3
fUl
VOL. 3
LINCOIiN, NEBRASKA, MAY 18, 190
NO. 6
W7-A fyssszz
7L jUN5"-g
jJ Lr yyifyl
O Organize a Union Buyers'
League in Lincoln Now!
The Wageworker has been making
a quiet little investigation into cer
tain lines of business during the past
three weeks, and the state of affairs
found therein are a disgrace to union
Ism. It shows that the union men of
this city are criminally negligent in
the matter of demanding the union
label.
It Is a fact, and a scandalous fact,
that not one suit of clothes In twenty
sold over the counters In Lincoln
bears the label of the United Garment
Workers. One of the largest clothing
stores in Lincoln the B. L. Paine Co.
admits that It has not got a union
made suit of -clothing in stock: A
search through another clothing store
revealed the presence of a few union
made suits, and they were stuck at the
bottom of huge plies of "scab" cloth
ing. ,
"Why don't you get It out where It
can be seen?" was asked of one of the
proprietors.
"We don't want to push it," said he.
"We have only a few suits of union
made clothing and we don't show it
1 unless the customer absolutely de-
( . J mands the label."
V Three fourths of the clothing sold la
L1110 Vlt VUgil, VV W W
Union men have It within their power
to compel this state of affairs, and If
they fail to exercise that power they
are untrue to their obligations.
The Wageworker proposes the or
ganizatlon of a "Union Buyers'
l A League," the membership of which
LVaf shall pledge itself to purchase only
union made clothing, hats, caps, shoes,
shirts, collars, cuffs, brooms, and other
articles that are made somewhere by
union labor. The 2,500 union men and
women of this city spend not less than
$2,500,000 a year with the merchants
of this city. As long as they spend it
without regard to the union label the
merchants will continue to offer non
union goods for the reason that non-
) union goods can be bought cheaper
and sold at equal prices. This gives
the merchant a better profit and the
merchant, like the rest of us, is look
ing for the best of It.
Take the matter of union made
shoes for women. It is next to impos-
sible to get them In Lincoln. "Scab"
shoes are offered in plenty, and when
the merchant Is asked why he does not
, carry a larger line of union made
shoes for women he replies: "We
can't get them." But merchants in
other cities can and do get them. They
are made in all sizes, styles and quali
ties. The merchants simply do not
want to be put to the trouble of get
"tlng them.' That Is the reason. And
as long as the wives of union men con
sent to take the "scab" goods there is.
no reason why the merchant should
exert himself to get the union made
articles.
But the union men and women of
the city have the power to compel Mr.
. Merchant to go to the trouble. If we
I . refuse absolutely to buy the "scab'
goods, and form a "Union Buyers'
Tho Union Buyers League
I HEREBY PROMISE, that under no cir
cumstances will I purchase any non
union Clothing, Hats, Caps, Shoes,
Shirts, Brooms, or other non-union made
articles of common use, such as ' are made
somewhere by Union Labor, and that I will
become a member of the UNION BUYERS'
LEAGUE and join with my fellow unionists
in buying these articles Union Made from
some dealer in this or. another city who
handle the products' of fair labor.
Name.
St. and No.
Cut this out and mail to Wageworker, 1216 Q St- Lin
coln, Nebraska.
League" and send away for our union
made goods until such time as the mer
chants awake to the situation, it will
not be long until the merchants get
busy to head off the business of buy
ing elsewhere.
The Wageworker asks every union
man and woman intp whose hands this
paper may fall, to feign the following
pledge, a proper blank being found
elsewhere, and send-it to "The Wage
worker," 1216 G St., Lincoln:
"I hereby promise that under no di
stances will I purchase any non-union
clothing, shoes, hats, caps, shirts, col
lars, cuffs, brooms or other non-union
made articles of common use, such as
are made somewhere by union labor,
and that I will become a member of
the Union Buyers' League, and join
with my fellow unionists In buying
these articles union made of some
dealer in this or another city who
handles the product of fair labor."
If the merchants of this city con
tinue to put the union made goods at
the bottom of the stacks and push non
union goods, let them self their non
union stuff to non-unionists. If the
$2,500,000 spent annually by union
labor is not worth the effort to get
union made goods, let us spend it with
merchants elsewhere who do want the
trade bad enough to cater to it.
Go into a clothing store and ask for
a suit of union made clotning. ine
chances are that you will be shown a
union made suit, and that the clerk
will immediately begin telMng you that
it is "not well made," that it "hasn't
the style or the quality," and that It is
not as good as another suit ("scab"
made) that he can sell you for less
money. Of course, if you insist on it
he will sell you the union made goods,
but he is quite sure it will not give the
satisfaction that another suit ("scab"
made) will give you. And as long as
you allow yourselves to be "conned"
by this sort of palaver you'll find 95
per cent of the clothing sold here is
non-union, the product of unfair shops.
If wo as unionists do not exert our
selves to the utmost to remedy this
state of affairs we aro not worthy of
being called unionists
Take the matter of hats. Three-
fourths of the hats manufactured in
the United States are union made. Tec
less than one-half that hats offered for
sale in Lincoln are labeled. Why has
the Stetson hat such a run in Lincoln?
It Is difficult to answer that question.
The impression that the Stetson Is
such a superior hat is a mistaken one.
Of course a $6 Stetson will last longer
than a f 3 union made hat, even if it is
no better. Why? Because a man who
pays $6 for a hat will take better care
of it than he will of a hat he pays only
3 for. That is natural. The editor of
The Wageworker has a union made
hat for which he paid $4. He has worn
it almost constantly for four years, and
he will put it alongside the highest
priced Stetson ever made that has
been subjected to the same wear.
. How many union men in Lincoln
are wearing union made shirts and
collars? Not one in ten. They can't
find the union made articles in Lin
coln and therefore quietly submit to
being forced to take the "scab" goods.
The merchants have learned that the
unionists will not go to the trouble
of walking an extra block or two for
the union made article, and so they
will not handle the union made goods,
preferring to handle the non-union
product and make a little more profit.
Last week the editor of The Wage
worker took a shoe dealer to task for
not having a larger line of union made
shoes for women.
"We can not find them," said the
merchant. '
. The editor immediately pulled out a
list of manufacturers who make shoes
for women and put the label on the
shoes, and' said:
"What's the matter with looking for
them in the right place?"
There are a score of firms manufac
turing ladies' shoes and putting the
label in them, and making shoes of all
grades and prices. If the shoe dealers
of Lincoln will not put in full lines of
labeled shoes, let us join together and
buy our shoes somewhere else. If we
will do that for ninety days we'll have
the shoe merchants of Lincoln search
ing the country with microscopes,
looking for the .kind of shoes we want
to buy.
Less than two weeks ago a union
man in Lincoln tried to buy a union
made dress shirt. He could not find
one in the city of Lincoln.. He found
"scab" dress shirts in plenty. He
wrote to a friend in Omaha and got
the union made dress shirt inside of
forty-eight hours. If 2,500 Lincoln
union men will send away for the
union made goods they can not buy in
Lincoln, it will not be three months
before it will be easier to find the
union made article than it now is to
find the "scab" article.
The pocketbook nerve is a mighty
sensitive thing. When it is hit two or
three, times the owner gets busy to
protect it. Let us quit talking about
it, and go to hitting a few mercantile
"pocketbook nerves." ,
It is safe to say that there are 8,000
cigars smoked in Lincoln every day,
and; that 6,500 of them are "scab"
made made in the tenement factories
of the east by Chinese, children, con
sumptives, scrofulitics and syphillitics.
If the union men and union sympa
thizers would simply quit' buying ci
gars of dealers who refused to help
push union made cigars, they would
have the dealers making a hot-foot to
the Lincoln manufacturers. But the
dealers is wise. If he can sell a thous
and "scab" cigars at 35 per cent profit
instead of a thousand union made ci
gars at 25 per cent profit, he'll push
the "scab" cigar to a finish.
The 2,500 union men of Lincoln can
reverse present conditions if they will.
Are you game? Are you willing to
go to som'e extra effort and make some
personal sacrifices in order to advance
the sale of union made goods? If you
are, join the "Union Buyers' League"
and get busy. Call your fellow union
ist's attention to it. Ask him to' sign
it. Cut out the coupon printed on this
page, sign It, giving your name and
street address in full. As soon as 250
names are received by The Wage
worker they will be printd, and the
list added to week by week. An or
ganization will be perfected, meetings
held and a systematic label campaign
begun and pushed to a finish.
The Wageworker is going to lose
some advertising business by this cam
paign, and it doesn't give a continen
tal. The Wageworker is one news
paper that is not edited in the busi
ness office. As a matter of fact. The
Wageworker has no business office.
If 1,500 staunch union men will get
into line with their subscriptions The
Wageworker will gleefully tackle the
job of "showing up" a few business
firms that make "heap talk" about
their friendship for organized labor
and discriminate against union made
goods for the purpose of pushing
"scab" goods at a wider margin of
profit.
Sign the roll and get to work!
FAVORITES RETURN.
Fulton Stock Company Opens Summer
Engagement at Oliver.
Fulton Bros. Stock Co. opened the
third summer engagement at the Oli
ver last Monday evening, presenting
"Camille." The audience that greeted
the company at the rise of the curtain
was enough to make each member feel
prpud. A welcome was extended to
each of the old favorites upon their
appearance, and this welcome was es
pecially -hearty to Jess Fulton, Miss
Enid Jackson, Miss Belle Jackson, Mr.
Castlebury'and Miss Bowman. There
is no doubt about the place this splen
did stock company has won in the
hearts of Lincoln people.
During the summer engagement a
number of entirely new bills will be
rendered together with such of the old
favorites that have improved by the
lapse of time. The specialties be
tween acts' will be new and pleasing,
and nothing left undone that might
add to the pleasure and comfort of the
patrons of the Oliver. The unionists
of Lincoln will remember with pleas
ure the successful benefit tendered the
Central Labor Union last season by
this company. Mr. Pulton has already
announced himself as ready to repeat
the benefit performance at such time
as the central body and himself can
agree upon. Tne Wageworker is glad
to welcome the old favorites back, and
hopes that this season will be a record
breaker in point of patronage.
TO ALL UNION MEN.
nvited to Help Printers Observe Their
Annual Memorial Day.
Every union man and his family is
irvlted to meet with the Union print
ers of Lincoln in their annual observ
ance of "Printers' Memorial Day,"
which will take place at 2:15 p. m.,
Sunday, May 27, at St. ' Mark's Re
formed church, 1519 Q street. The me
morial sermon will be delivered by
Rev. P. M. Orr, pastor of the church,
who is a union man and in hearty
sympathy with the objects and aims of
trades unionism.
While the printers will have charge
of the services, they cordially invite
sll their union friends to meet with
them. Unionists who are not printers
are requested to proceed directly to
the chEMi, the Typographic.: "Jrfcm
having arranged to march to ' the
church in & body, accompanied by
Capital Auxiliary No. 11. It is to be
hoped that St, Mark's church will be
crowded to the doors by unionists on
the occasion of this memorial service.
HE IS AWFULLY SLEEPY.
And It Looks as If He Will Never Be
come Awakened.
What did you tell that man just
now?
I told him to hurry.
What right have you to tell him to
hurry?
I pay him to hurry. '
What do you pay him?
A dollar a day.
Where do you get the money to pay
him with?
I sell brick.
Who makes the brick?
He does. ' ,
How many bricks does he make?
Twenty-four men can make 24,000
brick a day.
Then instead of you paying him he
pays you six dollars a day for standing
around and telling him to hurry.
Well, but I own the machines.
How did you get the machines?
Sold brick and bought them.
Who made the brick?
Shut up. The fools may wake up.-
Nashville Advocate.
HERE'S A CHANCE.
Why Not Have a "Labor Headquar
ters" That Are Creditable?
Pending the discovery of ways and
means for. the erection of a Labor
Temple, the unions of this city should
have some central meeting place
where business may be transacted,
friends entertained and men sought
when needed. I The old Commercial
Club headquarters in the Free Press
building are vacant and may be rented
at a. very reasonable figure. There are
two large halls, a smaller hall, a fine
parlor and a large rotunda with office
for a secretary. A cigar stand, to
gether with billiard tables, would go
a long ways towards paying the run
ning expenses. If the unions would
take the halls and pay as much for
them as they now pay for less desir
able halls, the needed revenue would
be secured.
The Wageworker suggests that the
Central Labor Union take hold of the
matter and see what it can do. The
quarters indicated would serve' well In
lieu of a Labor Temple.
A Workingman Gives
Some Very Sound Advice
Lincoln, Nebr., May 16. To the Edi
tor of The Wageworker: I was read
ing last week an article In your paper
on the eight-hour and Saturday half
holiday subjects, in which you gave
Bishop McCabe some good advice. But
it seems to me you omitted one of the
strongest arguments for your plea.
The greatest need of the working
class today is competent, intelligent
leaders, and the fact that such men
as McCabe, Eliot of Harvard, nearly
all the judges, capitalists, trusts, mine
operators, etc., are bitte'rly opposed,
not to the mistakes of the unions but
to the principle of unionism when prac
ticed by the workers .though they re
gard it as all right for the employers,
shows that the leaders of the working
class must belong to the working class,
and those mechanics and others who
have the eight-hour day owe it to their
fellows to employ their leisure time,
not In fun. and social enjoyment, but
in reading and study, and mental im
provement. When workingmen get
their eyes open they will cease to vote
LIST OF UNFAIR MAGAZINES IN
NEW YORK.
American Inventer (M.).
American Machinist (W.).
American Museum Journal, Muesum
of Natural History (M.).
Automobile Topics (W.).
Benziger's Magazine (W.).
Bookman (M.).
Burr-Mclntoeh (M.).
Century, The (M.).
Christian Advocate, The (W.).
Country Life in America (M.).
Cuba Review (M.).
Delineator (M.).
Designer (M.).
Engineer' and Mining Journal.
Forum (Q.). .
Garden Magazine (M.).
Gentlewoman (M.). .
Homilitic Review (M.).
Journal of the Telegraph (M.).
L'Art de la Mode (M.).
Literary Digest (W.).
Magazine of Mysteries (M.).
Marine Engineering (M.).
McClure's (M.).
Mode and Review (M.).
My Business Friend (M.).
ocooocooocococooocococoooooo
Printers Memorial Day
In accordance with established custom, Lincoln Typographical
Union No. 209 will observe the last Sunday in May as "Memorial Day",
in honor of the Union's dead. In order that there may be no excuse
for non-attendance at this memorial service, it will be held in the after
noon at St. Mark's Reformed church, 1519 Q street, on Sunday, Afay 27.
Union printers and, their families will please make note of the follow
ing .arrangements: - 1 . '
The memorial sermon will be delivered by Rev. P, M. Orr, pastor
of St Mark's, himself a union man. The Typographical Union and
Capital Auxiliary are requested to meet at the Western Newspaper
Union building, Fourteenth street, between O and. P, and be ready to
march in a body to the church promptly at 2:15 p. m. A cordial invita
tion is extended to all union men affiliated with other unions, together
with their families, to attend this service, and they are requested to
proceed immediately to the church. Following is the program of the
church service: ' ' ,
PROGRAM. !
Song, "America" Assembly
Invocation : . . . . . . The Pastor
Song, "Nearer, My God, to Thee" .Assembly
Scripture Reading. ..... .-. .Fred W. Mickel
Lincoln Typographical Union No. 209. '
Song ,. ..... ...... . . Assembly
Memorial Sermon Rev. B. M. Orr
Pastor St Mark's Reformed Church. i 1
Song, "Doxology" , .. V ............. ; Assembly
Benediction . '. ;The Pastor
Immediately after the church bervices the members of the Typo
graphical Union and Capital Auxiliary will proceed to Sixteenth and O
streets and take Special Cars to Wyuka cemetery, where services will
be held at the Typographical Union lot Following is the program at
the cemetery: .
Song, "Refuge" '. Assembly
Prayer .............. . ..C. E. Mayne
Address, "Memorial Day" ...In L. Ingraham
Lincoln Typographical Union No. 209. , ,
Song I .Assembly
Address, "Our Union Dead" ..... H. G. McVicker
Charter Member Lincoln Typographical Union No. 209. .
Roll Call of Union Dead and Decoration of Burial Lot
Song, "Doxology" Assembly
"Taps" Miss Walters
All who can are requested to bring flowers to strew upon the
graves of the union dead. The graves of printers not buried in the
Union lot will be decorated by a special committee, and all services at
the cemetery will be held at the lot. Let every loyal printer make it
' a point to set apart a few hours on this day to pay a tribute of love and
respect to his union comrades who have gone before into the Great
Beyond. ' ''.-'' r
COOOCOOOCOCCOOCOOOOO
all legislative power into the, hands of
their opponents. It has been a hard
fight for the last twenty-five years to
get the improved , conditions which
they now enjoy, but as long as all leg
islative power is in the hands of their
employers those conditions are con
stantly in danger. In England the
working classes have sent nearly fifty
of their members into parliament, and
the results are already seen and felt
In the United States congress there
are none. : Lawyers and capitalists
have it all to themselves. A mechan
ics, however, to be eligible to any leg
islative office must have not only
trained hands but a trained mind, and
the eight-hour day gives him a chance
to get it The plea that after eight
hours of good honest work a man can
not study, but must have play, is all
nonsense and Is a disgrace to the man
that makes it. Our conditions today
call for manliness, and men who would
be free must not only claim freedom
but fit themselves for it, and then take
it. J. H. MARSH.
Nautical Gazette (W.).
Navy League Journal (M.).
New Idea (M.).
Outdoors (M.).
, Paragon Monthly. '
Photographic Times (M.).
Power (M.).
: Power Boat News (M.). .
Rudder, The (M.). . '
Smart Set (M.).
St. Nicholas (M.).
Tales (M.). . T ;
Tom Watson's Magazine (M.).
Town and Country (W,). ,
Town Topics (W.).
Trust Companies (M.).
Typewriter and Phonographic World
Vogue (W.). , m . .
World's Work (M.). '
Brooklyn Reporter. ' , v
Brooklyn Weekly News,
Seaside Publishing Co.
And the following patterns: Ban
ner, Butterick, La Belle, New Idea,
Martha Dean, Standard, Home Dress
maker, Metropolitan Fashions and Lit
tle Folks. . . .
'Abbreviations used M, monthly;
W, weekly; Q, quarterly.
O
O
o