The Haslingden Gazette. — 1908-09-12 (Haslingden, Lancashire, England)

NOTES FOR WORKMEN. ACCRINGTON & DISTRICT GAS I AND WATER BOARD.  BY "TACKLES.'  Does anybody expect me to review in detail the proceedings of the Trade Union Congress? Would anybody read it if I did? The only answer to these questions is an emphatic negative. Accord. ing to the chairman of the Congress (Mr. David Shackleton, the 01le measure of outstanding intportance to Labour introduced into Parliament during the past year is the Licensing Bill. This is the sort of political fustian for the propagation of which trade unionists are compelled to pay levies. If loanegyrics on the Licensing Bill are what trade unionists want, they flVell not go to the Trade Union Congress. They can hear the thing much better done at a teetotal convention or a Liberal caucus demonstration. And instead of paying salaries to MP's to do it they can have " without money and without price. '  The one matter of real interest to the working classes that came up at the Trade Union Congress was the matter of the low wages paid by certain religious and philanthropic agencies. General Booth thinks he is doing a merciful and beneficent thing sshen he finds work for a certain class of destitute nten at on wages. The work done by these men i often put in conipetition with work ; done by trade unionists who are paid the standard rate. The emplosers who or, psi tog trade union wages discover that they cannot compete with the work turned out by General Booth's philanthropic agency." Consequently trade unionists complain that General Booth is running u sweating shop. • • •  To this complaint General Booth has made a de. tailed reply. He says if he did not employ these men they would become tramps, criminals, and suicides. He can onl afford to pay them such wages as they are worth. If he paid them the standard rate he would lose thousands of pounds. bloauso a. workmen they are only partially efficient. At first glance this seems plausible. But in studying economic and labour questions one must look beyond the end of one's nose.  Suppose these philanthropic agencita (partly supported by public subscriptions) are allowed to go on making goods to compete with track union made goods. What is the result': Slowly but surely trade union made goods are shut out by the goods of the " philanthropic agency." What follows front that': Trade unionists are thrown out of stork. Where do they go tot Most of thorn sink down and down and become part of the human wreckage that the "philanthropic agency professes so rescue.  The whole process is so easy to understand that it is marvellous that men liki• General Booth fail to understand it. Be pleads that he is rescuing human wreckage. But the agency that he employs to do this is the very agency that is creating more and more human wreckage. That is ‘shy trade unionists have protested, and will continuo to protest. against these so-called philanthropio agencies which put on the market goods that dine fait° with trade union made goods. The Trade Union Congress ought to hale emphatically condemned this sort of thing by resolution. They are very keen at passing resolutions on all sorts of subjects. tnany of which have only a *cry remote bearing on Labour matters: but when they are invited to pass a resolution condemning philanthropic agencies which turn trade unionists out of their jobs. Mr. Shackleton and other prominent leaders hold up their hands and say. "Please don't do it, it might hurt somebody's feelings"; , arid so the thing is passed over and left for the Parliamentary Committee to deal with in private. If ever there was an instance in which the Trade Union Congress stultified itself and proved its own futility and uselessness this is the one. Windbag resolutions it will pass by the bushel. Real, useful. practical. fighting resolutions it dare not pass for fear somebody's feelings might be hurt !