BROKEN HILLS STRIKE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 3159, 22 September 1892, Page 2

BROKEN HILLS STRIKE.

(HV KI.KCTRIC TEI.KOKAPH C >l'l HM. II I. I SVHNKY, September °.11. If. isbeiiev-1 that th" Labour I'ariy ; will mis-; :t ii u , i--ii'! by m vim; :n : ani'Tidni >;it. censuring t'.o < J i\-. -;-:i - ! in''i! t f"i' : ii"ir ;i ;tion in i , 'limp! I ■ ' .e----l!ro!<. i, !1■ il strike. It' tii" (J .... :i iii"ir .■!!•■■ c'lVf" it' -1, it i< quite mi ! ':.■• cards ili:il they will apply l" )I■ :l dis-u- . liitinii, iiii'l appeal I<> th" country on | th'- (jin'-iioii of iiiiiiiiliiiiiiiiu; law and order. ! A birge i roeessj,,n ~f wiii-lviticii pa- j rinl«-<l thusf i fs to-day, and prooo." led j towards I'iirliiiinciit Uuildings u> prusi'iit" resolutions condemning tlm action Of til" Government It) Jjluk"!! TTill. A lai'ir* , fonr of troopers ai:<l [:olit:" on foot to >k possession of Maequ irriistreet find the vicinity of the buildings, ii.ii't prevented all approach to the precincts. A deputation of lij was s"l«'cLtvl to interview the Premier, lmf only three men were permitted to enter, and Sir G. 11. Dilibs then declined to receive them. The police continuod to guard the u])pri>ii.<:hi"i to Parliament 1 Louse during this evening. \Vi>rk is proceedingqnietlyiit iiiuken inn. The Proprietary Mine send a first sliipiiii'int of ore to Port Pirio tomorrow. September 121. Mr Want, a Free Trade member, has iinnoimced his intuition of voting for the Government, for the .sole reason of maintaining law and order. Mr Toohey, an adherent of the GovernniL':it, attacked the Premier's mission to England, and notified that he would vote ageinst the Government. Mr Cann has given notice of motion censuring the Government in eoniioc lion with the Broken Hill strike. The Ministry are still confident of victory, and believe that the loss of the Labour vote will lie more than counterbalanced by the assistance from tho Opposition. It is understood, if Mr Cnnu's amendment is rejected, the Labour party will vote for Mr Reid's motion. A large number of Socialists wire included in last night'* procession. They hid a red nag flying, and met at. the statue, where fully ten thousand people congregated. The. crowd dis persed by iniduiglit. One man was arrested for attempting to break tin ough the police lines. Much incjndiiiry oratory was indulged in by the leaders. TIIH HISTOHY OF THIS STRLKIi. The strike at Broken Hill, which is primarily <lu« t'> the disluriitioii of tin , riirlit ruSiil ious brtwcun capital and labour, cotitiiiups to p:irjly--o industrial activity in that section of r.lio cnimtry. The pros and cons arc h >tly contested, but the inioluiitpreteiisiuu-iut the A.M.A. ure really at tho bottom of the whole difficulty. At, tin; commencement ot tlm struggle the employers wsre almo-t tiu.iil in tlntir ruf]U"sts. They simply desired the terminntiiMi of the iireser.t system nf day lah'iiir which enabled tin; miners to slesip in the dniiu fora laig.; propoi'tion of tlirir time ami imposed it a- a point of honour upon tlm industrimis that they should not do snlliraent work to oxposo the shirkers. The mhi'juwners are cuiii[lolled to pay a very full day's pay, foul, find it impossible, to yet even a fair day's work in return. They therefore pave notict? of their intention to terminate the agreement whie.li hound them helplessly to theM- ruinous and flemnrali-ing' c.mdition-'. The Union at once shneke>rthat they had broken the agreement. This, however, was a palpable falsehood. Work was proceeilhf.*imd the aLTeemont wn- in full force until llie b'uiou itself broke it by ordering a sudden strike, with the avowed hope that when the miners wen; withdrawn, the workiirj-s wuul.l to cullapse and the directors would be force to accede to any tonus which the Union might think lit to uxlort.

The employers had simply given notice of their intention to termiiuite it, ntid it, is morn misrepresentation to altu'in that this broke it. There would he no necessity to terminate a broken agreement. If the month's notice was not deemed long enough the whole- matter was open to negotiation and negotiation* for two months' notice or three months' mijfhthnve been initi.itod ami carried on whilst the old agreement was etill in full force. The agreement is now effectually broken, it is truu, but it wii.i broken by tho sudden freak of the men, nut by the action of the masters. The hitter have gathered oouraee as tho real nature of the situation has unfolded itself, and they now demand, as they have obvious and inalienable right to dem.ind. that in employing their men and p;tyinir them they shall be unhampered h\- the intolerable and arbitrary ex-

actions of the A.M.A., which, like a gigantic tapeworm in the body politic, lias established an unlawful ihi per in in in impcrio at Broken Hill, and which lately has even taken upon itself toifsue passports, and refuse, to allow citizens to proceed along the highways without them ! They demand the full exercise of their lawful freedom to employ union or non-union men at their discretion-they demand, in short, what is in reality the basis of modern civilisation and of modern prosperity — freedom of contract, in otbrr words, freedom to do right, for no contract to do wrong is recognised or enforceable by law.

Advocates of the A.M. A. assert that because th« agreement contained an arbitration clause. the matter in dispute should luue been referred to aibiUation ; but this amounts to the assertion that because the agreement contained an arbitration clause it was therefore interminable —that is to say, tint because the A.M.A. got the advantage of the mine-owners in a weak moment and forced them to accept an agreement, they arc bound to accept that agreement for ever aud ever 1 Such a contention is manifestly absurd, and can ouly he seriously maintained by advocates whos-c zeal has blinded them to the facts and tcjuities of the case. The rights of non-unionist miners were absolutely ignored by tlvs precious agreement, which in reality proceeds upon the assumption that the A.M. A. is the master of the position and graciously permits the employers to carry on their business, provided they submit implicitly to its terms. The masters began by notifying tlmir intention after the lapse of a certain time to terminate the agreement--a

course which, as parties to that agreement (which was fur an inilelinitt , , not for a definite term) they were quite within their rights of taking. The Union replied by violating, not only the agreement, but also the law ot the land. They withdrew the men at a moment's notice, and •' picketted" the mines so as to pivwiit either provisions or assistance beiua obtained by the managers. The mastu's now notify as the legitimate result of these proceedings that in future they will not be subject tc the rules of an organisation which has treated them in this manner, and for the future will carry nu their own business in their own way. They deserve to win, and. notwithstanding the very powerful open and secret iutluonees that ale arrayed against them, it is to be hoped they will win. So far as freedom of contract is concerned, they are in the light.