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About The Wageworker. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1904-???? | View Entire Issue (March 30, 1906)
' lfjfI7 I? o t A I , fV 3 ; ; . - ' - if. 4i- A Newspaper with a Mission and without a Muzzle that is published in the Interest of Wageworkers Every VOL. 2 LINCOLN, NEBRASKA, MARCH 30, 190 a A 1. . , -. - ' where. v-v ? ' - "- ' ' , ' ' The President to Labor On March 22 there was an Important gathering at the White House import ant to the worklngmen of this coun try. Every workingman who has the Interests of labor at heart should read what President Roosevelt had to say to the representatives of organized lubor who called upon him. The Wageworker (Joes not purpose analyzing the president's remarks, nor does it purpose commenting on them at any great length. His assertion that worklngmen concerned merely as citizens favored the anti-injunction bill now proposed is, in The Wagework er's opinion, a gratuitous insult. It Is because they arc citizens seeking for their Just rights that worklngmen op liose the bill now proposed and mis called an anti-injunction bill. And to be told in effect that if they were really good citizens they would not oppose it comes with poor grace from Theodore Roosevelt. The president declared that "if I thought a combination of laborers were doing wrong I would apply for an injunction against them just as quickly as against so many capital ists." That sounds very nice, to be sure. But the trouble is that an in junction against tabor is not like an Injunction against a combination of capitalists. Under an injunction njplnst labor the workingman is thrown into court if he violates It. The beef packers were enjoined, as everybody will remember, and they paid no more attention to the injunc tion than if it had been writ In water. The union man is thrown into jail, but the beef packers are discharged as individuals and only the Corporation that soulless, bodiless entity Is held amenable to the law. We very greatly fear that President Roosevelt took ad vantage of the occasion to make a play to the galleries. At any rate, thought ful men will give more weight to his utterances after he has given an ex ample of an injunction against a cor poration that amounts to something like an Injunction. against labor. President Roosevelt's pledge that he would see to the enforcement of the eight-hour law If specific proof of its violation were submitted is all right. There is a law against giving rebates by railroads, and it was proved beyond all doubt that Paul Morton, as vice president of the Santa Fe railroad, granted rebates. Yet Mr. Morton, after admitting that he. violated the law, was appointed secretary of the navy, given a certificate of good char acter when he retired, and the stand taken that only the corporation was guilty. And you can't Imprison a cor poration. If It should, be shown that some employer was guilty of violating the eight-hour law It might be possible that he would be given a cabinet po nltion. The Paul Morton case seems to present a precedent. Referring to the protest against ah rogating the eight-hour law In the Panama canal zone, President Roose velt said: "You speak of the eight-hour law. Your criticism, so far as it relates to the executive, bears upon the aigna ture of the appropriation bill contain' lng the money for expenditure on the Panama canal, with the proviso that the eight-hour law shall not there ap ply. If your statement. Is Intended to mean that no opportunity , was given for a bearing . before, then the state ment Is not In accordance with the facts. There was ample opportunity that anyone could, but not a single request for such a hearing came to me. I received, however, some hun dreds of telegrams and letters request ing the veto of the entire appropria tion bill because It coniained that pro- vlco. Frankly, I found it difficult to believe that you were writing and tele graphing with any kind of knowledge of the conditions In the case. I be lleve emphatically In the eight-hour law for our own people In our own country. But the conditions of labor, such as we have to work with In the tropics, are so absolutely different that there Is no possible analogy between them; and an eight-hour law for the Panama canal Is an absurdity. Every one of you knows that we can not get white labor, can not get labor of the United States to go down to Panama to work. Hard to Get Any Labor. "We are driven to extremities In the effort to get any kind of labor at all. Just at the moment we are work lng chiefly with negro labor from the West Indies. '. The usual result In the employment of those men Is that Mon day and Tuesday they work fairly well Wednesday and Thursday there Is marked falling, and by Friday and'Sat urday not more than a. half, sometimes less than a fourth of the laborers will ho at Work. . The conditions that make the elirht-hoiir" ta fiwujer. here have no possible reference tlons that imake the e Ight-lX V, ly improper there. -The con so utterly different on the isthmus as compared to here that it is impossible to draw conclusions affecting the one from what is true about the other. You hamper me in the effort to get for you what I think you ought to have in connection with the eight hour law, when you make a request that is indefensible; and to grant which would mean indefinite belay and injury to the work on the isthmus. "As to the violations of the eight hour law, Mr. Morrison, you give me no specifications. At your earliest convenience please lay before me in detail, any complaints you have of vio lations of the eight-hour law. Where I have power I will see that the law is obeyed. All I ask is that you give me the cases. I will take them up, and if they prove to be sustained by the facts I shall see that the law is en forced." The Wageworker is not yet ready to admit that Theodore Roosevelt can do no wrong, therefore we decline to admit that just because he asserts that we ought to have just what he is trying to get for us he ought to be supported. The Wageworker asks worklngmen to ponder thoughtfully over this amazing declaration from President Roosevelt's lips: "You hamper me in the effort to get for you what I think you ought to have in connection with the eight-hour law when you make a request that is inde fensible." If he thinks we ought to have what he thinks we ought to have, then we suppose we must quietly submit to having what President Roosevelt thinks we ought to have. But it would have sounded better, from the lips of Emperor William or Czar Nicholas, wouldn't it? ' '..-' Referring to the Chinese question, President Roosevelt spoke as follows: Chinese Exclusion. Now about the Chinese exclusion. The number of Chinese now in this country is, if I remember aright, some sixty or eighty thousand. So far from there being a great influx of Chinese, the fact is that the number has stead ily decreased. There are fewer Chi nese than there were ten years ago; fower than there were twenty years .-ISO; fewer than there were thirty years ago. Unquestionably some scores of cases occur each year where Chinese laborers get in either by be ing smuggled over the Mexican and Canadian borders .or by coming in under false certificates, but the steps that we have taken, the changes in the consuls that have been made with in the last few years in the Orient, and (he effort to conduct examinations in China before the immigrants are al lowed to come here, are materially re ducing even the small number of cases that do occur. But even as It is, the n.nnber ot cases is insignificant. There is no appreciable Influx of Chinese la borers and there is not the slightest or remotest danger of any; the whole scare that has been worked up on the subject is a pure chimera It is my dee") conviction that we must keep out ot this country every Chinese .la borer, skilled or unskilled every Chi naman of the coolie class. This is what the proposed law will do; It wiil he done as effectively as under the present law and the present law la be ing handled with the utmost efficiency. Good Treatment for Some. But I will do everything in my power to make it easy and desirable for the Chinese of the business and professional classes, the Chinese trav elers and students to come here and I will do all I can to secure their good treatment when they come; and no laboring man has anything whatever to fear from-that policy.' 1' have a right 'to challenge you as good Ameri can citizens to support that' policy; and ,iu any event I shall stand tic- flinching for it, and no man can say with sincerity that on this or indeed on any other point he has any excuse for misunderstanding my policy. "You have spoken of the immigra tion laws. I believe not merely that all proper steps should be taken to prevent the importation of laborers under any form, but I believe' further that this country ought to make a resolute effort from now on to prevent the coming to this country of men with a standard of living so low that they tmi'l, by entering into unfair com petition with, to reduce the standard of living of our own people. Not one of yon can go further than I will go In the effort steadily to raise the status of the .American wage-worker, so long as while doing it, I can retain a clear conscience and the certainty that I am doing what is right. I will do all In my power for the laboring man except to do what Is wrong, and I will not do that -for him or for anyone else." That would be all right if it were not so wrong. The Chinaman is a cunning and the proposed, law is full of le3. It would be awfully easy for a Chinaman to - come over as a "student" and suddenly be swallowed up among other Chinamen and become a menace to American workingmen. The present law is all right -just as it stands. The proposition for its amend ment comes from a class anxious to exploit China and willing to secure the . opportunity by sacrificing the . in terests of American workingmen. To the last paragraph of President Roosevelt's address every workingman can give unqualified approval. BRYAN TALKS STRAIGHT. Tells the Chinese Just What American Laborers Mean. According to. Hong Kong papers, Bryan was entertained by the Chinese merchants at a dinner and declared in a speech that the. American people would never consent to a repeal of the exclusion laws. One of the Chinese merchants at the dinner reported the proceedings to the Chinese newspa pers. He quoted Mr. Bryan as declar ing that the labor party was so strong in the United States that Chinese workmen, skilled or unskilled, would never be permitted to enter, and as drawing a gloomy picture of what would happen to American workmen if the Chinese were allowed to take away their employment. This inform ant said that, while Mr. Bryan had agreed to support a number of changes proposed by the American merchants of Hong Kong, he had not been able to draw from 'the American leader any definite assurance of support of the policy which the Chinese would insist upon as the only condition on which the boycott would be withdrawn. After Mr. Bryan's speech the Chi nese became convinced that congress would not adopt the changes recom mended , by the American' merchants and that their best policy was to put on the boycott screws tighter than ever. STIL'L UNFAIR. Lincoln Hotel Bar Has No House Card in Sight. Attention has been called several times' to the "fact' that the bar In the Lincoln hotel is on the unfair list. This '.bar used to be fair, but for some reason or other the men on duty neg lected and refused to pay their dues and became suspended. On one occa sion, when an effort was made to get I them squared up it is reported that they said: "Well,' this bar is patron ized by traveling men and politicians, and they care nothing about .union cards." The inference was, Ot course, that if the house card didn't help them the bartenders were not sufficiently union to keep In good standing. The management of the Lincoln ho tel has been asked to help get the bar squared up, but have refused. When told that unless something was done the bar would have to be advertised as unfair, one of the managers said, sneeringly: "Well, I guess we can stand that." Undoubtedly. The Lincoln Hotel Co. ha3 a pot of money, and it can oppose organized labor a long whTIfe-lji But will it pay? The Wageworker for various reasons would like to see the Lincoln hotel bar " squared up. It would look good, would help all con cerned and prevent any misunder standings and troubles. ', THE CARPENTERS. Interesting Notes from the Men Who Saw and Plane. To all members of Local No. 1055, U. B. of C. & J. You are hereby noti fied to appear and bring your due book for comparison with ledger by trustees, in accordance with Section 158(c) of the General Constitution. Matters con cerning the new trade conditions de mand your attendance at that meet ing which will be held Tuesday, April 3, at S p. m., at Carpenters' hall, 136 South Eleventh street..' (Signed) C. H. CHASE, R. S. Five new applications last meeting, and three initiations. The Saturday half holiday is an as sured fact already, and a jubilation meeting will be held at the hall Sat urday afternoon, April 7, which will be the first Saturday half holiday ever enjoyed in Lincoln except by the law yers and other professional men. The reception committee will he Bros. Fallhaber, Dullenty and Acott. Bro. John Hewitt was elected a trus tee to fill the vacancy caused by re moval from the city of Bro. Ed. Dul lenty, who is reported as being at Butte, Mont. The following members were elect ed as a delegation to represent the carpenters in the Strucutral Building Trades Alliance: Geo. F. Quick, Chas. S. Smith, C. E. Woodard, A. A. Calla han, J. M. Schuler, Fred Kent, H. O. Steen. TELL HIM WHERE. Your Dealer Has No Excuse for Re- maining in Ignorance. If your dealer tells you he does not know where to get union made goods, it is your duty to find out and tell him. But the dealer has no excuse for being ignorant. Neither have you. If you do not know where union goods are to be secured by your merchant, It is your duty to find out. If your merchant will not make an effort to secure union made goods it is up to you to find another dealer. He can get them if he wants to, and if he wants your trade he will get them. RICHARD METCALFE MAUPIN. Born, on Sunday, March 25, to Mr. and Mrs. Will M. Maupin, a son. The youngster has been christened Richard Metcalfe Maupin. WOODRUFF SCORES A POINT. Lincoln, Nebr., March 26. To the Editor of The Wageworker: The Wageworker took occasion this week of referring to an employe of the Woodruff-Collins Ptg. Co., and severely criticising him for wearing a pair of overalls manufactured by the Lincoln Overall Co. I have no desire to rush into newspaper controversy about the labor question, but there are two sides to it, and a man who will not admit of this fact is a blatherskite or a selfish eeotist.". Inasmuch, however, as the ame of the firm,, of which I am a member was mentioned in your article there seems to bjC forced reason for a few remarks.'ot In defense of the alleged crime ot the employe men tiond, but simply to show the. incon sistency of thoSfe who threaten great . . . $ "hands off! "doings" if the boy doesn't exchange his overalls within the next week. Without taking the trouble to in vestigate the correctness of your state ment, and admitting that all you say is true, the offense against the prin ciple of legitimate organized labor is so insignificant as compared with, other offenses, which you seemingly neglect to mention In your paper, that comparison seems ridiculous. . A few months ago there was an other pressman working for the Wood-rufr-Collins Printing CO., who not only cifrried a union card but was at the time or shortly prior president of the pressmen's union. He was loud in his oraise of organized labor and doubt loss loyal in his selection of union made goods, but he skipped out be tween two days, as it were, leaving a hunch of creditors to mourn his ab sence. A man thus organized can af ford to buy . the best of everything, and, perchance he is ' refused credit, the alternative or trying down "scab" goods is his stock-in-trade. Did The Wageworker ever comment on this particular instance? If so I have over looked it. t The same party referred to went to Ms employers, and, with a pitiful tale, was advanced money for a period of ten days. The money was spent in saloons and brothels and before the expiration of the ten days drew out his union card, left his employers in the lurch, and has not been heard from since.' Did "The Wageworker ever mention the injustice or unfairness of this circumstance? Not to my knowl edge. The officers of the pressmen's union were notified of the facts In due time and were asked not to issue this man a traveling -card, but the plead ings were in- vain, and he went forth fully equipped for exploiting other fields. Tho Wageworker cannot plead ig norance to these facts, standing as it docs as the champion and mouthpiece of organized labor of this city, and if its efforts were directed to some ex tent in correcting the evils which the employers are forced to endure, organ ized labor might receive more friendly consideration. There are worse things than wear- in;? "scitb" overalls, and if The Wage worker, in "doing things," will make a clean sweep of the evils which are t,ow ignored by the unions, the Wood ruff-Collins Printing Co. will feel like apologizing for harboring criminals of the "scab" overall variety. Very respectfully yours, L. D. WOODRUFF. THE, QUESTION OF ICE. Looks Like a Boost in Prices for. the Congealed Product. Right now it looks very much like a big boost in the price of ice during the coming summer. Practically no ice was stored during the winter, and the sources of supply are limited to the artificial product . arid what may be shipped in from the far north. In either event the priee. will soar up wards. If enough for storage purposes had been put up the price of the domestic product would not be badly inflated. But as it is there is every evidence that people who must have Ice will be forced to dig up about any old price the manufacturers or shippers want to demand. He Told About Miner Last Thursday evening at Carpen ter's hall, H. A. Floaten of Denver, late socialist candidate for governor of Colorado, addressed a large gathering on the subject of the recent troubles in Colorado and the arrest of the head officers of the Western Federation of Miners, who ate charged with' the' as sassination of ex-Governor Frank Steuenberg of Idaho. The meeting was designed as a "protest meeting," and as such was a distinct success. Mr. Floaten is a conservative, logical speaker whose evident earnestness ' is impressive, and as he went through the troubles of which he spoke he Is in a position to deal with the subject first-hand. A great many people have conceived the idea that union labor is determined to protect Moyer and Hayward regard less of whether they are innocent or guilty. This is, of course, ridiculous, but there are a lot of people who be lieve it. The fact is that organized labor is determined only that Moyer and Hayward shall have a fair trial. This they will not get if the Citizens' Alliance has its way. This is proved by the illegal method' taken to arrest them arid then abduct them, taking them from Colorado to Idaho on a trumped-up charge and then indicting them for murder and throwing them into jail without bail or even a chance to consult with their friends. The only evidence against the men is the al leged confession of a man named Or chard, whose confession is so ridicu lous that even General Bell had to laugh at it, and a Pinkerton detective named McPartland, who claims to be the same man who broke up the "Mollie Maguires" in the Pennsylva nia coal fields a quarter of a century ago. McPartland is very evidently trying to earn his money. In his speech Mr. Floaten did not venture to prejudge the case against the accused men, but he told, plainly and simply, the condition of affairs in that, seetloff-o! the country.- 'The so cialistic part of the address was inci dental to the main theme, although the speaker took occasion to present the socialistic argument in an unusually interesting way. "The ruling- jflass, declared the speaker at the opening of his dis course, "is the class that lives the easiest. Because of immense wealth, they not only interpret the laws, but they sec to their enforcement so that they can continue to live above the people. The big man or capitalist makes his living by owning something. The laboring class must sell their la bor every day, or it is useless. The struggle between the capitalistic and the working class is growing fiercer and fiercer every day. This Is espe cially true in the gold and silver min ing districts. It may take years, - but this condition can be remedied. '.'Socialists," further stated the speaker, "uphold trusts. We do not want them like they are being held at this time, but we want all the people to be on the inside of them. When this state of affairs exists, it will bring. about better conditions for all classes. If the laborers all over the world be come unionized they will be worse oft than they are today. Why? Because we will have the scabs in the union, and the workingmen will still be de pendent on the capitalists. They must have work to live, and as they don't own -the tools, they must look to the owners as they are doing now. Central Labor The Central Labor Union met Tues day evening and again took up the matter of a labor temple. A commit- tee of three, Mesws. Quick, Smith and Evans, was appointed to correspond with secretaries of other central bodies in cities where labor temples are maintained and secure all the informa tion possible as to management, etc. The plan for a Labor Temple Building l Association, outlined in The-Wage-worker some time ago, was again taken up, and it was decided to push along the lines laid down until some thing better is offered. The chief idea now is to have something tangible to work on. The matter of non-attendance of delegates was again taken up, and it was decided to immediately inaugurate the plan of notifying each affiliated union of- every absence of affiliated delegates. The attendance has been very unsatisfactory for some time, and as a result the work that the central body could do, and is expected to do, has remained undone. ; The organization comnlittee was in structed to assist Tie Teamsters' Union in securing the unionizing of the drivers for wholesale lfquor houses. With one or two exceptions the state of trade was reported f rO fair to good "If the capitalists succeed in crush- H lng one union they will in rime crush J ' them all. They have tried their hand at the western federation of miners, but it remains today as strong as It ' did before the recent atrike troubles. Members of this union have shown ' themselves to be men made of the right stuff, and have also demonstrated ' that they can and will 'stick together. A strike is a peaceful cessation of la bor, nothing more. ' - "They talk about the death of ex Governor Steuenberg. It was a great ' surprise to me how he lived so long. At the time of the recent strike bo established a bull pen, and at one time more than 700 men were therein con fined.. They were held as prisoners in this place for weeks and months. Fin ally,, after many died and others were ill, it was decided to deport a part of the men. . This was done, and the re mainder were held as prisoners for months. .; '' "Two years ago at Telluride, Colo., the strike was on and I never saw our - town so peaceful. The strikers visited all the saloons and saw that the doors- '. were closed promptly at 12. o'clock. The gambling houses were all closed. . The western federation of miners fur-, - -nisbed funds for the strikers, ajid . everything was as peaceful as ever. The militia was sent to our. . city -to ' ; quiet -what is termed a riot. The ofA--: cers of. the militia arrested a; large number of the strikers and had them ' arraigned before the police magistrate," -whene they were charged, with - v- grancy. They were not. vagrants, but -they were nevertheless convicted , anij were forced to work on the. rock pile to pay . their fines, as they refused to ' settle. The questions asked each man by the prosecutor were something like this; ' -;-' '"Are you working?' .,!..,...,,. ... " 'No.' , , . .- ', . ' .? '.J . .. '"Why not?' ' , j f:". . " 'I don't want to work. I thought J . would rest for a while " 'Stand aside' the magistrate. . The police judge then told the men that if they would secure work . within forty-eight hours their fines would be withdrawn. . ' '"Not one Of them," continued Mr. -Floaten, "secured work. And, all work- ; ed out their fines on the rock pile., It was finally settled, but not until after the men had undergone the greatest suffering. It is a fight now to prganizo" . labor, and it continues 'to grow more fierce all the time. There is a time cOming, and not far away, when, there -will be a great change In the condi- -tions. . ' . . , "We have now learned- that the only thing that goes with the capitalists is force, and the workingmen' must force the owners to time. The big men with -a mint of money buy the congress, and take the powers of the ballot box prac tically away from the common people. There must be a change in the system before we can expect to change ,the -conditions. , The ministers pray, and why?...,. Thoy pray, because John D..- Rockefeller prays. No church can ex ist with trusts. "There are just two reasons why we have no more socialists 'today. .' The first is- ignorance, and the second is. that men know that it they support our party they will have to change their manner of living. The capitalists, -that is many of" them, understand so cialism, but know that should they support the party they will lose their easy way of living without working." . Union Meeting in all organized lines. The outlook all along the line is exceptionally good. Attention was called to the report that the Commercial club is seeking to locate a boot and shoe factory in .Lin coln, and arrangements made to see" to it that the work of organization be not neglected. AFTER LOCAL OFFICE. Deputy Labor Commissieper Wants ta Be Councilman. V- ' - Deputy Labor. Commissioner Burt ' Bush is a candidate for the Omaha, city council, and in case of his election he .will doubtless resign his . present position and be succeeded by Don Des pain, his chief clerk. . - . i . . The deputy commissioner's salary is -$1,500 ' a year, while the salary of an" s Omaha councilman is 900. ANOTHER VICTORY;, The union printers of Norfolk, Va.i won their-strike for the eight hour day, and on last Friday every shop in the t;owu was signed up and the strike declared off. The situation grows bet- ! ter every day throughout the country. Lesa than 3,000 men are now out. 1 f 1 '"7.