The great lock-out continues, and it is stated that the
masters are not now fighting upon the question of -Unions, but are deter- mined to put .an endlo the interference of Union secretaries with individual works. They disclaim all intention of abolishing Unions, but demand to be relieved from interference. We cannot of course record all the incidents of the struggle, but the drift of affirs seems to be that the Gateshead Executive is honestly deskous of compromise, that the Brierley4d11 Executive is -relue- taut to accede, that the men in the trade are becoming alarmed at the visible power which combination has given to the masters, and that all parties are growing ready to listen to offers of arbitration. .This is especially manifest in the tone of the other Trades Unions. On Wednesday their delegates carried resolu- tions denouncing the cruelty of the lock-out and the illegality of combinations among masters, but on Wednesday they agreed 'to tell the puddlers to consent to arbitration before asking other trades to help them. It now remains for the masters, as we -have - shown elsewhere, to take some step towards conciliation.
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