with the information at its disposal labour conditions in China. this country dealt respectively with application of factory legislation to factories within and without extra territorial jurisdiction; a special convention for regulating hours of work in the textile in dustry; the formation of a special committee to study Asiatic Labour issues.
Properly constituted, the establishment of a committee as outlined in the third resolution might be of real practical value. Geneva itself might benefit, for it then would— or should—be able to secure on labour conditions here. more accurate or, rather, more complete data, than appear to be presently available to its chief labour organ. Oriental experience has advised caution in approaching proposals made by the West in the name of progress for adoption by industries in the East. It so often happens that earnest reformers concentrate thei: attention on those und takings which, by a curious coi cidence, are most in compet with western enterprise. The point should not be pressed too far; partly because such procedure shows a practical perception of the advantage of rapidly mobilizing the maximum support for undeniably beneficent reforms. Moreover, in spite of certain dubious happenings of the past, the spirit of reform is now less open to scepticism because, in the conferences at Geneva, represen tion of Labour itself, as well as of governments and employer is secured. The spectacle of a group of western employers forcing factory form on the East in the acred name of progress and with an alert eye to competition cannot now be enacted, although it must be remembered that even the in-nce of western Labour on those not free from a live makes it all the more China should appreciate the strength of the move-mani which asks her to put her industrial house in order for, having a good case in demanding regulation on humanitarian grounds, world, well-versed in the technique of collective bargaining, is thrown by the is not going to lose the opportunity of equalizing conditions of competition. Mixed motives can be discerned in Geneva's solicitude, but as the main objective is the advancement of labour's interests they cannot be effectively impugned. For example, recognizing as Geneva does that it is impracticable to apply a forty-hour week to China's textile industry, as it is, in fact, to that industry in other countries, it is obvious that strenuous efforts will be made to bring conditions here closer into accord with those prevailing elsewhere. The contrast between the standard of a forty-hour week and the 75 hours per worker in China is all the more eloquent because there is virtually no difference between cotton mills here of whatever ownership—Chinese, Japanese or British, The International Labour Conference makes no concealment of its intention to yoke the fear ai competition with reformative zeal.
This emerges from its reference to ies on Chinese tervitor within the Settlement should not derive an unfair competi vantage by ay goth elves of the absence of labour standards.
1n other words, fairness in competition is as respectable an ideal as humanitarian treatment' of The emphasis on fairness leads to the thought that the Conference would do well to obtain more authoritative information on the actual state of factory legislation here. It is true that the resolution which presses for application of factory laws appears, owing to the omission of the word "foreign", to include Chinese-owned factories within its purview, but the preamble makes it clear that the proposal is really based on the belief that factories under extraterritorial jurisdiction lack standards which are duly enforced elsewhere. The time has come when the contention that extraterritoriality obstructs the working of China's Factory Law should be critically examined. The Conference's apparent belief that nothing has been done in the International Settlement of Shanghai requires correction by reference to the Shanghai Municipal Coun: oils report on its Industria Section's admirable educative and persuasive activities. Not that progress is absent from Chinese-controlled areas. During the recent celebrations of the City Government's Tenth Anniversary, the Industrial Safety Exhibition gave evidence of an advance in applying principles of safety under the ry Law. Moreover despite rtual abeyance of that Law as a whole, real effort is being made by preliminary spade-work which, before long should take effect when questions of jurisdiction have been determined. In June 1936, the Shanghai Municipal Council and the City Government reached agreement for the applica tion of certain fundamental provi sions of the Factory Law to the International Settlement. The Consular Body approved in principle but demanded a verbal clarification of the position of extra-territorially-owned factories. Subsequent suggestions from the Municipal Council are, it is understood, under the consideration of the City Government. Advantage might be taken of the forthcoming visit of Mr. Harold Butler, the Director of the International Labour Office at Geneva, to enlist his aid in finding a solution, China cannot afford to let matters rest where they are, for the Conference will now press on the attention of all Governments concerned the drafting of a convention to rectify what it regards s the absence of labour standards in factories here. Mr. Butler's visit should be also utilized to furnish him with a more accurate appreciaference presumably did its best] tion of the International Settlement's position, which should be to come to a fair appreciation of presented with greater clarity than The appears to have been possible so resolutions of special importance {o lar. The time has obviously come when the anomaly of the Settle-men's inability to secure effective presentation of its policy at Geneva should be corrected. It has been breached, notably in regard to the opium issue. Mr, Butler can be usefully encouraged to assist in its complete elimination,"provided, of course, that the diplomatic arbiters of the Settlement's destiny are prepared {o discharge their duties properly.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.