The Waikato Times, THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE AND KAWHIA ADVOCATE. Established Thirty-Five Years. THE LARGEST CIRCULATION OF ANY DAILY PAPER SOUTH OF AUCKLAND THURSDAY, AUGUST 6, 1908. ARBITRATION ACT.

Waikato Times, Volume LVIII, Issue 8582, 6 August 1908, Page 2

The Waikato Times, THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE AND KAWHIA ADVOCATE. Established Thirty-Five Years. THE LARGEST CIRCULATION OF ANY DAILY PAPER SOUTH OF AUCKLAND THURSDAY, AUGUST 6, 1908. ARBITRATION ACT.

A , : I'M' "I I In" i;i ■-1 input tai.t uieasutes l.> be i!t,ill Willi thi.- -i.-.-i n in the Arbitration Act amend,.lent, there has l.ot \ et been any biuaclm.g of tlie momentous ijue.-tion, :xi.<i the fact must tenia. 11 that the most revolutionary and brilliant ltieasuie ever j placed oil the Statute li>ok of any country, has not proved tm ui.-juasi* j Led success. Hut on the othet hand, neither has it proved an unmitigated failure. Tho inuin reason for its nonaehieVement of Its prm.ul object 11 >: ah 'lition if stl ikes has been t Lit 'hehiW Lis l.eVel been tholoUghly and plopein ei.f iced. m.il tlieie have til-o oe-u - I-ii'p-hules tlit-Ulfh wl.f.'h the eva iei- leap. 1 hi.-. huWuVel. la invuiial/iy tin; f iult »it a new lu> iifile a:, ei.tnelv ne-v t:uaniulis p.i.-Mbil.tj.H and pi. nihilities, unforeseen n\ the compiler of the Act. A attain sectpin .>r nuiCuinniuni'y have triveil the woikcr the entire discredit for the failuies of the A - •!, claiming that hy tef'i-al t-. abide by the rulii of the Ai bi'rntion I Co:.it, when I. it lii 1;: - favour, he has St .ilt i :.ed the whole Opera!. 'Jl.s of the] ineu-ure. A It h ml' l , we tl i: k tf.it the act of w ■: i;t-: ~ w ■ aisuheyed ' ne Aiijitini. -n 1 .i; , repi eheiisihui ,;i t he mil e'.ii . v et on the t' > i h i•.,! _ : Uj'l so piMinine'.t ; V he'ole i„ o • public eye, i• .• •,ij>l .y.-r i i - ; [ eoiially to blame. i..-! sc-cm of j J'ariianient. Mr 1/ n • • iav tn 1 • • 1 on ' Scpt.-lnbel ' 1 '' ■ tl-.li .1 li t of lil-en should be ;>!a ••••! before the 11 .... • showing how niai y cases of hncs [ (.gain.-! eli.p!o_\e: -. t.•! luv.;iies o! ' the Act, leinaiiiod out.-tanding j There were no less than thuty-foui j of such cases, and the law had not 1 been enforced in any of the instances | quoted. Seven other employers had | been fined but had not paid. W he:: : one takes these facts into cou.v.deru- i t:on it becomes patent that the num- i ijdi of offences. m proportion, are. greater in the .use of the employe! I tliau the employee. When we lin.l j the employer raising the f.'ieat.st | ciy iiwainst t' ■ A*"t (a' 1 ho'i/h t) ' t :ri!.' .. t:(- i- i;o' -■. ii y '• 1 vr< ud lu I'ji.S'uet ii; vt L it way

can be introduced, to he in any way effective. ' Kcho answers: In what way r Tf the Arbitration Act is so hateful to all classes of the Dominion, j or if its operations ate useless, then I by all means let the Act be repealed, j and the old order of things obtain. Give the whole question a rest, and i the incut, though unwieldy, tool of j the Opposition will be laid aside. In our opinion the Act is good, pro- | vided \t be properly enforced, but j apparently both sections of the coin-I tnuiuty m e bent oil iig'itat mil when • the decisions of the Court go against ] their own opinion of what the verdict should be. liv .-ill means therefore, let I the Act be repealed, and peradventure j the millenium, where both employer | and employee may be at peace, will be ! 1 reached.