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ikxCOIiX, XEBBASKA, JULY 31, 1909
VOL.
8 PAGES
'0. 1
Among the live Ones
In This Good Town
The Labor lgr committee met Fri
day evening at the. labor commission
er office ana permanently organUed
by electing C. H. Chase chairman, 7T.
Parker secretary and G. A. Walk
er treasurer.
It mas decided by unanimous vote to
engage Miss Mary McDowell as the
orator of the day. Miss McDowell will
be In Lincoln the Sunday before and
arrangements will be made to have
her occupy the pulpits ot a couple of
down town churches. The Casework
er assures the churches that grant
her the use ot their pulpits that she
primaries on August 17. Dailey is
the kind of a man it will do to tie to.
Tomorrow night General Thomas C.
Kelsey will turn the keys of the city
scales over to his successor. If the
city gets as good a man as Kelsey to
succeed him it will be entitled to con
gratulations. Kelsey took the position
of city weighmaster four years ago,
and brought the job out of obscurity
and made it a source of goodly rev
enue to the city. His accounts were
always in splendid shape and the
scales never run on a more business-
will preach a gospel ihat will appeal i m;e basis. It is to be regretted that
to the hearts of men and women. I Mayor Love did not see fit to re-ap-
There Is no better speaker on pressing
topics of the day than Miss McDowell,
and she will tell a story of human in
terest that will benefit all.
The following comwittees were ap
pointed: Prcgratu Kelsey, Clarke. Ransge.
Sports and Contests Walker. Geller.
Garrison.
Printing Yates. Walker, Green
wood. Arrangements Rudy. Kelsey, Beard.
C. A. Yates will have charge of tne
dancing arrangements and will select
his own assistants.
Several new committeemen appeared
at the last meeting, and it is hoped
that by the first meeting in August
every union in Lincoln and Havelock
will be represented.
point him. but the mutations of poli
tics prevented. But General Kelsey
retires rightfully proud of the record
he made in the office.
Miller & Paine, who -recently pur
chased the Lindell hotel, are prepar
ing to remodel the building and make
it a hotel equal to the best in the west.
Halls will be straightened, new exits
created and the building renovated
from top to bottom. An experienced
hotel man has been placed in charge.
and the Lindell will doubtless soon re
same its old place in the affections of
the traveling public.
dence on which to found its petition
for a reversal, but the supreme court
refused to go behind the records of
the trial court, which awarded dam
ages on the theory of a gas explosion.
MARGARET HALEY AGAIN.
The Chicago School Teachers union
and other trade unionists have been
investigating a little, and as a con
sequence sixteen corporations are to
be callel upon by the state of Illinois
to pay J14.000.000 in taxes which they
have managed to escape paying here
tofore. It is a safe bet that every
member of those tax-dodging corpora
tions is an advocate of the "open
shop idea. Detroit Advocate.
SEVERELY SCALDED.
Lorena Maupin, the eleven-year old
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Will M.
Maupin, seriously scalded her right
hand last Friday evening. The injury
was so serious as to require the ser
vices of a physician, and it will be
some time before the little miss will
be able to use the injured member.
The union carpenters of Lincoln
. have been swelling around a bit of
late, and they have a right to feel
iikukL Last Thursday their Interna
tional dedicated a new $100,000 head-jrer part
quarters building in Indianapolis. The
buiMing is tour stories high, finished
in the best style of workmanship and
when it was dedicated it was free of
encumbrance.
The work of illuminating the state
house grounds is now under way. and
in a few weeks that beautiful park
will be one of the handsomest places
in the west. The wires are being
placed under ground, and handsome
electric !ight posts will be erected in
A special meeting of street railway
men was held at the labor commis
sioner's office last Thursday ereniug
t which time several new names were
added to the roster and the interest of
at targe number of men still outside the
told was enlisted. This enterprising
new union Is going about its work in
a systematic manner, and the indica
tions are that long before Labor Day
it will be what is commonly called, a
"one hundred per cent union.
Col. Will Norton, formerly of Lin
coln, bui now ot Humboldt, was in
Lincoln one day last week renewing
old acquaintances. Norton is still a
member ot the Typographical and Mu
sicians' unions of this city. He is
now editor, publisher and proprietor
of the Humboldt Standard, and he
says he Is "cutting the mustard in
that progressive community. I-ast
spring he was elected city clerk, but
he soon restfjcned. as he found the city
printing more profitable than the
clerk's salary. He stopped off in Lin
coln on his way back from Omaha,
where he went to purchase a lot of ma
terial, "I am going to bate a "Merg"
la there before long. he said. There
are a lot ot people in Lincoln who
hope that "Billy" Norton -will make
a wagon load of money in the news
paper business.
ECHO OF ORCHARD'S LIES.
In a San Francisco court last week
final judgment for S10.S0O damages
against the San Francisco Gas com
pany for the wrecking of the flat in
which Fred Bradley lived, and -which
Harry Orchard, self-confessed assas
sin of Governor Steunenburg of Idaho,
declared was blown up by a dynamite
bomb placed by him as a trap for
Bradley, was awarded to W. H. Lin
torth, owner of the building, by the
IN BANKRUPTCY.
The ""Fashion suit store on O street
has gone into bankruptcy, with liabili
ties approximating $20,000 and liabili
ties of about $10,000. It may be only
a coincidence, but the bankruptcy of
this firm followed upon its failure and
neglect to advertise in The Wage-
worker.
FREE HIDES OR FIGHT.
Delegation of Shoe and Leather
Workers Want Free Hides.
That New England does not stand
alone in the demand for free hides
has been made clear by the events of
the past week at Washington. Dele
gations of shoe and leather manufac
turers from Chicago and Milwaukee,
who arrived at the capital a few days
ago, stated emphatically; that the
in this country which " handle heavy
hides and leather. If the tariff on
hides is not abolished it will be only
a step further for the packers to
engage in the retail shoe and leather
business. The story of the Amer
ican Tobacco company will be re
peated. Controlling the hide market
as they do and rapidly monopolizing
the tanning industry, the packers will
before long establish shoe factories
and retail shoe and leather stores
throughout the country, driving the
present manufacturers and small re
tailers out of business.""
The accusation that the shoe and
leather manufacturers are unmindful
of the welfare of the farmers is ut
ter": absurd, for no one "knows any
better than those who employ- this
sta'stnent that the farmer never has
received and never will receive the
slightest -benefit from the duty on
hides. Furthermore, if those who are
strongest in their protestations of
friendship for the farmers are really
sincere, is it likely that they would
hesitate to advocate a duty on pig
skins and goatskins.
The senators representing the beef
trust are the backbone of the o posi
tion to free hides. The beef packers
do make money out of the duty on
hides. It has created the sole leather
trust as a branch of the beef trust.
It promises if continuel to create a
shoe trust as a branch of the beef
trust.
The ways and means committee
of the house did its work well. , It
brought forth a bill which would un
doubtedly have met the needs of the
country for years to come. The bill
submitted by the finance committee
o fthe senate can only be described
as atrocious. That It can run the
gamut of congress and the white
house in anything like its present
form seems almost incredible. But
one thing is certain. If the unmodi
fied Aldrich bill ever becomes law the
tarij, question will continue as un
serar as it was before the present
of congress was convened.
Labor Unions Stand For
Self Respect, Intelligence
west wants free hides as much as
New England does. Speaking of the j thereby retarding the return of
tnevitanie results or me retention or I business prosperity. Incidentally, ir
the present duty, J. Harry Seiz. one
of the delegates, declared:
"The importance of the issue can
not be over-estimated. The packers
are rapidly monopolizing the tanning
supreme court. The gas company of- business. Already they own or con
fered Orchard's confession as evi-! trol 4? out of a total of 66 tanneries
the republican party intends to break
its solemn pledges to the country at
ths instigation of a few leaders to
whom private interest is paramount
over party honor, what will be the
result when the country againj regis
ters its verdict at the polls? Ex.
The labor union does not make any
pious pretentions and it makes no
claims as a religions institution. It
has been too busy to build ceremonies
and creeds. Its hands have been so
busy lifting up the weak and feeding
the hungry and wiping away the
tears from sad human eyes that it
has not schooled itself in sanctimo
nious attitudes.
In its devotion to the busy and prac
tical things of life it has often made
mistakes. Its leaders do not have
much leisure o study or weigh phi
losophical or theological distinctions.
If religion means a selfish seeking
for personal salvation a desire to
get to heaven at any cost; if sancti
ficaiion means getting away from the
scenes of sin and suffering snuggling
the soul in some secluded sanctuary
sealed against the sighs of sorrow and
want then the labor union is the
most irreligious and unsanctified in
stitution in the world.
Carlyle says that all true work is
religion. The labor union aims to
make good work of them. It asks
that the man who works shall have
good pay for his work and a say In
his work. It insists that the -worker
shall be intelligent and self-respecting;
that he shall think and hold his
head up beside his employer as a
Christian and citizen. It teaches the
strong to help the weak, each to con
tribute to the good if alL It takes
the child from the factory- and puts !
it in the school. It takes the woman!
from the sweatshop and puts her in
the home. It places chairs behind
the counters of the stores for the
weary girls who are obliged to work
long hours for small pay. It places
vestibules on street ears for shivering
motonnen. It finds jobs for the idle,
builds homes .for the widows and
orphans. Could a Holy God ask mare
of a human institution? Ex.
independent concern kas received a
10 per cent increase ia wages.
Prominent -women's orgaaizatioea
of Los Angeles. CaL. are co-operatiatC
with trades unions to secure shorter
hours for working cornea. They wast
stores to close at 5 p m.
The quarterly audit cf the books of
the United Mine Workers of America,
which was ended May 31. shows tha
the organization has voted ta apart'
priationo of $4,500 for hats to be worm
in the Labor day parade.
The men employed in the iron trades
in San Francisco have received a re- -duction
of IS minutes a day. Tats
reduces the work day aader the iirr
meat with the metal trades associa
tions to eight and one-half hows a
day.
Practically al the independent steal
and iron companies that redaced their
wages last February have retarued ao
the old schedule. More than IMjMe
men were affected by the redaction,
and they will receive the increase.
Five thousand two hundred aad thir
ty -seven carpenters are bow affiliated
with the Carpenters' District Council
of Pittsburg. Xo strike of any charac
ter is on at the present time, and a -very
small perceatage of the area are
oat of employment.
Daring 1903 the Boot asd Shoe
Workers International aaioa) paid
155 death benefits, which aggregated
I1&2O0; six disability benefits. T7i.
and a total of 13.783 weeks' sick, beae
fits. aggregating SJ17J. making a
total for beaefits expended
The anion working women of Boa-
tea have organized a chorus to stag
the songs of labor. It has fifty mem
bers and is being coils tartly increased
from the ranks of the women and girls
who belong to the various anions of
the city. Competent instructors are
training the chorus.
The Amalgamated Carpenters of
Great Britian by a referendum vote
have decided on establishing offices
in the United States, and they expect
in the next two years to increase the
membership to 100.000.
Twelve hundred employes of the
Sharon ( Pa.) Steel Hoop company, an
THEIR- NEFARIOUS SCHEME.
The Saloons and The Workers
By
Rev. Charles
StelzJe
Will M. Maupin. deputy labor com
missioner, left last Saturday morning
on what will be something of a tour.
Sunday and Monday he spoke at
Springfield, NelK, Tuesday he delivered
an address at the "Home Coming" cele
bration In Oregon, Mo. From there tie
went to Scotts Bluffs, Neb-, and from
there we wlli visit Sidney, North
Platte. Kearney, Grand Island, Colum
bus. Spalding. Albion, Norfolk Fre
mont. Omaha and then back home,
fart ot the time will be spent in look
ing after the hotel inspection law, part
to fire escape Inspection and part to
securing material on the forthcoming
bulletin, "Resources of Nebraska.
I'niOB mea who affiliate with the
republican party do not want to over
Is the fact that Clark liley is. so
tar as knowa to The Wageworker, the
only union man who Is a candidate tor
county offlce. By that is meant that
he Is the only candidate wha carries
a union card. Brother t"wlley is a
number of the Machinists Union and
he Is asking his republican friends to
nominate him for county commission
er. He la well fitted for this imports--.,
fitce. and he should have the
earnest support ot union men at the
The brewery worker and the men which have come to many lives on
account of its influence. Scarcely one
of us but what has felt the grip of
its slimy claws, or seen the agony of
loved ones who bave been helpless in
its power. Can we. as men and
women, remain indifferent to such an
institution? Dare we, who are pledged
to seek the welfare of every fellow
trades unionist, declare that, as the
saloon does not hurt us. therefore we
shall make no effort to assist him
whom it does injure? I do not argue
here for prohibition. That isn't the
question before us. It is a question
as to whether we shall countenance
and worse still, endorse a certain
business in our midst which is doing
more to unfit men for their life's
work; which is doing more to bring
disgrace upon the- labor movement
than any other enterprise known. We
are our brother's keepers. Not only
are we pledged to be such, but we
shall be held responsible for our
brothers.
But what is to become of the bar
tenders and the brewery workers and
the men who are now benefiting from
the brewing and the distillery, inter
ests. In the first place, it must not
bo imagined that the saloon and the
employed In the distillery are work
ingmen. Most of the men are en
gaged in these industries, not because
they want to be. but because they
must. It is not their fault, but their
misfortune. But since they are work
ingiuen, honestly trying to make a
living, and since they are now affili
ated with the American Federation
of Labor, it is our duty, as fellow
workers, to see that they get a square
deal from their employers. Just as we
must insist upon a square deal for
all other workers. . This does not
mean that we must endorse their
business, any more than we would
eudorse the rascality that is practised
in connection with other enterprises.
but with which some of our fellow-
members are helplessly identified.
However, it Is our right to stamp out
the rascality, and if. in order to do
this, we must also stamp out the busi
ness, so much the worse for the busi
ness. If we must accept with the
saloon, ail of its accompanying evils.
then it becomes a question as to
whether the benefits which it brings
comparatively Tew workers, is real
ly worth while. Organized labor can
not afford to stand for any sort of
enterprise, nor for any institution, liquor interests are the only consum-
which results in the degradation ofjers of the materials manuiactured by
the workers or of the people as a ! the gl.iss battle blowers, the harness-
whole. No man can successfully deny
that the saloon, as an institution, is
one of the greatest curses of modern
times. There is scarcely room for ar
gument ou this point. Everybody
knows of the suffering and hardship
makers, the wagon-makers, and all
the other industries more or less re
lated to a saloon. The monev now
spent in the saloon will be spent for
other goods, or in other places, which
will bring these workers at least as
much profit as they- now receive for
their product. As a matter of fact,
the amount of money now spent in
the saloon will purchase or will cause
to be purchased more of the same ma
terial that these workers are produc
ing than is the case in the liquor busi
ness. It will require more bottles,
more wagons, more harness, and many
more men than is now required to
supply the brewery and the saloon.
So far as the bartenders are con
cerned, it is a well-known fact that
very few men have been brought up
in the -business. They have had other
trades or occupations, but on account
of their personal popularity or their
natural ability as salesmen, they
either opened saloons of their own or
became employes of those who did.
In any event, they may either go back
to their trades or they may- become
salesmen in other enterprises. The
class for whom it may be most diffi
cult to provide are those who are di
rectly engaged in the manufacture of
beer and whisky. But after all the
outside craftsmen who are affiliated
with the brewery-workers are elimi
nated, such as engineers, firemen, car
penters, drivers, horse-shoe rs, grain
handlers, and many others who really
have nothing to do with the manufac
ture of beer, it will be found that
there are comparatively few workers
left. Like all other industries, the
brewing industry is depending less
and less- upon men, and more and
more upon machinery. The old-fashioned
brewer has gone -out of exist
ence. The chemist is the big man in
the brewery today. Therefore, the
number of men who are directly in
volved is not as great as is generally
supposed. It should be remembered,
also, that these very men receive a
smaller percentage of the profit than
is paid the workingmen in any other
craft Furthermore, if the breweries
should erer be closed, this event will
probably not take place for some time
to come, and they will not all be
closed at once. The change will no
doubt come through a gradual pro
cess, which will permit those era
ployed In the breweries and the dis
tilleries to adjust themselves to the
new conditions, just as was the case,
for instance, with the members of
the Typographical Union when the
linotype machine was introduced. The
men. simply were compelled to learn
a new trade, and those who learned
it soonest were most greatly benefited.
The brewery and distillery workers
must face the fact that, for most of
them, at any rate, their business is
doomed. There are too many agencies
at work against them. The railroads
and other corporations are sounding
the note of warning. Their men must
not drink intoxicants. The doctors
through their studies of hygienics are
delivering sledge-hammer blows. The
legislatures, regardless ot the "plead
ing of "cranks," are rapidly closing
up the saloons the "cranks have
little to do with it. The people
their constituents demand it . and
they dare not disobey.
As to their right to do this, we
shall leave that for further discus
sion.
Steel Trust Will Break Un on The
Reduce Wages.
It is a bold-faced lie that t&7 United
States Steel corporation Is not at
tempting to reduce wages by dec-tar
ing war upon the organized workers
In its mills. The trust magnates waat
to destroy the union first aad enforce
a general cut at the same time. Their
j'own figures speak for tbemsetvesc,
i Based on 30-gauge upon which the
I wage scale is always based they u
mand a reduction ranging from 2
per cent for rollers to over S per Cent
for heaters. On 26-gange and heavier
the redactions run rfom IV: Pr cent
to over IS per cent. Besides tKs the
trust magnates waat to eUmiaate foot
notes and extras aad deliberately stent
5 to 1ft per cent In gauges after the
above-mentioned reductions have hem
made. What do you think of that tor
nigh-toned liars aad thieves? The
open shop is only a mask for capital
istic cannibals and industrial hixa way
men. They possess no honor or de
cency and are absolutely shameless.'
Cleveland Citizen.
T POGRAPH ICAL. UNION.
August Meeting Will Be Held Rat
Sunday Afternoon.
The Typographical Union win meet
at Fraternity Hall Snaday afternoon,
it being the date for the regalar Aug
ust meeting. So far as knowa the
only business outside of the routine
will be to give instructions to Messrs-.
Locker and Freeman, the delegates ta
the St. Joseph convention, w h i.-b meets
on August 9.
It is hoped by a number of the
members that the local will see fit to
instruct the delegates to support aad
work for the acceptance of the Lewis
pro position- Mr. Lewis, of St. Loan.
offers the International a building site
in his suburb to the Missouri metru
polis. conditioned apoa the Interac
tional erecting a headquarters build
ing. The International is bow spend
ing $3.(00 a year for the rental of room
in the Newton Claypooi bcild-Eg ia In
dianapolis, and the quarters are re
stricted. This rental represents five
per cent interest oa XIZJ and that
amount would erect a haadsome build
ing. The site offered by Mr. Lewis
is said by real estate experts to be
worth not less thaa S5d.00tL His propo
sition looks like a good cne. aad it cer
tainly deserves though tfui ccasidera-tion.
k