The sun., 1903-04-03
NEW ZEALAND ITkxs.
Labor Irsab,es IN spite sf statutory
Arbitration.

i A8UOt HbDuMc ID BUl0 ~ 0k8tutVIy
| Arbitration.
! AuoKiAvp, Feb. A.-The fact that Mr.
| z. H. Hartman intends to expedite the
service between New York and San Fran
cisco has an important bearing On the
! affairs Of New Zealand. for by this means
the mail service from this country 10 New
York and thence to Great Britain viii be .
much more speedy one. The Cunard oom-
pany's new steamers, to be subsidlzed by
the English Government, win again be to
our advantage.
There is q land hunger in New Zealand
never felt before. To appease the great
demand, Government continues TO open
up for selection thousands Of acres Of Crown
lands formerly lying waste. Tho Premier
has stated that the amount Of land that
within three months will be on the market
In the Auckland district alone Ia no less
than 732 .l37 acres. Another 2s,0o0 acres
viii be ready under the Lands for Sottle-
ment act. Beyond this there still remain
100000 acres; and then there are yet again
all the vast areas Of country held by the
Maoris. Radical changes are, however,
being made In native legislation: and the
Maori Land Councils are expected TO push
the matter vigorously forward. In the
district mentioned, q quarter Of a million
acres are expected to be available before
June.
Industrialism in the colony is passing
through a critical stage. The Board OF
Cancellation and the Arbitration Court have
been put to some severe tests. The original
idea was that the former should exist TO
settle disputes that might arise between en-
ployer and employed. The Court Of Arbi-
tration was not intended to figure promi-
nently. But In practice the matter Of arbi-
tration has been continually before the
public, and the three who constitute the
court have been constantly occupied. In
actual practice II is now very evident that
reconstitution must take place. The result
Of the awards points to increased cost Of
production, the forming Of rings antag-
onistio to employers. and to the impossible
ity Of a mans being able to establish a
business in a small way. most serious
detail is the fact that quite recently several
employers have been before the court to
answer charges OF noncompliance with the
awards. In two cases fines were inflicted;
latest result Is that number Of employers, |
deeming an award inimical to their interests, |
since IL raised wages about two pence |
an hour per man, have, rather than comply. |
dismissed their mon, and intend. while the |
.r;,rd Is ,lo 0w 70 ns
the question OF unionist labor.
The Premier recently promised to con-
slider the matter Of compulsory preference to
unionists. Employers are thus likely TO be
them. However, as a test case, the lockout
will probably do good service, Another
grievance urged is that under the present
system there Is an obstacle In the way Of
lads to learn trade. Workers,
OF course can be imported; but one naturally
wonders what lads leaving school are to do.
A serious Inconsistency has also been pointed
put. Tho questionable method Of exam
ming the tradebooks has been used. In
one case, though IL was proved that owing
making less than journeymen's wages, the
award for increased wage was upheld.
Ag ainst this, however. is the fact that in q
-ecent coal-mining dispute an increase Of
wages was not awarded because the books
If the company showed that there had not
,een sufficient profit to Justify an increase.
With such tangle Of complications and In
he face of the fact that the three men who
manage the court are just and conscientious
'eyond reproach, 1t Is evident that next
ution Of the Court OF Arbitration.
An inspection Of Calliope Dock has been
made by the Admiral Of the Australasian
quadron Of warships. This dock was fitted
u considerable expense that II might dc-
ommodate for repairs any ocean vessel,
ither war or mercantile. The Admiral
Expresses his opinion that the equipment Is
'ery thorough: that the machinery and
pparatus are Of the most modern type. The ,
Engineer Of the feet indorses the opinion,
nd justifes the colony in the expense and
rouble which the management suffered
n it's effort to have the Calliope Dock made ,
4 the utmost value to ocean-trayelhng
hips.
Returns for the season show that the
olony Is enjoying a time Of prosperity. I
'ruit and crops. cattle and produce gen.
rally, still yield exceedingly satisfactory
rices. The output of meat and butter
, very large, and promises to increase with G
he settlement that this year will see. Gum
beginning to be worked more deeply,
howing that up to the present the soil has r
My been tapped. An incident will show. y
light miles from the city OF Auckland. on l
md dug by gum dgeers for the last twenty il
r thirty years. a party Of Dalmatian diggers 7
scently bought n farm for COCO. Within p
wo months. as the result OF their labor. @
ley marketed E2o0 worth of kauri gum.
rom this IL Is evident that there is vet 4
ntold wealth in the deeper ground Of the b