Born at Choppington in Northumberland, Cairns worked as a coal miner and became active in the Northumberland Miners' Association.
He was elected as the full-time financial secretary of the union, also serving as secretary of the Joint Committee in the Northumberland Coal Trade, and President of the Northumberland Aged Mine Workers' Homes Association.
[1] In his spare time, Cairns was active in the Primitive Methodist movement, and wrote books including Money and Economics of Industry.
[1] Cairns was a supporter of the Labour Party, for which he was elected in Morpeth in 1918.
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