Page:Sanzō Nosaka - A Brief Review of the Labour Movement in Japan (1921).pdf/23

 to doubt, What is the State, What is the Government. Thanks are due to the stupid government and the Black-leg International Labour Conference, without which the working class might not obtain such a mental change.

More than that; the temporary unity of Unions against the government served above all as a bond to combine them permanently, which resulted in the next year in the formation of „Federation of Trade Unions“, Tokyo.

A no less important result gained from this event was that the government was compelled to call upon each representative of five Unions (Yuai-kai, Shinyu-kai, Osaka Iron Workers' Union, and two yellow Unions), to the electoral Meeting of the Labour Delegate under the direct superintendence of the government; however, they boycotted it. This recognition of Trade Unionism by the government extremely instigated the creation of new organisations. It was in the period of four months from October that the workers' combination movement attained its zenith.

Among metal workers, tho following Unions were founded: the „Kojin-kai (Artisans' Fraternal Society)“ consisting of workers of the Tsukiji Naval Arsenal iu Tokyo (in October); the „Japanese Labour Fraternal Society“ of the Yawata Iron Foundry (in October); the „Mechanicians' Union“ of engineers employed in several workshops in Tokyo (December), etc.

In the printing industry, the „Seishin-kai“, one of the militant Unions, was organised by those defeated in the general strike of July in Tokyo.

In this period, the association extended from factory to out-door workers, and from manual to brain workers. For instance: dockers' and carriers' Union in Osaka. Tokyo, Yokahama, Nogoya; agricultural workers' Unions in Tamba, Tokyo; tailors' Union in Tokyo; dyers' Unions in Osaka, Kyoto; carpenters' and cabinet makers' Unions in Tokyo, Osaka; postal workers' Union in Tokyo; clerks' Unions in Tokyo.

On the other hand, yellow and black-leg Unions rapidly increased everywhere. Most of them takes the form of the workshop committee, openly or in secret, helped or created by the employer, both for the purpose of „promoting the intimate relation between master and employee“, and of smashing the real workers' Union from within. First of all, the „Kokusui-kai“ (Nationality Society) is the one typical of such disgraceful bodies. It was formed in December by out-door workers, led by political underlings, under the auspices of the Minister of Interior. This is the curious coincidence with the „Okhrana“ Union in Russia early