Mr. Baldwin's scheme has, as a matter of fact, con-
siderable possibilities. The Arbitration Tribunal, for one thing, might be made to gather about it such powers that the whole settlement would in effect be that national settlement which the miners demand. At present, of course, it is proposed that the Tribunal should deal only with cases which involve longer working hours. But the Government plan may possibly be dislodged as the immediate object of discussion by the proposals tentatively, made on Wednesday by the four representa- tives of the Miners' Federation. These proposals were the acceptance of the 1921 wage agreement which would entail a cut of 10 per cent. ; the seven-hour day to continue (though apparently the miners would not object to longer hours in the export areas) ; the agreement to last for three months during which complete district agreements would be made with the right of appeal to an Arbitration Court whose decisions would be binding. It will be seen that the -miners hold out for a formal national settlement but that, on the other hand, they are contem- plating terms which they would not have looked at a few weeks ago and which are no better than they could have had for the asking four months ago. * .* * *-
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