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Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 16496, 25 July 1919, Page 2

The extreme Labourites in this Dominion nnd elsewhere are in the habit of pointing to the vast wealth alleged to be received by employers and'capitalists for doing nothing, while the workers toil is recompensed by a more pittance. The conclusion suggested is that if the worker received justice he Mould be able to live in comparative luxury. Now, while it must be Admitted that soma employers receive an undue reward for their exertions, a.

oareful examination of the figures by unbiased investigators shows that if the total wealth produced per annum were divided equally the worker would not receive any very enormous increase to his income. In another column some calculations by Professor Bowley are published which show that a general division in Britain would give about £3 a week for the average family. Recently attention has been drawn to the mining industry in this Dominion and id Britain and it has been clearly shown that the profits obtained by the mine-owners as a whole cannot provide for any increase worth considering in the wages of miners. Official figures state that in Britain out of 281. millions received for coal 210 miliums will go to Labour, 6 millions in royalties, 121 millions to the owners, and 52J millions in expenses for materials, etc. It is evident that if the properly of the mine-owners and royalty owners was confiscated altogether the miners would receive less than 9 per cent, increase in wages. The fact is that at present the total production of wealth is not large enough, even if equally divided, to make everyone wealthy or oven comfortably off. The remedy' is, first to prevent monopolists and others securing an undue share of the wealth produced, and then by hard voi'k and the introduction of laboursaving machinery to increase the product per head as much as possible. The men who go about the country talking of the enormous benefits awaiting the workers if the programme of the extremist is carried out arc blind leaders of tbo blind.