Letters to Editor July 20 1895.

*THE WORKER*

BRISBANE, JULY 20, 1895.

Mail Bag.

WANTED – (to prepare the way for Socialism in our Time):

One Adult One Vote.

Land Tax.

Income tax.

State Bank.

Shops and Factories Act.

Eight hours day where practicable.

Referendum and Initiative.

Taxation of every person according to ability to pay.

The State to find work for unemployed.

The State to fix a minimum wage.

Free Railways. Free administration of Justice.

The WORKER does not hold itself responsible for the opinion of its correspondents.

B. N. - Had to curtail.

ONE WHO KNOWS. - Later.

FERDINAND. - Not the same.

W. K. - Thanks for answer.

SCEAFTON, B. - Will reply later.

F. - All right. Will appear by and-bye.

G. R. Cunnamulla – Have written to you.

THE DOCTOR – Rather lengthy. Must hold over.

D. C. D. - Fine of 4d. on your letter which arrived unstamped.

Lizzie Orchard denies Paddy Reilly's statement about the ducks.

C. W. Engine Driver, Mackay, “MAYLIGHT,” CENTRAL RAILWAY STOREKEEPER. - Held over.

J. S. - No inconvenience. Try again some day. Building poetry is hard graft for most people.

F. Mejued writes from St. Petersburg. Russia; “Please send me a specimen copy of your periodical.”

INQUIRER – Yes; we are informed that Mr. Webster, master baker, of South Brisbane, is a regular attendant and deacon at the Vulture-street baptise Chapel, and teaches in the Sunday School.

UNDER THE WHIP – Squatter law. Impossible to remove it from the Statue-book while there are such a horde of Government supporters in Parliament. Get your name on the roll and next election vote for the Labour man.

Swaine – Only One:

It's enough to drive one balmy-

In fact I'm a bit that way -

Not quite so much as one old cove

I passed the other day,

His swag was a load for a bullock dray,

I thought it his turn for exemption,

For the corks in his hat and the billy of pups

Proved he was gone beyond redemption.

ED. WORKER – Re the dismissal of a certain girl. It seems to me that certain hotelkeepers require a servant to combine callisthenics with cookery, and I hope all union men will give those hotels in which girls are employed 131/2 hours a day a wide berth. - CHARLES FOLLIS, Aramac, July 2.

ED. WORKER – A hint to bushmen: On the Warrego River a certain storekeeper advertises himself as selling his articles at Brisbane prices. Welsh flannel shirts at 4s. 6d. each. I went to his store and asked for same. He showed me some inferior kind at 4s. I told him what he sold to others not far away. He replied that he could not let me have them at the same price. Do you mind! Second prices! - D. COURER DOYLE, Cunnamulla.

ED. WORKER – I have after a four years' struggle got my name on the electoral roll. I had to rent a room from a selector, Mr. James Wells, Spring Dell farm, and he and I had to stand a protracted and vexatious examination on oath and to employ a solicitor to argue the case with the P. M. before he would grant my claim to the franchise, although I am a resident of this district for over ten years. That will show you how some people wish to enslave the workingman out back. Hoping that many more will rent rooms and thus get on the electoral roll. - JOHN LENANE QUINN, Cunnamulla.

Ed. WORKER – About St. George way, some of the townspeople are seeing to the electoral rolls, and many names have been added. It remains for Cunnamulla to make a move in the same direction, and, then, perhaps the workers may be able to send in a man who will look more after their interest than the present member. It is by political means, workers, that you will better your condition, and so with your unions as a means to an end-workers, see to it! You can obtain reforms such as, for a temporary expedient, a Minimum Wages Act, and an Act compelling owners to be responsible for men's wages employed on contracts let by them. Therefore, workers, keep awake; get your names on the roll and vote for men pledged to your's and humanity's cause. - C.

ED. WORKER – There seems a tendency to depend solely upon Parliament for reform, but in my opinion the true reformer will not depend upon Parliament nor will he himself try to get there, but his place will be in the public hall or at the street corner at all times preaching the gospel of discontent. The average man will do as a delegate of the people in Parliament. The time has passed when a Burke or a Fox or even a Pitt could alter the opinions of the men who compose Parliament. Their minds are already formed for what measure they will vote, so at the present time it is the duty of the Labour Party in the House to use their position as a means of educating the great mass of toilers. Our present platform is not a straight out Socialistic platform, but that does not stop a member from expressing Socialistic views. In my opinion we are wasting time in going on with this palliative platform. Our movement depends upon education, and it is just as well to go down to the bedrock of principles as to be wasting our energy over what we ought to know are only partial schemes for the evils under which we live. The platform as published in 1890 by the Federation, especially that part of it which is called “Political aims of the Federation” ought now to be included in our fighting platform, for rest assured if we do not adopt it now the time is not far distant when we shall have to take it up, or else there will arise a new party which will march on, for stand still we cannot. - FERDINAND, Gympie.

ED. WORKER – A case came before the Thargomindah bench under the Masters and Servants Act-Webber v. a “horny-handed son of toil”- in which the plaintiff, Webber, prosecuted the defendant for “absenting himself from his hired service (as cook) without sufficient cause.” The bench was packed by the great unpaid-J. Cordner, Knight, and Mawedal-three personal friends of the plaintiff; and, bear in mind, previous to this case, the P.M., Mr. Nixon, adjudicates all the year round without any assistance from the unpaid beaks. The cook's defence was that his wife became seriously ill through a miscarriage, resulting from bad treatment during a heavy lot of washing she was compelled to go through, and that when she was sick in bed the plaintiff and his wife insisted on her getting up and continuing her labours; added to this, that the defendant and his wife swore that they had not enough to eat while in plaintiff's employ, consequently they left the employ in good faith that they had sufficient cause to absent themselves. The result of the trial was-the defendant to pay a penalty of £11. 10s., amount of coach fare from Hungerford, or go to gaol for fourteen days, which sentence he is now taking out in the local lockup, as he had no money to pay for entering an appeal. I think you will admit that none of the unpaid beaks understand as much about the masters and Servants Act as a monkey does of baking bread; yet this is the way that justice is dealt out in the back blocks whenever broadcloth is weighed against hobnail boots in the scale of justice. - THARGOMINDAH, June 29.