Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-07-14
|DOCKERS ARE BITTER
Masters Insistence on Petty
Point Causes Appeal.
ATTACK LORD DEvoNPoRT
Head Of Port Authority Should Be
0stracised, Says Parliament Mem
Der, for Unyielding Attitude.

LONDON, July 13.-The announce
ment that King George had decided to
abandon his visit to East London July II
when he was to cut the first sod Of the
Royal Albert dock extension. has served
to remind many of his subjects that the
lockers strike is still in progress.
Terrible suffering prevails in the cas-,
Of London owing to the prolongation
Of the strike, and many families are on
the point of actual starvation. The stri e
is now in the eighth week. and both
sides are holding out stubbornly.
Only one point Is really at issue. The
men demand that the masters meet their
representatives for a discussion of griey-
ances. The masters refuse to negotiate
until work is resumed.
The Bishops of London, st. Adams and
Southwark in joint letter to the press.
have emphasized the small margin of diff
scribe as a national calamity and "a
reproach to Christianity The three
bishops pleaded for help for the starving
women and children-the innocent vic.
TINS OF the unfortunate dispute, and con-
tinued:
The men express their willingness to
so back to work at once, If, after they
have gone back, committee shall be
formed, containing some OF their repre-
sentatives, to examine into the question
Of their grievances on the basis of Sir
Edward .Clarke's report.
The employers, on the other hand,
declare that on the resumption OF work
the freeSt submission of grievances will
be allowed to the employees and just and
generous consideration will be promptly
accorded. to them.
Can it really be upheld that this slen-
der margin of differences justifies the
continuance Of the misery to individuals
and loss to the community which this
strike involves? Any real investigation
Of the alleged grievances must involve
some consultation with the men. Cannot
some arbitrator having the confidence OF
both sides suggest a formula which may
bring the employer and the employed to-
gether and thus close a dispute which Is
causing untold misery and fnjurlng the
whole country? aa
The government has declared It's inahl-
ity to interfere beyond offering its serv-
ices as arbitrator, which the port of Lon
don authority, headed by Lord Devon
port, has refused to accept.
The bitterness of the strikers is growing
to such q point that attacks upon the
"blacklegs.' or strikebrea kers, are OF
almost daily occurrence, while Lord Dew
onport is the object of such personal
abuse as has rarely been directed against
an employer Of labor in England.
Lord Davenport Attacked.
One member of parliament. addressing
the strikers. held up the name of Devon
port to execration, and said that kine
George should refuse to receive at court
q man who was causing widespread suf-
fering by abuse of the authority invested
in him.
THE British aristocracy should ostra-
else Davenport" added the speaker. And
at least one member OF the aristocracy
has plainly shown his disapproval of Lord
Devonports intransigeant attitude. This
is the Marquis of Tul1ibardine, son OF
the Duke of Atholl, who asked Lord
Davenport for an interview in which tc
lay before him certain facts relating to
the strike, Lord Davenport refused tc
meet Lord Tullibardine or to receive a
message from him. although. as the mar
quis pointed out, he was neither an inter
mediary nor an interceder.
Lord Deyonport's position is summed ur
in his own words thus:
THE bishops who are raising the relief
funds would be better advised if they
counseled all the men to return to wors
instead of exerting their influence in the
direction of inducing the authority to
consent to some condition or conditions
precedent to men resuming work. Again
and again 1t has been declared by the
authority that no such arrangement viii
be entertained. The strike originated In
despotic attempt to coerce, all workmer
to accept the domination of the Transport
Workers Federation.
Il venture to think that the labor lead.
ers are trifling with a situation of pa
thetic gravity, and the bishops and
others would do better to direct their at
tention to the real problem of rescuins
suits of their unjustifiable action by
counseling the men to resume work.
Defense Of Davenport.
Lord Davenport does not lack defenders.
While, on the one hand it Is argued
that British capital, as represented
by the port Of London authority, is
counting eventual disaster for the sake
OF merely temporary success in the
lockers strike. which was begun without
proper organization and with inadequate
funds. on the other hand it is contend
ed that no better opportunity is likely to
offer of teaching labor. once and for all,
that it put its money on the wrong
horse when 1t followed the advice OF the
Tilletts, Goslings and other syndicalists
strike leaders. ..ssy4-s
The conditions in London at present
are likened by one observer to the con-
ditions in Paris in 1874, when Lamartine
Qellt0IeQ MS IaIlOuS WARNING 10 Iu6 81
cialistic government of France that its
policy of attacking capital was like dry
ing up q spring in order to increase the
flow OF water. 40
AT the present time" writes Sir. Gull
ford Wordsworth, I'VE have Mr.. Lloyd
George .limehousing' against the idle rich
and ignoring the fact that by his incen-
diary speeches and by his socialistic
measures against capital he has dried up
the spring. of labor and created a large
class of pauper idlers hundred times
more dangerous to themselves and others
than the rich idler. -:..-...r
1--WE have also the wind-bag agitator
Of Tower Hill, who, whilst holding UP, to
execration the rich .idler, has been, the
means of creating a huge class. of pauper
idlers in the east of London, thereby eX-
posing thousands of poor to restitution
and starvation.
us he to be allowed to complete his
historical parallel by bringing upon the
country fsanguinary catastrophe similar
to that of July, 184s, when the pauper
idlers created in Paris by the action of
the government, rapidly increased from
$1,000 to 100000 and broke into an insur-
rection, which was only queled after
heavy street fighting in which 5000 per-
sons lost their lives and Paris was
wrecked?'