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72
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VOL. 3
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA, OCTOBEB 26, 1900
NO. 29
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.If A
HATTER
Mr. Laboring Man, don't you think it is about time to cast
a vote in your own interests? What's the matter with voting
for something that will be of immediate benefit to yourself?
Why should you cast another vote for men or interests with
which you have nothing' in common?
Suppose you take a little time to study this interesting- bit
K of Nebraska history.
A few years ago a fusion legislature enacted an eight-hour
law, but it was so loosely drawn and so full of loopholes that a
republican judge was compelled to declare it unconstitutional.
It was unconstitutional, too. Why? Because there were no
working-men in the legislature to prevent a lot of cheap poli
ticians from doing the will of their masters and making a farce
of the law. And while these political officeholders were spoil-
ing- an adequate and just eight hour law they themselves work
less than eight hours a day and draw huge salaries.
Long years ago a lot of political jobsters foisted upon Ne
braska an infamous prison contract labor law. The work of
- it
the convicts was farmed out toi contractors who paid the state
from 40 to 50 cents a day for each convict employed, the state
boarding and clothing the convicts. The product of this con
vict labor was, and is today, sold on the open market in compe
tition with the product of free working-men. What chances
does the free and honest workingman stand with that kind of
competition? -f
For years free workingmen have complained of this unjust
competition, and year after year they have asked the legislature
to relieve them of it. But every request has been turned down.
During all these years the legislature has been made up of pol-
MS
iticians, and we .who must compete with convict labor have
been blindly voting "straight party tickets" and then vainly
asking for legislation in our interests. .
HAVEN 'T WE BEEN A PRECIOUS LOT OP ' ' SUCK
ERS" FOR NOT TAKING MATTERS INTO OUR OWN
HANDS?
Why didn't we get together long ago and elect a few mem
bers of the legislature who would look after our interests as
workingmen just as carefully as the men we did elect looked
after the interests of the penitentiary contractors, the favored
banks, the corporations and the cheap politicians?
WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH ACTING SENSIBLY THIS
TIME, AND ELECTING A COUPLE OF LEGISLATORS
FROM OUR OWN RANKS?
Let Thou
Oreef Fads'
Soak
Into
Your Mind
Have we any interests as workingmen in the work of the
coming legislature. ..Just let these few facts soak into your
minds:
The penitentiary contractor is now making brooms by the
thousands every day, and these convict-made brooms have
driven the honest and free broommakers of Lincoln out of busi
ness. A few years ago the penitentiary contractor made bar
rels. The result of this convict competition was that the free
and honest coopers of the state were driven to the wall and
forced to accept starvation wages or leave their families and
seek work in distant states.
If they can make barrels and brooms at the penitentiary
with convict labor, what's the matter with them setting up a
factory for making harness and saddles? When they do, what
will become of your job, Mr. Leather Worker on Horse Goods?
And if barrels and brooms and harness, what's the matter
with cigars? And when they get to working a couple of hun
dred convicts at making cigars, what will become your chances
for employment in Nebraska, Mr. Cigarmaker?
And if brooms and barrels and harness and cigars, what's
the matter with contracting ','trusties" to drive the coal and
lumber wagons of the city. And when the ' trusties" are farmed
out to compete with the free and honesty teamsters, what will
become of your chance for work at a liviiigwage, Mr. Teamster?
If the convicts can be contracted out to make brooms and
barrels, they can be farmed out to make any kind of goods and
ahus compel free and honest workingmen in every line of trade
to either accept a wage based on the hire of convicts, or seek
work in other and far away sections.
Have you digested all this?
THE ONLY WAY TO CURE THIS EVIL IS TO ELECT
. WORKINGMEN WHO ARE PERSONALLY INTERESTED
IN CURING IT.
It will never be cured as long as we elect men to the legis
lature who care nothing for us after they have landed in the
office by virtue of our votes. '
THE PRISON LABOR CONTRACT LAW MUST BE
WIPED OUT, AND THE COMPETITION OF CONVICTS
PREVENTED. THE WAY TO WIPE IT OUT IS TO ELECT TO
THE LEGISLATURE MEN WHO ARE INJURED BY THAT
KIND OF COMPETITION. AND YOU'LL HAVE TO HELP
ELECT THOSE MEN.
The Employe Needs Protection Like the Employer
But the convict labor law is not the only thing that injures
the workingmen of this state. The lack of laws in our interests
is a crying evil. As workingmen we are entitled to an EM
PLOYER'S LIABILITY LAW THAT MEANS SOMETHING.
Right here is where the railroad men of the state should sit
up and take notice. They are the ones most largely concerned
in this matter, although it is of interest to all wage earners.
Here is an instance:
A raw and careless employe of the railroad improperly
fixes a stake on a flat car loaded with lumber. In coupling up
the train the stake breaks or slips and the lumber falls upon
the brakeman, cruelly injuring him. The injured employe tries
to secure damages for his injury an injury sustained through
no fault of his own and is confronted with an infamous law
which says the corporation employing the careless and incom
petent employe is not responsible, and that the injured man
must look to the fellow servant for redress.
YOU'LL NEVER GET THAT LAW WIPED OFF THE
BOOKS AND ONE THAT WILL PROTECT YOU PUT IN.
ITS PLACE UNTIL YOU ELECT TO THE LEGISLATURE
MEN WHO ARE EQUALLY INTERESTED WITH YOU IN
WIPING OUT THE PRESENT INJUSTICE.
This same rule of law applies in every other branch of me
chanical injury. The employer merely shows that it was an
other employe's fault, and escapes responsibility. In every
other case the principal is responsible for the acts of the agent.
IF YOU WANT TO REMEDY THIS RANK DISCRIM
INATION, VOTE FOR MEN OF YOUR OWN CLASS TO
MAKE LAWS FOR YOU. THE MEN INTERESTED IN
MAINTAINING PRESENT CONDITIONS WILL NEVER DO
IT FOR YOU.
Lot UeirEiiig Hoi (liari Against Ho Evils feu fcng
All
But there is another danger confronting the workingmen
of Nebraska, and it is up to them to guard against it.
HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE A CONSPIRACY
LAW ENACTED?
A concerted move is being made throughout the country
by the enemies of organized labor to secure the enactment of
so-called conspiracy laws. These laws will make it a felony
for a lot of employes to get together and agree to make a con
certed demand for better wages or shorter hours. It will make
it a felony for a body of workingmen to mutually agree to quit
in a body unless their demands for fair pay and fair hours are
granted. It will make it a felony for one body of workingmen
to try to induce another body of workingmen to assist them in
securing better conditions. In short, THE CONSPIRACY LAW
THAT THE "UNION BUSTERS" WANT IS A LAW THAT
WILL DESTROY YOUR TRADES UNIONS.
The only way to head this infernal scheme off is to elect
to the legislature men who are personally interested in defeat
ing any such scheme. Who is interested in its defeat? WORK
INGMEN LIKE YOURSELF. You can't expect the fellows
elected to represent the interests of the other fellows, and the
fellows who don't give a darn one way or the other you can't
expect such men to look out for your interests. If you do
expect it you are a bigger fool than Thompson's colt. Thomp
son's colt was so foolish it swam the river in order to get to the
watering trough for a drink.
And, again, what about your children and mine? Do we
want them to become the victims of a modern individual Moloch
that demands their young lives?
IN THE MATTER OF CHILD LABOR LAWS NEBRAS
KA. IS ON A LEVEL WITH ATJVBAMA, MISSISSIPPI, LOU
ISIANA AND GEORGIA. And in' those states the mills are
filled with children from 4 to 14 years old, working twelve and
thirteen hours a day and being either thrust into premature
graves or growing up into ignorant, dangerous citizens.
The labor of these children destroys the demand for adult
labor. Where child labor prevails, the labor of men is not in
demand, and poverty, ignorance, misery and vice reign supreme.
NOW IS THE TIME TO TAKE STEPS TO PREVENT
ANY SUCH CONDITION OF AFFAIRS FROM EXISTING IN
NEBRASKA.
Around the glass works in a city in an eastern state is
built a fence of barbed wire, "horse high, and hog tight." Ed
win Markham asked the superintendent what it was for. He
replied : i
IT 'S TO KEEP THE KIDS ON THE NIGHT SHIFT FROM
SNEAKING OUT AFTER THEY HAVE BEGUN WORK."
Nebraska should immediately take steps to build a barbed
wire fence around her entire borders, "horse high and hog
tight," not to "keep the kids on the night shift from sneaking
out after they have begun work," BUT TO KEEP THE CRIME
OF CHILD LABOR FROM EVER ENTERING THE BOR
DERS OF THIS SPLENDID COMMONWEALTH.
How may that fence be built?
It will never be built as long as only men who represent
the employing corporations are elected to office. It can only
be built by electing to the legislature men who are personally
interested in preventing child labor men who are themselves
workers at "some trade or gainful occupation; men who toil at
the bench, the case, on the engine, on the runningboards, at
the forge and in the foundry and mill.
Give us, the fathers, an opportunity to work at fair wages
and let -us keep our children in school and on the playgrounds
until they are old enough to begin the task of learning to take
our places. Give us conditions that will enable us to give our
children better opportunities than we had.
NEBRASKA MUST HAVE AN IRON-CLAD LAW
AGAINST CHILD LABOR, AND MUST HAVE IT THIS
WINTER.
. The way to get it is to elect to the legislature men who are
personally yea, selfishly interested in securing its enactment.
And now to the point. The workingmen of Lancaster
county can make sure of securing legislators who will work in
their interests by casting their votes solidly for HARRY W.
SMITH and GEORGE F. QUICK.
Who are these men? SMITH IS A PRINTER. QUICK IS
A CARPENTER. They are workers like yourself. Their inter
ests are your interests. They will work for your interests be
cause it means working for their own interests. They will stand
for every just demand that labor makes. They will fight every
scheme aimed against the welfare of the toilers. ,' -
A VOTE FOR SMITH AND QUICK IS A VOTE IN THE
INTERESTS OF THE MEN WHO TOIL.
. Now, fellow workingman, let's roll up our sleeves and
spend the remainder of the time between now and election in
pushing the candidacy of these fellow workingmen. Tell the
professional politicians and the party bosses to GO STRAIGHT
TO HADES. Vote for your own interests this time. If every
man who works for wages in Lancaster county will vote for
Smith and Quick, they will be elected by overwhelming major
ities. NOW DO YOUR DUTY AS WORKINGMEN, AS CITI
ZENS AND AS HUSBANDS AND FATHERS.
This is a bully good time to make the bosses sit up and take
notice that we workingmen are in the political game for keeps
and in it because we want to get a few laws in our own in
terests. . .
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