Enlarging the WORKER

*THE WORKER*

Brisbane, March 2, 1895.

The “Worker” Enlargement.

AN APPEAL

To unionists and Labour Friends.

The growing desire, particularly amongst members of the bush unions, in favour of enlarging the WORKER and thereby extending the sphere of its undoubted influence, has so often manifested itself that at the last annual meetings of the A.W.U. (Hughenden, Charleville, and Longreach) the trustees submitted proposals with a view of meeting the repeatedly expressed wishes. These proposals were readily accepted by the branches, and the A.W.U. annual conference authorised the trustees to appeal to their members for voluntary subscriptions to give effect thereto. Steps will be taken to acquaint other districts and branches of the Federation of the nature of these proposals with a view of eliciting their co-operation.

After a very careful calculation, the trustees find that to in some way approach the ideal of a very large section of WORKER co-operators an additional £1000 at least will be required to pay for increased machinery, paper, compositions, &c. If everybody who reads and takes an interest in the paper will give something there will be very little difficulty in raising this amount, whilst to the Board of Trustees the money so contributed will be a power for good which it is impossible to estimate.

In making this appeal the Trustees may be pardoned for again calling attention to the steady and continued enlargement of the paper since its establishment. As you will recollect, the WORKER first made its appearance in 1890 as a monthly in magazine form. By degrees it was enlarged and improved. To enable the trustees to carry on the present improved issue, the subsidy was unhesitatingly increased from 1s. to 3s. per annum. The difficulties attendant upon the production of a Labour journal more especially were added to by the passage through Parliament of the new Postal Act, by which the unanticipated expenditure was was increased £200 per annum. On the top of this difficulty came the unprecedented depression, which deprived many members of affiliated unions from carrying out their obligations besides forcing many others to seek employment outside Queensland. Yet in spite of these apparently insuperable difficulties, to which many old and new ventures have had to succumb, the WORKER has lived and grown, and is still supplied to members post free for something less than 1d. per member per week – really less than when it was first issued. Even now members of co-operating unions are receiving better value for their money than that given in the average penny, threepenny, and even sixpenny weeklies turned out by private persons or companies, and in the control of which they have neither my nor interest.

From the numerous letters and promises of support which continually flow into the WORKER office urging the enlargement, the trustees have good reasons for believing that this request to assist in further improving your own paper will meet with a ready and liberal response. The members of unions, friends and sympathisers of the Labour movement generally are therefore approached with every confidence for voluntary subscriptions, sufficient to enable them to issue a decent-sized paper in an attractive form which will not only champion the cause of Labour, but which will provide its readers with every variety of information which has now to be sought for in the papers of the enemy.

No limit is placed on the amount to be given. That is left to the giver. Let every one give what he honestly can. All subscriptions, whether they be large or small, will be gratefully received.

Books of subscription Tickets will be supplied, on application, by the secretaries of the Charleville, Hughenden and Longreach branches of the A.W.U. The General Secretary of the A.L.F. Will supply books of tickets to other districts of the Federation, or to anyone wishing to assist in the collection of funds. Subscriptions can also be sent to the under signed by those friends who may be out of reach of union or other collectors.

For the Trustees,

ALBERT HINCHCLIFFE,

General Secretary A.L.F.

Trades Hall, Brisbane.

February 26, 1895.