Bystanders' Notebook April 6, 1895.

*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.

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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.

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“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!”

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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.

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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.