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31 
OUR INDUSTRIAL PROBLEMS. 
By “J.B.” (H. R. SLEEMAN, Whim Creek.) . 
A eomnion circunistance is that a discus: 
sion is misunderstood because its lumita- 
tions, premises aud objectives are not de- 
fined. This essay is limited to considering 
one phase only of our economic and wdus- 
trial life—that of the existing friction be- 
tween Labour aud Capital. It assumes 
that the present system of wealth distri- 
bution is to continue as to principle. Its 
objective is to hind and suggest procedures 
that may tend lo eliminate the friction and 
to replace it by wu spirit of co-operation. 
Industrial trouble has its root mainly in 
the desire of inditiduals to secure as much 
as possible, or what they believe to be 
their proper shate, of the general wealth 
production. It is part of the biggest 
problem of to-day--the social one. -Recoy- 
nition of this fact 13 essential to under- 
standing the situation and therefore to 
apy prospect of tormulating helptul ideas 
for its improvement. 
The present social system 18 based—as 
to its economic side—on the private own- 
ership of property, no legal limits being 
set to the amount of property to be own- 
ed by onc person or to the degree 
of inequality “thereby caused. Taxation is 
the only factor tending to check the de 
gree of accumulation in individual bands 
and that check 18 a feeble one. Present 
indications do not pomt to this commun- 
ity altering that system in the near fu. 
ture and its continuance is justifiably as- 
gummed in dealing with present problems. 
In this respect society has not greatly 
altered from pre-existing periods. In other 
directions, however. great changes have 
occurred in personal liberty; in elimi- 
nation of class privilege, other than that 
of wealth accumulations in political power; 
in the eqn: dispensation of justice; in 
free and universal education, ete. The re. 
sult of these clances (and partly their 
eause) has been the growth of a dese 
and determination among the majority of 
the poorer members of society to receive 
a, larger share of the community’s produe- 
tion (wealth). They see a proportion of the 
community's production absorbed by the 
owners of “eanital™ bv virtue solely of 
that ownership. They bebeve thal the pro- 
portion is unduly large, constituting an 
unjust drain on the products of their la 
pour. They desire, and often collective- 
ly demand, a larger share; heuce industrial 
disputes. 
Analysis of the rights and wrongs, if 
there be such, of this eondition is not 
the province of this essay, which 18 to 
liscuss the issue in the hght of existing 
facts. It will be geuverally agreed, how- 
aver, that industrial disputes have served 
Great Humanitarian Purposes 
in the near past. The social system, 
based on unrestricted individual owner. 
ship and individual! freedom of contract 
to sell one’s labour, oLvivusly tends wo the 
noorer classes selling their labour too 
sheaply, resulling in poverty and degrada- 
tion to large numbers. with deteriorating 
fects to the community as a whole. HKx- 
serience also has proved this. Industrial 
iisputes have been the main means of 
rounteracting this tendency. They have, 
;herefore, in the past, served adorable 
yurposes. Whether they do so, or are 
justified, to-day and in this country, is a 
question intimately associated with our 
oresent problem. 
it seems certain that, so long as fight~ 
mg for better conditions will result in se- 
quring them for the laboarer, such dis 
putes will continue Nor can the tact 
be criticised. It means simply that the 
labourer will do wimt others have done, 
and do. An essential question, therefore, 
13 can industry on the whole now give the 
labourer better conditions? Capital claima 
shat it cannot: Labour that it eam 
1f the primitive method of settling the 
difference~of fighting it out—ig toc be 
avoided, the obvious procedure seems so 
have the problema compeaten¥y investigate 
ed by men chosen for their ability to deal 
with it, for their disinterestedness and wm» 
nartiality. Recogmition—by both employee 
and employer classcs—of their possessing 
shose qualifications is desirable, perhapa 
sggential. Such men ave not easily found. 
gpecially as regards lis mutual recognise 
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