*THE
WORKER*
BRISBANE,
APRIL 6, 1895.
Bystanders'
Notebook.
THE
BLACKLEG.
In
criticising the doctrines of political opponents, or when
animadverting upon their actions, I do not like to wantonly embitter
controversy by the injudicious use of offensive epithets, or to
irritate the sensitive feelings of conscientious controversialists by
a parade of party catch-words. It is well established maxim that
“Abuse is not argument against use.” Now, to make these remarks
specific, it is but just to say that, by capitalists and
non-unionists, the word “blackleg” is regarded as an “offensive
epithet.” Nevertheless the word has passed into current use in this
country, and has become a very descriptive metaphor. It expresses a
significant object, therefore I have no hesitation in applying it to
those to whom I thought it pretty applicable.
*
* *
MY
OPINION OF HIM.
As
an individual worker, and a firm believer in the principle of “a
living wage,” I will candidly give my opinion of the blackleg. I do
not believe him to be the “true pioneer of industry, the standard
bearer of freedom.” I think Dicker eulogises him thus, but I quote
from memory: “I believe the blackleg to be a pusillanimous fool, a
stupid opponent of social reform, a willing slave of the cruel,
selfish, money-grabbing capitalist. I believe the blackleg to be the
enemy of the honest, high spirited, intelligent worker – the
unionist. I believe the blackleg to be the standard-bearer of
class-oppression, the dupe of soulless, designing employers, the
pioneer of wage-slavery. Indirectly the blackleg has assisted to
perpetuate the grinding and miserable system of modern serfdom. The
blackleg has ever been the wretched, willing, unreasoning tool
whereby the capitalists have been enabled to defeat the many just,
manly and heroic attempts that have from time to time been made by
the unionists to secure the emancipation of Labour from wage-slavery.
Next to the bloated, tyrannising, self-aggrandising capitalist
stands, as the enemy of Democratic workers, the degraded, soulless
blackleg, who has, on more than one occasion in the country, been
responsible for the failure of strikes, which had for their laudable
object the amelioration of suffering Labour. The blackleg is the dupe
of capitalistic sophistry, the victim of ignorance, and is the
mercenary wretch who, under the banner of class oppression, will
fight for the capitalists against his own brothers, his own class,
the Democratic and Socialistic workers of the world.
FRANK ASTERISK, GYMPIE.
*
* *
“SOCIETY!”
This
is how Robert Blatchford, editor of the Clarion,
eloquently describes present day society in an article on the New
Party: “A class of useless and idle superior persons consuming and
wasting the wealth produced by the toilers and calmly assuring those
toilers that the more wealth is wasted the more employment will it
find the poor in producing still more! A press, ruled less by its
editors than its advertisement canvassers, prating of military glory,
with half the Crimean veterans in the workhouse! A church preaching
serenely of the religion of Jesus Christ, and voting in solid phalanx
against every attempt at the practical realisation of Christ's
doctrines! A populace singing “Britons never, never, never shall be
slaves,” yet not so much as daring to put their thoughts into words
for fear lest they should loss their work! A great nation of
shopkeepers who think God only good for one day in the seven, who
attach a “property qualification” to all offices where brains and
probity are most needed; who describe adulteration as another form of
competition: who brazenly pretend that greed, vulgarity, injustice,
and the degradation and disfigurement of the country and the people
must be maintained for fear art and enterprise and literature and
heroism should become extinct!”
=============
THE Greeks intend to revive the Olympic games, and a
committee has been formed at Athens to take in hand the revival of
athletic sports on the celebrated sites of the contests of ancient
times. Next year will see the first of these meetings.
=============
Paper
Money.
The
Hon. John Rigg – the at one time president of the Trades Council
and also of the late Mr. Ballance to represent Labour in the
Legislative Council, but who, since his elevation from the ranks, has
ceased to be an active member of these bodies – gave an address on
Monday evening at the Citizen's Institute on “Paper Money.” These
were John's chief propositions: (1) That under existing conditions
paper money is a necessity; (2) that paper money has never been used
until coin has failed, and has generally been productive of good; (3)
that an inconvertible paper money issued by a stable Government, a
legal tender for all debts, receivable in the revenues, and issued in
reasonable proportions to the revenues, is preferable to metallic
money.
An
interesting discussion followed the paper, but whether the Government
Printer will get an order to increase his stock of paper the WORKER
correspondent is not sufficiently in the know to know, you know.
No comments:
Post a Comment