the judge decided most of the cases in favor of the
policy of increasing wages. Fine, again. Many wage scales ascended.

"But the judge, as a rule, did not like his job. He desired to get
to the Supreme Court as rapidly as possible; to the Supreme Court
where the honors were. A succession of judges went by. At last came
one that agreed with the employers that wages were too high for the
welfare of the country. This had long been a complaint of the
manufacturers in particular, who were fond of pointing out how high
wages discouraged the opening of new factories, and consequently
the development of the country. This judge, being of the same
opinion, apparently, began to decide the cases the other way.

"Then, of a sudden the second fatal defect in the system opened up.

"The men grew restless under the adverse decisions of the court.
That raised a new question.

"How are you going to compel men to work when they do not wish to
work under the conditions you provide?

"Nobody had thought of that."

Referring, then, to the failure to prevent the strike of the
slaughterers against the law in 1907, or to punish them after they had
forced their employers to terms, Mr. Russell gives the Socialist opinion
of the legislation of 1908, passed to remedy this situation:--

"At the next session of Parliament it amended the law to meet these
unexpected emergencies and find a way to compel men to work.

"To strike after a case had been referred to the court was now
made a crime, punishable by a fine, and if the fine were not paid,
the strikers' goods could be distrained and he could be imprisoned.
Any labor union that ordered a strike or allowed its members to
strike was made subject to a fine of $500. Outside persons or
organizations that aided or abetted a strike were made subject to
severe penalties.

"Fine, again. But suppose the labor unions should try to evade the
law by withdrawing from registry under the act? _Government thought
once more, and produced another amendment by which the penalties
for striking were extended to all trades engaged in supplying a
utility or a necessity, whether such trades were organized or not._

"You could hardly surpass this for ingenuity. 'Supplying a
necessity' would seem to cover about everything under the sun and
to make