30 R. GREIG-SMITH. 



exploited by capital ; it does not realise that it is feeding 

 upon capital, that capital produces labour and that capital 

 has its rights just as much as labour. It will not risk a 

 possible 7% when it can get a safe 4J% in Government 

 Stock. For the starting of new industries capable of 

 employing more labour, some security must be given by 

 labour to ensure there being a steady supply at a price 

 sufficient to justify the expenditure of capital. It is in 

 this direction that labour should mobilise itself. 



Waste Tin plate. 



But beyond the waste of labour there is the waste of 

 materials which might be saved if consideration were given 

 to the matter. Large factories can save where small 

 factories cannot, largely for the reason that the latter do 

 not consider the saving to be of sufficient importance. Take 

 the case of waste tinplate. That from a large Sydney 

 company was, before the war, bought by a Melbourne firm 

 which found that it could pay for the waste and pay for the 

 freight to Melbourne and yet make a profit. Smaller com- 

 panies having from three to five tons of waste per week 

 have to pay 5/- per ton to have it tipped. As it is so bulky, 

 there is a considerable amount of grumbling, and it is a 

 matter of a short time when it will have to be sent out to 

 sea at a cost of about 10/- per ton. 



For a firm to pay 30/- to 50/- a week to get rid of a waste 

 material is a small matter, but still it is a useless expendi- 

 ture. It is considered that the smaller firms in Sydney 

 will have a weekly aggregate of about 200 tons of waste 

 tinplate, which at present is being buried. There used to 

 be 5% of tin on tinplate, but recent improvements in the 

 manufacture have reduced this to about 3 % . A calculation 

 upon these data shows that 312 tons of tin are being thrown 

 away annually, and with tin at say, £170 per ton (it is at 

 £200 to-day) the money involved is approximately £53,000. 



