THE WORM TURNS

Observer, Volume XXVII, Issue 36, 25 May 1907, Page 2

THE WORM TURNS

The Farmers and Politics

THE farmers in conference are to be congratulated upon their decision to introduce politics into their Union. Hitherto, they have been content to allow themselves to be persuaded that as a body they ought not to interfere with polities, but should leave the political machine to the control of the city workers, with the result that the legislation of tbe last fifteen years has been framed to penalize the farmer and his assistants and to benerfit the trades unionists of the town at the expense of the actual producer, the farmer, who raises threefourths of the total exports of the country. For these fifteen years, the farmers have been content to ♦' take it lying down." It may be, however, that the limit of their endurance has been reached at last.

Labour legislation has hitherto not affected the farmer materially beyond enormously increasing the cost of living to him and his family without any compensating advantage in return. Now there is a change that threatens to handicap and possibly cripple him. The labour agitator of the city, who lives by fomenting discord and establishing fresh unions, with a corresponding increase in his own revenue, has exploited the towns and is now turning his attention to the country. This is one strong and sufficient reason why the Farmers' Union should give some immediate and organized attention to politics.

The other day, we were shown the schedule of demands formulated on behalf of the farm labourers in a certain part of the colony. It would have considerably stimulated the activity of the Auckland farmers towards political combination if they had seen these demands. The wage asked for and the hours specified in the schedule are apart from our argument. So, also, is the claim that married couples employed on a farm should be allowed to keep horses and buggies at the employers' expense. What is of greatest moment, is that the holidays claimed include every Saturday afternoon, eight public holidays. »" 4 a fortnight off on full pay one . .. c«cu six months. It is not explained who is to do the milking and attend to the stock while the farm hands are making holiday. Probably, the farmer and his wife may divide this labour between them.

But, to come nearer home, have the farmers seen the circular that has been addressed to the creamery managers by Mr Arthur Rosser ? It is scarcely necessary to say that Arthur is not a creamery manager himself, but, as may naturally be inferred, every additional union that he forms means increased income to himself. It does not matter how the dairying industry may be handicapped so long as Mr Arthur Rosser augments his income. Consequently, Mr Arthur Rosser has placed his proposals before the creamery managers, who may be otherwise and more correctly described as the creamery hands.

If they form a union at Mr Rosser's instance, and place themselves under bis ' paid guidance, he suggests that they might gain the following most favourable terms of employment \ — "The minimum rate of wages for

creamery manager to be 10s per day all the year round, time and a-half for Sundays, double pay for public; holidays, one month's holiday each year on full pay, free house, coal, and milk ;. other employees' rates of wages to be fixed later." Apparently, the creamery managers, under Mr Arthur Rosser's paid guidance, are to live like fighting cocks. However, this circular serves to show what the farmers may expect now that labour agitators are preparing to extend their sphere of operations into the country. The necessity of organising is being forced upon the farmers. And when they have sufficiently organised, and have stemmed the aggressive encroachments ot unreasoning trades unionism, their first amendment to the Arbitration Act; ought to be to make it punishable for anyone not employed in a particular trade to attempt to create a dispute between employer and employed in that trade.