6 JULY 1872, Page 3

The Builders' Strike still goes ou, and while the masters

have de- clared that they are willing to concede the principle of referring the whole dispute to a Board of Arbitration consisting of equal num- bers of masters and men, with a referee to be appointed by the Board as umpire, the men declare they will consider no proposal that is not sent to them direct by the masters, and seem inclined to stick to their nine-hours demand as a sine qua non. The Beehive, in an excellent article, has condemned them for repudiating a principle so essential to their cause as that of Arbitration, and we are not at all sure that the men themselves are not conscious -of having committed a gross mistake.