THE DECLINE OF THE LABOR PARTY.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXXV, Issue 3804, 15 April 1913, Page 6

THE DECLINE OF THE LABOR PARTY.

(To the Editor.) ir,— A writer in your paper on Saturday last under the title of ‘‘AntiDrone” (which title evidently has meaning to somebody connected with the Labor movement), pretended not to know the cause of the inaction in the Labor movement. Anyhow, to enlighten this pretended friend of Labor who, 1 have a shrewd suspicion, is after a cheap advertisement lor 31 r Turner, I will give my opinion on the matter, and as one who knows and is not biassed in any way, you may be sure, Mr Editor, that 1 am relating bald facts’. Iwi 1 ask your readers to hark back to last election, when the late Mr Jackson, a Labor candidate, occupied a conspicuous position on the poll. A day or two after Ids election he unfortunately met an untimely death. A vacancy occurred in the Council—and here is where the trouble began in the Labor movement. The Sheridan party, to block the L.ysnar party, decided to support a Labor candidate, and demanded'a reply from tlie Progressive League at a few hours’ notice that, they would not oppose the Labor nominee, otherwise all kinds of “disasters” would happen. Mr Lysnar being away at the time gave the Progressive League a good opportunity to pretend to remain inactive in tlie matter. However, the Labor party took a ballot between. Messrs Anderson and Coleman, and Townley’s Hall was packed. There wore 130 members in the Labor Party, and about 350 votes were pollod. Mr Turner at this meeting bodily state! that the meeting was packed, and was howled down. Anyway, Mr Anderson got the nomination, and what looked the best of good things for his election—with the Shcridan-cum-Lahor Party behind him—turned out a fiasco. I have a shrewd suspicion that the Progressive League wore behind Mr Arthur Sawyer, for he scored an easy win. Then followed the butchers strikej which' was not as to conditions of hours or wages, but a question whether their union should be ruled from Gisborne or Auckland. The women who had to travel through dirty strects in the middle of winter have not forgotten the/ mad freak of the butchers on behalf of so-called unionism. Then followed the rule of the Federation of Labor, and the least said about it the better. We all know the cause of Labor has been retarded and ridiculed in that wild escapade. Then follows that inane strike of the slaughtermen, though at any time that body ba<l no sympathy from the worker on account of its conservative leanings. The latest is the Gentle Annie strike, and how they fell in is a matter of recent history. All those disasters have been brought about by men living on tlie game. If the worker will only think for himself and elect thoso who are genuine in tlie cause, their salvation is near at hand.-—Yours tlUl> ’ HARD GRAFTER.