The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1919-03-20
THURSDAY MARCH 20, 1919
some 10000 that, had formerly be-
longed to the Federation of Labor, of
New ZEALAND
What Led Up to Strike.

New ZEALAND
What Led Up to Strike.
About sixteen months before the
great strike q miner at Huntly was
accidentally killed and the miners be-
longing to the union took a day off
to attend the funeral OF their COM
rade The mining company dis
charged the executive members of the
union for stopping work for. the fu-
nereal, claiming that this was break.
ing an agreement with the company.
The rest of the miners went on strike
at once Their places were filled by
other men, who proceeded to organize
a new union and. become registered
under the law of New Zealand, which
comes under the general arbitration
| act.
Then the Federation of Labor took
hand and ordered their striking
members 10 return TO work and to
join the new union. They did so, and
| soon obtained control Of this. new
When the mining company discov-
cred that the same old element that
had made trouble for them in the
| first place were again in control of
union affairs:i they again discharged
the executive board, which was COM
posed of. sixteen members. But the
company gave the excuse for this
discharge that they wanted to reduce
the force Of men working in the mine
Took OF, New Men.
But the next day the company took
on fourteen new men, The Fedora
ton of Labor then demanded that the
discharged miners be reinstated. The
company refused and strike was
called on the ground of vistimization,
term used. in England as well as in
all the Australian and New Zealand
states. RI Az.
In. the meantime the dispute be-
tween the old Federation Of Labor
and the new syndicalist union of the
| United Labor party, which Mr.. Mills
had helped to organize, was growing
more and more bitter. The fedora
ton called conference, which was
held in Wellington, N. H.. in January,
1913, for the purpose of considering
the dispute which, existed and which
was becoming more bitter each day
| between the two unions, and to find
out if there was not some ground
upon which. these differences could
be ir0ned out and a consolidation eff
fected
| Both Men Invited.
| Messrs. Mills and Tregear were
both invited to address the confer
ference, which they did and after
ward both We're appointed as members
of committee to- draft constitutions
for the two new unions. one to be po-
litical and the other industrial, but
both affiliated and working together.
This draft was to be submitted to a
general conference to be held in July
| following When the conference met
1t organized what is known all over
! New Zealand and Australia, too. as
| the "Red-Feds," ar the United Fed
Grafton of Labor and the, Social Dem
ocratic party.
! Eoth the political and industrial
unions were largely dominated by the
| |. w. w. who had come to New Zea-
land from Australia for the very pur-
pose Of:smaking a propaganda for
theft syndicalists0cialist ideals as
preacheia by Walter Thomas Mills in
Australia Mr.. Mills was elected a
general organizer for the Social Dem.
ocratic party, and in tie following
election this, party won six seats in
4 the New Zealand parliament. and in
the election for two seats following
! the great strike they won both.
..- ....,.. q, - Refused to Join.
A small part Of the former United
Labor party refused to join the Red
Feds" and still maintain an organiza-
ton somewhat like the old Socialist
Labor party Of this country.
1t was, therefore, this "Red-Feds"
that was really responsible for the
strike. It's purpose was to capture
the country throug,. violent upheav-
al and establish: the dictatorship OF
the world
The direct cause of the great strike,
however, was the discharge of thirty
shipwrights at Wellington. The or
ganized "Red-Feds' were looking for
an excuse to start the big strike, when
it was discovered ti.at these thirty
shipwrights had been pair for walk
ing to and from their work for a
number Of years. which amounted to
$1.25 a week. With this discovery
come the docking OF the $l.25 per
week. The men took an hour off to
COllSIucI otTIhc Hey fOLcu, now
ever, not to strike, and returned to
the shops, Were they found that
their places had been filled. This
was the spark that 3ignited the great
strike (which lasted ! for several
months until the organized farmers
came to the rescue with their Ameri-
can AK handles. o. ID.
War Quickly ovcS:.
But the war was quickly over when
/ the farmers took hand. Mills and
Tregear were completely defeated:
not only was the strike lost without
single concession given to the strik-
ers, but the farmers and the employ
ers, acting together, secured the en-
actment of a. law which prohibits a
strike being called in the future with
out a conference being held between
the dissatisfied workers and their en-
ployers. And it also prohibits strike
being declared except by secret bal.
lot of the>members Of the union