value and significance of men and events it will, I am sure, be said thati the greatest figure in the British Democracy was Keir Hardie, and the most important, event the coming into being of the Independent Labour Party, which owed its success to his instinct, his self-sacrifice, his devotion, and courage. Although now, to our poignant grief, we must go forward with the great unfinished work without his wise counsel to guide us, and his courage to inspire us, yet the memory of his life of unselfish and devoted service to the people will cheer us and encourage us. By taking up the task he has' now laid down we' can show our I love of him in that way he would best desire to be remembered." I