. IN THE FIELD OF LABOR.
O. M. Rudy, one of the best known
members of organized labor in this
city, is a candidate for the nomination
of water commissioner on the republi
can primary ticket. The water com
missioner is also the light commis
sioner. Mr. Rudy is an expert elec
trician, has a thorough business traiu
ing, and is one of the best quailed
men ever mentioned in connection
with this important office. Mr. Rudy
is not a candidate on his own motion.
On the contrary, he was averse t: be
ing a candidate, but the workingmen
of Lincoln who know him so well, in
sisted, and he acquiesced. Ever since
the Labor Temple opened he has been
its efficient manager. He has worked
night and day for its success. He is a
thorough unionist. If the union men
of Lincoln will do their duty to them
selves they will make his nomination
sure and a nomination insures his
election. There are enough wage
earners' votes in Lincoln to give him
the nomination, hands down. Will the
wage-earners do it? They have had
their opportunity before and missed
it. .Will they miss it again? We are
still working under the open primary,
Air. Wage Earner. Do not forget that,
if you happen to be a democrat. An
"X"' alter Rudy's name means a vote
for as square a union man as ever
came down the pike and one who is
peculiarly well qualified for the posi
tion he seeks.
ordered the strike, but President
Lynch of the International Union says
it is illegal and unwarranted. This
means that the Chicago strikers will
have to eat humble pie, for the Inter
rational Typographical Union has a
habit of keeping its contracts invio
late. As a friend of No. 16 we advise
it to gig back in a hurry.
Henry Bingaman, president of Lin
coln Typographical Union No. 209, is
seeking the democratic nomination
for city clerk. His qualifications are
beyond dispute. He is a taxpaying
citizen, possessing an enviable repu
tation for square dealing, and thor
oughly reliable. The union men of
Lincoln can have a ''card man" in the
office of city clerk if they will get
together and vote together.
The Chicago linotype men are "in
Lad" with their strike. The local union
The strike of the boilermakers at
Havelock has been declared off, a set
tlement satisfactory to the local union
having been reached. The terms are
not made public, but President Jonas
seems satisfied. The settlement was
brought about by a third party who
interested himself, but his identity re
mains a secret. This strike has been
a long one, remarkable for the tenac
ity of the men engaged in it, and still
more remarkable for its quietness,
despite the provocation constantly of
fered the strikers to engage in harsh
work. But the discipline of the strik
ers was splendid, and they come out
cf the strike with credit to them
selves. Just enough is known of the
terms of settlement to know that shop
conditions will be bettered and no dis
crimination practiced against those
who engaged in the strike. The editor
of Will Maupin's Weekly has had
seme experience in strikes and he has
never seen one so well conducted, so
orderly and so well managed from a
disciplinary standpoint as the strike
of the boilermakers at Havelock. They
did not get all they wanted and we
seldom do but they made some
strike history that will live.. to their
credit.
Will M. Maupin, editor of this pa
per, received a telegram Thursday
noon announcing the death of his
father, Elder W. T. Maupin, at Hen
nessey, Okla. Elder Maupin was in
his 80th year, and for upwards of fifty
years was an active minister in the
Christian church. The son left Thurs
day night for Hennessey.
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Phrase Is Used Only by Enemies
of Unionism.
TRADE UNIONS ARE OPEN.
Nearly All Welcome to Membership
Any Wageworker Qualified at the
Occupation Organized An Oft Re
peated Slander Refuted.
The phrase "closed shop" is of re
cent use. It was coined and is employ
ed on all occasions by the enemies of
trade unionism for a purpose. That
purpose is to divert attention from the
defensive action of union members in
preserving their union to what is no
more than an incidental consequence
of that action.
The union creates certain desirable
labor conditions. The nonunionists try
to destroy them. By not competing
with one another for the employment
the unionists make their advantage.
By competing the nonunionists woiild
leave the dictation of terms wholly to
employers. That is the merest ABC
of this feature in the case of labor
And then the employers, when the
union has gained something through
its advantage, come forward with a
demand for "the open shop" and make
an appeal to the public in the name of
liberty. To all the inhabitants of Easy
street, who complacently regard them
selves as "the general public," this
slogan of the employing class sounds
justified as "truly American."
Now, this situation has been analyzed
times innumerable in these columns by
writers for the labor and social re
form press. Every point in it has
been brought up, weighed and given
its place. No intelligent observer of
today but has had full opportunity to
see clearly all the factors bearing on
the question. Every citizen has been
enabled to take his stand thereon.
This being true, the trade unionists,
having made plain their view and be
lieving it to be the true one, do not
intend to permit their opponents to ig
nore that view. This remark applies
equally to opponents who fight in the
open and opponents who seek by subtle
means, including profession of reason
ableness or even friendliness, to weak
en the position of trade unionism. It
will not do for such professed "judi
cial" persons merely to make a pass
ing note of the fact that the unionists
declare that there is no "closed shop,"
that "the union shop" is an "open
shop," and then go on talking and
acting as if the unionists were hjrpo
critical, or at least employing the
methods of counsel under fee whose
morals permit any argument for any
side which pays the fee.
Trade unions are open. Nearly all
are wide open to any man or woman
qualified at the occupation organized
at an entrance fee barely sufficient to
equalize the payments of the union's
cash benevolent benefits and current
costs of administration. Hardly any
union ever asks a nonunionist to pay
for the slightest percentage of the
damage he has done as a disruptionist.
It is literally and positively true, with
out evasion or equivocation, that trade
unions and consequently union shops
are open for all wageworkers whom
any employer would possibly contem
plate as employees to be kept regularly
and permanently in his hire.
We beg. then, that the press, the pub
lic spirited men and women who de
clare themselves in favor of labor in
tinies of disputes and any other class
of persons who deem themselves inter
ested will accept the fact that what
trade unionists call for is the union
shop, When confronted by persons
who" persist in speaking fn pTTvflfe an5
public of the "closed shop" the trade
unionists recognize by that sign that
they are dealing with an enemy em
ploying the verbal ammunition of an
enemy, distorting facts as an enemy
and without having the manliness and
candor of a courageous enemy. Amer
ican Fedora tionist.
Undo Jos to Gompers.
At the annual dinner of the Knights
of Momus (an organization of printers
on the lines of the Gridiron club) iu
Washington recently Speaker Joseph
G. Cannon of the house of representa
tives said: "While I am not in the good
books of Sam Gompers. I want to say
that he is one grand man. That he is
an able and forceful man goes without
saying; otherwise he could not con
tinue in the headship of that great
Ameri.-an Federation of Labor. If I
had to live over again the activities of
my life during its first thirty odd years
I should belong to a union." Mr. Gom
pers was not present.
Caisson Workers' Wage Scale.
A proposed trade agreement to be
come effective May 1 will be submitted
shortly to the employers by the Inter
national Compressed Air and Founda
tion Workers' union, covering wages
and conditions of work for one year.
For caisson work wages and hours are
based on the air pressure above the
ordinary atmospheric pressure. The
wages run from $4 a day. with an
eight hour shift, at from one to twenty-two
pounds pressure, to $5 a day,
with a three hour shift, at from forty
to forty-five pounds pressure.
Leaders Cannot Call Strikes.
Among the amendments to the con
stitution of the United Mine Workers
of America adopted at. its recent' inter
national convention was one providing:
that no general strike shall be ordered
until indorsed by the entire organiza
tion by a referendum vote.
With the referendum clause attached
the amendment leaves the power of
the international board only that of
recommending the calling of strikes.
Big Union Aggregation.
There are now 10G unions in the
New York United Hebrew Trades,
with an aggregate membership of
150,000 men and women. The central
body has also affiliated with it a num
ber of unions of Italian workers and
several thousand workers in other na
tionalities, including English speaking
people. '
Courts Hit Union Labor.
A verdict of guilty against the mem
bers of the New Orleans Dock and
Cotton council, charged with conspir
acy to interfere with foreign com
merce under the Sherman anti-trust
law, was returned recently in the Unit
ed States circuit court at New Orleans.
This is a labor organization with
about HO.OOO members. It handles all
freight in the port of New Orleans, and
the charges grew out of a strike which
began many months ago. The convict
ed men are James Byrnes, former pres
ident of the council and at present
state labor commissioner of Louisiana:
Philip Pearsaw. former president of
the local Coal Wheelers' union, and U.
S. Swan, former president of the Long
shoremen's union. Swan and Pearsaw
are negroes.
Eight Hour Law Observed.
The annual report of the New York
state commissioner of labor says the
eight hour law is being practically ob
served. There were only forty com
plaints received last year, and twenty
five of them were found to be viola
tions. The commissioner attributes
the respect paid the law to the severe
penalty clause, involving possible for
feiture of contracts.
