thod of loan-raising, but some smart English capitalists, more
experienced in finance than the average labor politician, offered to
take over the public works of New South Wales if they were paid 10 per
cent. on their expenditure.

They 'cutely pointed out that by the system of State Socialism, the
N.S.W. Government had gathered an immense army of laborers. It had built
up an enormous civil service, and if men were thrown on the market
consequent on the State's lack of funds, they would make it
uncomfortable for the Government. That action would bring home to the
workers the utter fallacy of State control of industries. They also
whispered, with their tongues in their cheeks, that "private enterprise"
would then become prosperous and the Labor movement would be thrown back
for "years and years and years."

The temptation proved too strong and the compact was signed.

"Of course," said the Government, "you will give preference to
unionists, the maximum wage, and all that?"

"Oh, of course," said the Syndicate, rubbing its hands with glee.

It was getting 10 per cent. on all the expenditure!

What though the men loafed through the work, the percentage of the
outlay went on just the same!

So the N.S.W. Government signed the compact, practically threw over
State Socialism, so far as public works were concerned, thanked goodness
for the riddance, and sat back for a while, stripped of responsibility,
a Syndicate's collection of "rubber stamps."

Some of the Ministers, however, tired of the "nothin'-doin' policy,"
hankered after the tinpot glory they had when in charge of men, so they
began to look for new fields of enterprise not touched by the Syndicate.

They saw an opportunity in Government bread-making.

The Government had heard a good deal about the profit possibilities of
great American "combines." Why not introduce the thing into Australia as
a great Government scheme, and combine all the small bakery
establishments into one big concern, in which great automatic baking
machinery would supplant the small ovens of the small employers?

This would not only knock out the "hated employers," but it would
capture all their profits--and the Government wanted money rather badly.

So, immense bread-making factories were built. A standard price was put
on wheat the Government wanted, which knocked the farmer rather hard and
hundreds of employees were thrown out of the bakehouses.

It was an awkward situation for a