THE LABOUR DISPUTES.

Timaru Herald, Volume LI, Issue 4936, 8 September 1890, Page 2

THE LABOUR DISPUTES.

(I'rnt Ki.kotric Teibobaph— Oopyhioht.) (I'r.n Vrehs Ahsooiatioh. ) ! (Recoivod 11 a.m. September Oth.) Washington. Sept. 5. The carpenters strike at Chioago has succeeded. Sydney, Sept. C. Tho s.s. Bayley and Balmoral Castle are awaiting coal at Newcastle. The former expects to lead under police protection to-day. Strike pay has been issued to the maritime officers. The majority of the members state they can stand till the termination of the strike without assistance. A thousand special constables are now enrolled, and troopers are doing vidette duty m the most dangerous localities. The Mayor has now had an interview with both sides, but the result has not been allowed to transpire. ' The Government consider Conciliation Bills and similar measures more misohievoua than beneficial m the meantime, and they do not intend to support any of the means suggested for conciliation, aa they consider legislation is not required 1 so much as the maintenance cf law and order. They- have sent a reply to Mr Playford, Premier of New South Wales, to that effect. Melbourne, Sept, G. An action by seamen to recover wages when they had left their vessels before the 24 hours' notice expired, waa dismissed. The case will probably ba taken to appeal, and made a test one. The strike committee states that the case of the labourers ia very desperate ; that this is the greatest battle they have ever had, but the employers are better prepared than the unions, and the latter urgently need funds. If money is forthcoming the unions may be confident of winning. It has been decided to convene an Intercolonial Conference of Trades Councils immediately, and make one more overture to the employers to hold a Conference. If this is not accepted the onus of continuing the struggle will be thrown on the masters. Brisbane, Sept, 0. Shipowners announce- [that arrangements have boon completed to reeurao running at an early date, and advise their former omployees to soak work elsewhere. The strike is virtually regarded, as over here. The Rosamond has obtained a full cargo of coal. It is anticipated that Queensland will bo able to supply a sufficient 'quantity of coal to enable the owners m this and other colonies to tide over the present difficulties. ■ ■ ; . . I (ttooeivoa C.SO p.m., Sept. 7th.) London, Sept. 6. 'Die Poplar branch of the Soamen's and Firemen's Union have remitted £100 to Melbourne, and it is probable that other branches will forward similar amounts. The leading merchants and shippers propose to form a union to act m conjunction with the shipowners. Tho articles of the Shipping Federation have beon drawn up with a view to affiliate with colonial associations, and on the basis of tonuage contributions, and for affording mutual help. Mr C. Fenwick, member for Wansbeck, was eleoted Parliamentary secretary to the Trades Council by 191 votes against 175 secured by Mr G. Shipton. Mr Burns failed to obtain election on the Parliamentary committee of the cocI'gress. Although the leaders of unionism failed to capture the Parliamentary committee, (he Congress is pledged to forward the federation of labour m all countries. It was resolved that - Government and municipal contracts be Riven only to firms paying union wages, and that efforts should be "made to secure an enactment forbidding the employment of foreign labour on pain of imprisonment It was resolved that Municipal and County Councils should establish workshops for the unemployed at union rates, and the repeal of all laws making intimi^. ■ dation and picketing illegal.

Mr Burns made desperate efforts tc dominate tho congress, and his aggressive attitude provoked frequent scenes, during which ho was several occasions hooted down. He menaced those opposed to him by threatening that their unions would be puuished, but his frequent speeches were rigidly curtailed by enforcing cloture. It was decided that the nuxt meeting of the congress be held at Newcastle. Au additional £500 by voluntary collection by the London dockers is ready to ba remitted to Australia. The Sailors' National Union will forward £1000 to assist the strikes, Melbourne and Sydney receiving £400 each and Briabano £200. The Liverpool docker* send £1000 m aid of the colonial men. The coal porters at Victoria Docks have struck. The employers are offering 90 per cunt, increase. The Albert dockers and those working on the New Zoaland meat ships have secured an iacreaao of 2d per hour. Coal freights to Melbourne and Calcutta have been fixed :\t 21s par ton. Sydxev, Sept. 7. Tho Taieri has sailed for Wellington, aud the Union Company expect to get other vessels away duriug the week. It is estimated that fully 10,000 of the labour class took part m the demonstration yesterday. They marched m procession to the domain, where the crowd was 20,000 strong. The n-holo proceedings were of tho most pacific character, »nd nlthous-h 6000 members of the military and police forces were prasenr, their services were not required. (Eccoived 1.15 a.m., Sopt. Bth.) It has been decided that tho coal lumpers shall be allowed to discharge vessels m port with cargoes of coal for the Gas Company. The Tasmanian Steam Navigation Company, the United Steam Navigation Cornpxuy, iv addition to the Union Steam Ship Company, broke through tho boycott on Saturday, and yot several vessels awny with full cargoes. Tho Government this morning received an urgent telegram, asking the assistance of New South Wales m providing coal f'jr tho Victorian railways, which threatened to stop owing to want of fuel. Tiie Premier, Sir Henry Piirkes, replied that every effort should bo made to comply with the request. (Special to Pkess Association.) London, Sept. 5. At the Trades Congress, a telegram from the Sydney secretary of the Officers' Association, asking for support, was read. Few shipments are being made to Australia, aad the stevedores have little or no employment. The dockers' shilling levy is not payable till September 27th. (Received 1.15 a.m., Sept. Sth.) Thß Trades Congress at Liverpool has closed. Before closing, a resolution to the effect that blacklegs ohonld be boycotted was rejected, and an order was issued to Trades Unions to subscribe to the Australian strike fund. (Bi Telboeafh.) AUCKLAND, Sept. 8. The craws of the Northern Steamship Company's coastal steamers Chclmsford and Douglas struck last night, with the ctiiuera The Wellington left for Wangarei last night manned by nonunioDista. The Union Company will pay the men on strike full wages up to the time of discharge. Cook's glassworks are closed through the strike. It is stated that strike pay will not be forthcoming for many Union men on strike. Ooldio'fl timber mill is closed. Things ate quiet to-day. The demonstration of the labour unions m Anckland was held to-day and was wit neseed by thousands of people. The members of the unions assembled near Queen street wharf, and marched m procession through the principal streets to Mount Kden accompanied by great crowd*. It was estimated that about 1600 took part m tho procession. A meeting was hold m the crater of Mount KrJen when addresses were given by Paitor T2irch and Mr O. Aldridge. Tho following motions were agreed to : — "(1) That we, the representatives of labour, protest sgainat tho avowed intention of tha Shipowners' Association to prevent the right of labour to combine ; (1) That this meeting has full confidence m the Maritime Council m the present timo." WELLINGTON, Sept. 6. The T'ima m reply to Mr Peymour's letter refuses to submit to dictation m any shape or form, and states that they will publish j»hat they think right, when and how they thvnk right. A number of officers have returned to tlio Union Company and moro hws intimated thnir intention of doing so, to the number :altcgether of about thirteen. The Tekapo aud Wanaka arrived this mornine. rhe lerfter having left Lyttelton at 7 p _m. on Wednesday. The weather was too thick to env.ble t«r to pick up the land. The Tekopo did not come to the wharf, and leaves again at 3 p.m., being full. The Union Company yesterday despatched four steamers from bere. They were the Southern Cross, for Auckland via the East Coast s the Wanaka for Mannkau wbioh carried the San Francisco mail ; the Tekapo for Sydney; and the Kanieri for Blenheim. The Manaponri for Sydney via lackland could also have got away, but the ■management -were anxious to put into hor ■sufficient coals to bring her back. She now •leaTes on Monday afternoon. The Omapsre -also leave* for the South on Monday. The Union Company have received a number of applications from free labourers, and aay that Wellington has been the worst port to work awing to tho scarcity of labour, but they have been so Buccesful up to the present that they do not anticipate any difficulty. The picket* of the labour party keep excellenl .order, and there is no molestation of free "labour. The officers who left the boato at Aucklanc « Wellington to-day by the Penguir from tha Manakau. Up to the present thi Union Company have done their beit to kee; the offlcW positions vacant, thongb nnmerou applications have betm received. They h»vi , wen sont captains as second and third mate t(,i giv« the old officers a chance of returning The proceedings on the wharf both yester daj- .and to-day wera most orderly, and up t the ptiieob there has not been anything ap proa ening a disturbance ; m fact the Harbou JJoar.l *nd Union Company's authorities giv credit to the men tot their exemplar conduct. A mtxt'iL'g °f ''he Shipmasters' Associatio wos held yesterday afternoon. Captai Edwin, 8.1T.r ttn d Ciptain Bcott were elects vice-president*, the appointment of s pr<-» dent being held orer. it was announced the several officer* W returned to thoir ship and the following resolution wao pa.uod :- "That aa several of the officers who a\ members of thi» association have returned I their ships, ant', resumed tbeir duties, th meeting desires to oxprcw iU hearty approv, of tha step they have taken." Captain Ed wj

thought thai, it *-.-..< aiti.i'ter of very area congratulation to >oo ilw ulilist-r* rt-Uiriim,' t their duties on board the Union Company ahip.. It was to him a matter of «reo regret that theso officers who hud curved tb company for no long hed loft their voxels and It was n pleasant thing to see that I ho; had so acted by bciag misled, had eeen thei: mistake and returned. These remtuke won received with applause. Eighteen no» members were elected. It was decided t< establish branches of tho association ol Lyttalton, Dunedin, and Auckland, and the managing committee were instructed U arrange with gentlemen likely to take up the positions of agents. Captain Andrews ol Auckland, and Captain Owen, of Lvttoltor were mentioned aa likely to accept charge of thoee ports. Captain Strange of the Union Company was unanimously elected aeoretarj and treasurer of the association. Other buuinoas was generally routine. Mr Robert Seymour, secretory of the general committee of the • Federated Trade and Labour Unions states that, although strike pay will not be granted until next Saturday, the committee paid away yesterday the sum of £50 m relieving cases of distress among the families of those on strike. Hie Union Company's steamor Kotokino, which bos been lying m the harbour for the last ten days, will probably discharge the balance of her cargo of coal here and leuve lor Pieton on Tuesday to load produce for .Brisbane, returning from there with a cargo of coal. LYTTELTON, Sept. 7. Matter* connected with the strike are very quiet m port. The Wnkntipu got awny this ntternoon for Oamarn manned chiefly by farm hands, while Captain Stuart, of the THogadee, wont as chief officer. The men on Btrike continue to conduct themselves m a moat orderly manner. OHHI3TOHUHOH, Sbpt. 6. There are no fresh developments iti the etrike. Work is going on at Ihe sailing ships and the Serica will probably bo full this afternoon. The Wnkatipu is loading for Svdnoy. It is understood that- the president of the Lumpars' Union interviewed Mr Stead this afternoon, but what was done has not transpired. Tho Canterbury Typographical Association havfl sent fie following message to M r Millar :— " Tho executive of the Typographical Association here think it a misfriko to mnzzlo the press by forcing the withdrawal of Union Company's advertisements. Eeply urgent if it is intended to be general." The association have received the following reply : — " So good would be docc by tbat, as they cannot publish a timetable." At a meeting of farmers and employers, held ab Ashburton on Saturday, it v?as resolved— " That this meeting strongly disapproves of the unwarrantable action of Ihe Maritime Council m calling out libour wilh out any grievance against Now Zealand employers, nnri promise support, by labour or otherwise, to keep the trado of the country from being paralysed." Tho meeting resolved to form an employers' association, and passed a vote of thanks to Mr Stead and others for the moral courage anrl di'tcrminalion which they had shown m carrying ou the shipping trade of tyltelton. The Canterbury Trades and Labour Council at a meeling on J-aturday night, passed the following resolution: — "That this council bail with satisfaction the fact that the recent meeting of employero m Christchurch has adopted proposals for the establishment of a board of conciliation, and referred the matter to a committee to consider and report upon." O AMARU, Sept. 6. A dicturbnnco tookrjlaco this afternoon m connection with tho delivery of parcels by the New Zealand Express Company. Tho man who was employed by the company was called out by his union yesterday, and a clerk came from Dunedin to carry on tho work. Ihe express he was driving was followed round the streets by a largo crowd of larrikins, who cheerod when the consignees refused delivery of their parcels., and groaned at those who accepted delivery. With two exceptions ihe expressmen of tho town had nothing to do with the disturbance. The Toung man smiled all through and carried out hio duties. When he had finished, some of the larrikins took hia horso out of the express and one of them struck him m the face. The matter ha» been given into the hands of the police. The unionist eipressracn, with tho two exceptions, disavow all connection with the disturbance. The Wakatipu loads here on Monday, but (here is not likely to be any difficulty m the lumpers ara quite willing to load her on certain conditions, but tho Maritime Council has refused its consent. DUNKDIN, Sept. 6. A number of merchants havo resolved to give 24 hourej notice to their carters nnd a'.orercen, to choose whether they will remain m their situations or loavo the union. It is understood that a document is being unanimously signed by merchants, undertaking to give their carting to Duthie and Co., and Campbell and Crust, those Omß having determined to discharge tbeir duty as common carriers. This is regarded as a countormovo to the proposal to get up a public carting company. The only development of any consequence lince Saturday afternoon is that on Saturday night the storemea decided to stand by their masters and leave the union, and that the wharf carters and expressmen being tho other members of the union to which the storemen belonged have decided to strike. A propoial U being made by merchants to form a carrying company. Everything is very quiet about the wharves. It is said that the unionists intend to withdraw all their money from the banks m gold, and where tboy are m a majority m the friondly societies to induce the societies tc take similar action. Amos Kesst, a cartor, was to-day fined £5 m default fourteen days, for inciting a person arrentod during the labour disturbance last Monday ,to resist the police. His lawyei , Mr Fraser, president of the labour organisation said it was not the unionists who commenced the dispute on Monday. The Bench con curred m the opinion and said larrikins werf to blame.