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Save Himself Who Can. I

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Save Himself Who Can. I A WORKMAN'S VIEW OF THE MINING II SITUATION. I TO THE EDITOR. If there is one question that appears to stand I out baldly in relief at this particular stage of our industrial life, it is the recent order of the Government, re the Combing-out of the Mines Order. So vital has this question become, that it has aroused a section of the Miners' Federation,-a section that will make itself heard,—to the inevitable result that the miners' immunity from Compulsion is only a matter of time. The arrangement arrived at ISetween the Miners' Executive atad the Hdme Secretary while putting a coating of sugar on the pill, still lef t. the pill to be swallowed, and its effect to be felt if the men were examined in the most up-to- date consulting room, or given three months' grace" instead of two. The result of that in- terview brought before the Conference at Car- diff on Tuesday, February 13th inst., was quite the opposite to relief cfci the part of the majority of the delegates present. After the rejectment of th terms, we gettthe same old bogie warn- ing the miners that their mandates are not being carried out properly, and that a correspondent .has been ia communication with a miner who h as iia coin:riiun.ica, states that his lodge never gave such a mandate to their delegate, and that such delegates are voicing their own personal views. Even at the conference a miners' agent went so farls to say that, if the delegates of his district voted against the acceptance of the terms, he was sure that they ware not carrying out the wishes of the ma- jority of the workmen in "his" district. Is it not always the same, if the Executive prepare a scheme of some sort they are naturally incensed if the rank and file do not accept the same with- out question. That is a failure attributable either to their inability to stand criticism, or that they put self-aggrandisement before the real need of the workmen. I don't mean to say that an agent should sink his personality simply because he is a paid servant of the organisation, any more than he should try by that self-same personality to force his projects down the throats of work- men, when they do not COilne within the scope of his ideals. We know that the capitalist tries by all the means in his power to belittle the ideals of the working class movement, into such ana- t'hemas as, anarchy, revolutionaries, syndicalism and sociaSsm, and "PoaGe Cranks," but the un- ??db lI* me way in which kindest cut of all is the sublime way in which some of our Leaders co-operate with the capital- ist class in the furtherance af the war. Some of these leaders are men who have spent time at colleges learning our industrial history, logic (?) and economics, no doubt the learning of these subjects place them in privileged positions, it cer- tainly leaves them privileged to keep to them- selves the knowledge that the working class ought to have, and which they ought to convey to them in a fearless manner. Supposing they told the worker a little of the history of the Thirty Years AVai- when Germany was supposed to be effectually ruined, Flanders laid low, and peace did not come until utter exhaustion made it absolutely imperative, and every leader who took part in the beginning of the war was in his grarre. Or the Great War which was in pro- gress just a century ago, which cost us about 832 millons sterling, and the beautiful relations that existed between employer and employed; or a galley slave would be a better name for him, how 26 y" ears after this war there were 1,200 ar- ticles in the customs tariff. Wheat rose up to 100! per quarter. The poverty of the working cljiss at that time (and every other time, world without end, until the present system is broken) was the wealth of the wealthy, who being pri- vileged as a class did just as they liked; and as they do to-day, they obtained the prohibition of foreign corn except at famine prices, continually rose rente, until riots broke out everywhere, among agricultural labourers, miners, and arti- sans, who wreaked their vengeance on machines invented by the capita-list, thinking they (the machines) had stolen their bread. No doubt it is so much easier sailing with the stream, and to be at peace with the economically powerful; and those who are afraid to sta'te their real feelings, beeause of the powers that be, you can then with ¡ sa-fetf label those opposed to warfare on economic and other grounds (because of the great majority behind you); as smasher-s up of the great or- ganisation, the Miners' .Federation, owing to the face that you feel too raspectabLe to oppose what shall be to the everlasting discredit of a nation such as ours, Military Compulsion, and unveiled Industrial Compulsion. Dealing with delegates and their various functions when attending con- fereoees on behalf of the workmen, in a number of cases they do not al- ways get mandates, for instance, when called upon to receive Executive reports, with the result that they have to use such dis- cretion, which must fee guided by the attitude of their Lodges to such questions in the past. Some Lodges hold advanced views with regard to an Executive Council acting on behalf of the organi- sation, before consulting them as to what lines they shall proceed on, and much can be said for this procedure, it carries this added strength with it; that the strength of the whole organisation backs up the demands of the party who are de- pated to put the demand s forward. But here again you are faced with an injured dignity, and reproached for not trusting your accredited leaders, with threats to resign, and swhat not, and you giTe in; your position now becomes per- oeptably weaker, for had you insisted upon hav- ing the formulating of the demands before being submitted, you would not be called together until your demands were granted, or, on the other hand. absolutely refused. I had to listen to a delegate the other evening who told a mass meet- ing that he would refuse to go to the confer- ence unless they gave him a mandate to accept the report of the Executive Council on the ques- tion of the Comb-Out of the Mines. This dele- gate was over military age, and in my humble opinion the acceptance of this report was tanta- mount to the more privileged miner holding the whip hand, as it was upon the unanimity of his -vote, that would first of all send off the first ateh of workers conscripted from the mines; and thereby put off the evil time (perhaps for good) when he may have t. go himself. I should like to say that for these miners to be consistent with the way they voted, it would have been far more to their credit to have said, you are now recognised members of the Federation, we have accepted you as such, we shall ask in the name of the organisation, that we shall have the industry removed kom the schedule of barred indus- tries," we want to see the war fought out to a military and naval victory, and the only way pos_ sible is that we shall assist you, and not send you to the slaughter by reason of any privelege the way of immunity from Military Service s that we possess, you are somethl-ng more 1 a 2 ¡ a month brother," or we must pro- with all the vehemence and industrial weight we possess, to get this insidious measure; if rom our memories, at least from the Capital- Statute Book. How much easier you would in voud minds when you could say, If I ■ t this war to continue I will at once go to brother's assistance. All my bel owings and pourings are as a tree that bears no fruit, nothing but-leaves, "if I leave him to languish in his agony and do nothiag more than send someone out to him. Perhaps my vote may send out some chap with a wife and family, or a widowed mother, while I am a single follow, but exempted because I am a bonafide miner, I think war is fine and we IR haVe war, you know, the 'Bible say's so, therefore it must be true; and when wars finish altogether, that will be the end of the world." Now, when I think more serious- ly T. am sure this world would be worth livirlg in if we were at peace with one another, not rushing at one another's throats with bayonets, facing rifle, and machine gun, ugh! however could I have sent out this chap. Why in the name of common-sense aan't we stop it, ah! I have said it now, where was my commonsense a. few hours ago, I have only made it possible for it to be prolonged. What is now my position that I have begun to see, I don't want the war to continue, I want to get my ofcfam back; I might as well cry for the moon, I have lost the ideal that I once possessed by the return of com- mon-sense, lere appears nothing else to be done than to go out and reap the fruits of my own folly. Result, another true partiot, going out to fight for the freedom of the Old Country; and for the extension of capitalist monopoly. "Guerre a outrance. Those who are at present asking for peace are under a stigma, lboe who want the fight to pro- ceed are in the ascendant. Worked out to their logical conclusion what do they actually mean. You ask sor a fight to the bitter end, unin- structed democracy and capitalist alike; you are one in this, wastage of valuable man-power which the nation depends on for its future development, a, war of annexation and not ideal, increased ar- maments and standing armies, to finish all wars (?) stupendous war loans, that will only weaken our economic position, poverty arising out of the re-action of such, the spoils to the economically strong. What do you gain, a spurious wealth of compulsory statutes, brought about by your own blindness, and what the labourer returned will ultimately curse vou for. I C. G. FORESTER. ——

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