The Rise of the "Syndicate."
The failure of the Australian manufacturers' campaign had its ludicrous
side.
Prior to the termination of the war, all their talk was based upon these
war-cries--"German manufacturers must be wiped off the earth." "Kill
German trade and you kill their capacity for mischief." "Smash Germany
now for all time." So "Trade only with the Empire and its brave Allies."
It was noticeable what fraternal consideration the manufacturers gave
"the brave Allies."
As they put it ... "Those brave brothers of freedom are fighting
shoulder to shoulder with the sons of the Empire, mingling their blood
upon the fields of Europe in the battle for the world's civilisation."
So the "Brave Allies" were mentioned on every pamphlet issued during the
war.
Of course, there were a few oversights regarding the Allies.
For instance, in an exhibition of manufactured goods, only the
"Australian-made" were given any prominence. There may have been some
"made by the brave Allies," but they were not very conspicuous.
It was also an oversight forgetting the "Brave Allies" when the U.S.A.,
taking the occasion of the stoppage of trade with Europe, joined hands
with the Australian Governments in encouraging trade across the Pacific.
But the "Brave Allies" were mentioned in all the after dinner
speeches--till the end of the war.
Then came a change. The manufacturers dropped their cloak of hypocrisy
and made a straight-out appeal--"Only Buy Goods Made in Australia." The
"Brave Allies" were dropped. Heavy duties were requested on all imported
goods, whether they were made in Britain, Belgium, Bagdad or
Beloochistan.
But the manufacturers were too late. They should have played that
trump-card nine months before. Their first duty should have been to
Australia. Their battle-cries from the beginning should have
been--"Australia First"; and: "By being true to ourselves we can best
contribute to Empire solidarity"; also: "The increased strength of the
units will mean the more powerful whole."
Then the soldiers began to return from Europe. They found the same
trouble their comrades were meeting in England, most of the jobs they
had left had disappeared.
Many of the employers who had loudly boasted that the jobs of those who
enlisted would be kept waiting for them, had done practically nothing to
keep their promise.
During the war, when they should have been busy keeping the wheels
moving, they had lost confidence.
They had forgotten that the times called for the best in every man and
woman; that the first duty of those who could not go to the fighting
line of Europe was to get in the fighting line of business at home; that
full speed at home was absolutely necessary not only to keep a level of
prosperity that would, at the end of the war, find the country well
prepared to meet the inevitable heavy taxation, but to keep business at
full strength so that when our soldiers returned they would have found
places ready to be filled.
They had forgotten that slump is often only a mental attitude, and that
even bad times can be bettered by putting an extra ounce into every
pound of business energy. They had forgotten that if everyone made a
move business would shift along at a faster pace. But they had done
nothing but talk; so trade slackened generally and lack of business made
many other vacant places besides those vacated by the men who went to
the Front.
Australia wanted a commercial Kitchener, to get together business
managers and labor leaders, and talk them into a better business
output.
Instead of uniting together for the one common end to speedily end the
war with credit to the Empire, politicians still kept up their bitter
contentious legislation.
Instead of concentrating the whole of Australia's political machinery on
the defence of the Empire and heartening the men with the knowledge of
whole-souled support and sympathy, Australian Labor Governments devoted
most of their attention to paltry party politics.
Instead of inviting workers to put in a little extra vim in time of
stress; in fact, to be a bit more generous in their output, the labor
leaders urged the workers to be more militant, to grip bad times as a
fitting occasion to demand more wages and less hours. So the employers
sat entrenched behind their desks, watching the political moves of the
workers, as the Allies peered at the Germans across the trench edges of
the Aisne--sat there till the soldiers came home and found no work to
do.
There were cheers for them when they went out and they got some more
when they came back, but they did not get much else. And they kept on
coming back. A foolish politician blurted out: "Those unemployed
soldiers are becoming a public nuisance."
The Federal Prime Minister, by whose Ministry the military forces were
controlled, was in a quandary.
On one side, the manufacturers were telling him how to solve the
problem.
"Put on thumping big taxes and help our factories to get busy, then we
can take on the unemployed soldiers."
On the other side, the importers were advising the Prime Minister to
drop the customs tariff and allow imports free. That, they explained,
would cheapen the cost of living, and those out of work would have a
better chance to live.
Then the "Syndicate," which had now grown to a great size, which, in
fact, was controlling Government work in all the States, had a long
consultation with the Prime Minister.
"Never mind the manufacturer," it said. "Remember, there are three
stages in this country's development--Pastoral, Agricultural, and
Manufacturing. The latter should be the last considered by Australia,
which is a pastoral and agricultural country. We can develop Australia
as it should be developed, by constructing irrigation schemes and
opening agricultural areas. We could solve your unemployed problem, give
your soldiers a good living wage and increase your country's prosperity.
All we ask is that the Federal Government follow the States' example,
and pay us 10 per cent. on the first five years expenditure, the whole
amount of which we shall return at the end of that period with five per
cent. added, provided you arrange with the States to give us, free of
taxation, land they do not require."
A hurried conference of State Premiers was called and the situation was
carefully studied. Unemployed were crowding Australian cities. Private
enterprise was being crippled by the heavy income taxes imposed by State
Governments to pay the increasing cost of the "Syndicates" controlling
the Public Works of the various States. It was admitted that these works
were being efficiently carried out, and being mostly railway and
developmental constructions, they would be productive when completed.
Still, with private enterprise choked off, investment was at a low
level. The manufacturer was also being hard hit, for although some of
the tariff duties imposed by the Federal Government helped him, each
State appointed a Necessary Commodities Commission to regulate prices.
The manufacturer, who was being helped by the tariff, had to pay high
wages to manufacture his goods, but the Commodities Commission prevented
him raising his prices so that he could not sell at a profitable figure.
He, therefore, shut down and threw another mob of unemployed on the
market.
Another factor that affected the matter was the great flow of
immigration forwarded to Australia from Europe.
The Great War had put a sort of terror into the souls of men, and the
fear of heavy taxation that threatened to follow drove them across the
seas.
Every boat carried its full complement; so that when the "Syndicate"
declared its intention to open up agricultural areas, each State
recognised that this would not only absorb the unemployed, but as land
development meant development in other quarters, a general prosperity
would naturally follow. Hence they vied with each other in offering free
of charge the choicest Crown lands.
The States recognised that the Crown lands had cost them nothing, and
that the Commonwealth, having control of customs and land taxation,
could easily raise the money for the cost of developing them.
So the "Syndicate" idea began to develop, and many capitalists who were
being driven out of Europe by the uprising of Socialism, came to
Australia and quietly invested in the "Syndicate" until the world saw
the anomaly of a Socialistic country having all its public works and
great armies of workers under the control of a capitalistic syndicate,
which was now getting the opportunity to extend its scope of action by
being offered tax-free land areas!
* * * * *
I will not soon forget the joy of having that letter from Australia. It
was the second I had received since the Great War began.
I read it to Helen in a pretty little house which was perched upon the
cliff above the Meuse, at Dinant, and which was our honeymoon home.
Madame had come in to spend some days with us, and as I read the letter
before the glowing fire, for it was in the winter of 1916, I could see
her eyes sparkle with interest.