284 A HISTORY OF THE COLONY OF VICTORIA 



drawn there by curiosity, and as their interest was not intense, a 

 squall of rain very materially reduced the numbers before the pro- 

 gramme was finished. Amongst the speakers at this meeting was 

 Mr. H. H. Champion, an English labour leader, who had taken a 

 prominent part in the London Dock strike of the previous year. He 

 adopted so temperate a tone, and so strongly dissuaded the meeting 

 from attempting to coerce non-union workers, that a revulsion of 

 feeling set in against him, and he was charged with being an emissary 

 of the capitalists. A few days later he published an able review 

 of the position, and urged the strikers to surrender some of their 

 claims to avoid a certain and ignominious defeat. The accuracy of 

 his forecast was proved by results, but in the meantime the committee 

 broke with him entirely, and bitterly denounced him as an employers' 

 spy who had come into their counsels under false pretences. 



Having rejected the idea of compromise, an Intercolonial Labour 

 Conference was called, which sat in Sydney for three weeks, 

 and proceeded to take desperate steps to bring matters to a final 

 issue. The coal miners at Newcastle were called out, followed by 

 the men who worked the hydraulic cranes, and all wharf labour, 

 both there and in Sydney. The Melbourne committee realised that 

 the stoppage of coal supply, necessitating the closing of many fac- 

 tories, was not only increasing the crowd of idle men already on 

 their hands, but was daily reducing the number of workers upon 

 whom they could levy for strike pay to support them. They sent 

 emissaries to Newcastle to charter a coal steamer to keep business 

 going, but the miners were suspicious and declined to resume opera- 

 tions, though assured that the vessel would be run on strict union 

 lines. Finally, as a last effort to terrorise the community, the Inter- 

 colonial Conference decided to aim a final blow at Australia's main 

 industry, and on the 24th of September they ordered all the shearers 

 throughout the country to cease work. This was their trump card, 

 but it proved their undoing. The pastoralists, who had weakly tried 

 to conciliate the Unions by submitting to their dictation, now found 

 themselves thrown over at the most critical period of the year ; while 

 their neighbours, who had at great cost and personal risk fought the 

 fight of free labour, were enabled to get their wool cut and baled, at 

 any rate, even if they were blocked in sending it away. Within a 



