The Jackson economist. (Winder, Ga.) 18??-19??, May 11, 1899, Image 6

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LABOR AND INDUSTRY SOME ITEMS OF INTEREST TO UNION WORKMEN. I.t Oigmilinl Labor Wlire*tr PmilW* Eschew Secret/- Neiv Socialist n<l Monopolist Wlnt Help I’oter Will Help rui. Wliereforcf Black jsca, black sky! A ponjcroiia gtcam ship driving Between them, laboring westward on lur way. And in In r 'path a trap of Death’s con-' triving Waiting remorse leas for its easy prey. Hundreds of souls within tier frame He dri anting. Hoping and fearing, longing for the light; With human life and thought and feeling teeming, She struggles onward through the star less night. Upon her furnace fire new fuel Hinging. The swarthy firemen grumble at the dust Mixed with the coal, when suddenly up springing, Swift through the smokestack like a signal thrust. Flares a red flame, a dread Illumination! A cry of tumult! Slowly to her helm The vessel yields' mid shouts of acclama tion, An<l Joy and terror all her crew o’er v helm; For, looming from the blackness drear before them Discovered is the Iceherg-hardly seen— ]ts ghastly precipices hanging o'er them. Its reddened peaks, with dreadful chasms between. Ere darkness swallows It again, and veering Out of its track, the brave ship onward steers, Just grazing ruin. Trembling still and fearing, Her grateful people melt in prayers and tears, Js It a' mockery, their profound thanks giving? Another ship goes shuddering to her doom Unwarned, that very night, with hopc3 as living, With freight as precious, lost amid the gloom; With not a ray to show the apparition Waiting to slay her, none to cry "Be ware!” Rushing straight onward headlong to per dition, And for her crew no time vouchsafed for prayer! Could they have stormed heaven's gate with anguished prayer It would not have availed a feather's weight Against their doom. Yet were they dis obeying No law of God, to beckon, such a fate. Ami do not tell me the Almighty Master Would work a miracle to save the one. And yield the other up to dire disaster. By merely human justice thus outdone! Vainly we weep and wrestle with our sor row— We can not see His roads, they lie so broad; But His eternal day knows no tomorrow, And lile and death are all the same with God, —Celia Thaxter. K.clicw S^orrcy. The International Typographical union at Springfield, Mass., ha I re solved that hereafter representatives of the press and employing printers who may choose to attend shall be ad mitted to the meetings of the union. This action was taken after a discus sion which brought out the advantages to be derived by trades unions from publication of the truth about their work, and by disabusing the minds of employers as to secret and discred itable methods of conducting union business. I see that this action is being widely noted in the press as be ing “probably the first time a trades union in tbe United States has adopt ed such an open policy.” While it may not be the first time, it certainly is a radical departure from time-honored custom, and a step in the right direc tion. Whatever is done in secret arouses suspicion of its fairness. Neither have I ever known employ ers to have been Ignorant of what was going ou in unions, if they cared par ticularly to find out. The rule of se crecy keeps matters secret only wheu no one cares to learn about them. Open meetings should be the rule everywhere. They must be, if orga nized labor is to receive general rec ognition as a body of dignity second to none. Nothing, 1 believe, would more rapidly advance the cause of labor than the removal of secrecy from its meetings. Secrecy may have been nee essary in the past, when it was al most a crime to belong to a union. That day has gone. It is now held as honorable to belong to a union as it is to be a member of a church, a po litical party, or a benevolent society. The removal of secrecy does not mean that every counsel of the union shall be open to the world, any more than open sessions of congress mean that every word spoken by a committee in deliberation must be uttered in a loud voice before a gallery of spectators. A union, as a firm, must at times de liberate with no outsiders present. But there is a wide difference between going into executive or secret session when necessary and constantly saying to tbe world that under no circum stances mhst the light of day penetrate to where you work. Labor is agi til. Us counsels are honorably. Us ends create a better America Tbe more labor is under- stood, the greater will grow its influ ence. Remove the veil, that all the world may see, learn, admire. flocialUt sad Monopolist. The trust may be quite accurately defined as the modern socialist and monopolist. Seems like an unusual combination, but It’s so. Mr. Francis Thurber, the millionaire grocer, a few days ago told the national industrial commission that trusts are socialists in principle, which every one knows, and that they are necessary, which is not so certain. That trusts are monop olists as well goes without saying. One of the latest illustrations is the action of the tin plate trust, that has started In to squeeze the sheet mill owners on a plan similar to that used by them in compelling the manufacturers of tin mill machinery to enter into contracts with them for five years. Sheet own ers are now unable to secure a set of new rolls unless they sign an agree ment not to use the rolls for rolling plates for tinning. In years past, when organized labor knew less than now, single unions or large bodies occa sionally overlooked the fact that they were not the whole beach, but sim ply a pebble on it, and not the only one at that. Trouble followed every time, and just as regularly lodged with the organization that had overlooked that great fact. has learned. It has prflted by mistakes. New trusts are pursuing the pame course, that leads to the destruction of all who persist in traveling it. Trusts want the earth. They want to dictate hours and wages. They want to control mar kets, say what and how much you may produce; when, where, to whom, and at what price you are to sell it. All this will lead to the smashing of trusts. I believe that the same genu ine American spirit that forced the abandonment of the “bulldoze” princi ple by trades unions will force the abandonment of that same policy by trusts. Trusts will certainly go to smash, unless there is evolved in the conflict anew sort of trust —one that is wise, just, fair, and therefore benefi cent. I think it likely that such a trust will be evolved. Conditions de mand great concentrated movements in the industrial field, rather than smaller, disconnected ventures. Some men, when they refer to the coming, righteous trust, call it national con trol, governmental or municipal own ership, state socialism, and other names. I don’t pretend to know ex actly what the beneficent trr.3t will be like, or what it will be called, but it Is bound to come—ls coming fast. Mu nicipal ownership of public utilities is making progress, not only as a theory, but In actual practice. That's simply one way of trying to evolve the inev itable beneficent trust Wfiat llelpa retar Will Help Paul. The lollowing extract from the call for the annual convention of the In ternational ’Longshoremen's associa tion, to be held at Buffalo, N. Y., July 11, calls attention to the hardest kind of facts, and should receive the at tention of every workingman or wom an. After it has received attention, the conclusions reached should be act ed upon. Here it Is: “Every effort is being made to make this convention one of the largest and most thoroughly representative yet held, so that every branch of the craft may receive due attention. Were it not for the fact that the ’longshore men had banded together under the banner of the International ’Long shoremen’s association, their condi tions would not be what they are to day, but unity in action resulte! In many enjoying a fair living. But there are yet many things to be done; many of our people are yet unorganized, and it is to their interest to point out to them the necessity of affiliation. The stronger we are in numbers of locals, the less we will have to fear the oppo sition. The International is what the delegates to the convention make it. Select as your representatives men of good, sound judgment; men who are conservative in thought, yet ready for action. Upon the delegates you send depends the future of our association, and it is necessary for each local to be represented by Its proper number of two. At no time would it be more im portant that each local be represented than at this convention. The vessel interests are fast combining and merg ing into a trust. If it is beneficial for the carriers it Is certainly equally good for us to complete our trust, which is more perfect than that of the car riers.” What this call impresses upon ’long shoremen should and must be im pressed upon every worker, and lived up to by every worker, if labor is to get where it ought to be. Note*. The recent Increase in the wages of cotton operatives of New England Is but one of the many signs that pros perous times are ahead of us. The in crease of wages in this industry will amount to more than $75,000 weekly in New England. The passage by the California legis lature of the Hoey eight-hour bill and its approval by Gov. Gage gives Cali fornia a law which will establish the eight-hour day. In practice, as well as in theory, on all public works of the state. A PICTURE OF TODAY. PAINFUL READJUSTMENTS IN SOCIETY BEING FORCED. A Realistic Description of the Ordeal That All Employes Are In Danger of Undergoing These Gold Standard Trust Times. Falling prices increase the burden of debt upon all farmers, business men and manufacturers. For nearly thirty years prices have been falling, con stantly squeezing out of business the weak men and weak firms. The busi ness once done by the bankrupt small fry naturally goes to the surviving strong concerns, and thus the genesis of the trust evil Is falling prices. And generally falling prices, as the most subservient gold standard economists will certify, is due to the increase of production ar.d exchange faster than the volume of money. If, during the last thirty years, the mints had remained open to all of the silver offered for coinage, and in case the free coinage of silver as well as gold did not give us a currency vol ume large enough to maintain stable prices, legal tender paper money had been issued in sufficient quantity to prevent the fall of the general aver age of prices, there would not have been as many small concerns driven out of business, nor so many huge trusts and combines formed. The trust movement, the natural product of the gold standard policy, has now acquired a tremendous magnitude, arc! the re sult is that thousands of men who have heretofore commanded high sala ries—such as traveling salesmen, man agers and head bookkeepers—are being thrown out of employment and find it hard to obtain any kind of work. This is the serious problem of today and the more serious problem of tomorrow, and the waving of “prosperity” ban ners by a mammon-controlled daily press cannot hide the facts. First the general fall of prices, from 1870 until today, forced out of business the smaller business men, who ob tained employment with the large con cerns. Now the large concerns are forming into trusts, closing down all unnecessary factories, dispensing with numerous traveling salesmen, man agers and bookkeepers, as well as me chanics and laborers. And where are these displaced men to find employ ment? This is a question that will soon seriously disturb this nation. They cannot get jobs as skilled labor ers because they have not the skill. They stand no chance of obtaining common laborers’ jobs, because there are already more common laborers than jobs and men with soft, white hands are not wanted for rough work. The army of well-paid employes is be ing reduced every day in this trust era. What are we to do about it? Present political policies may suit you well enough while you are drawing a good weekly salary, but how will you feel when you cannot get a job of any kind? The following story from a New York paper is a picture of a man in that predicament, and illustrates what the country is coming to: Two years ago I lost a good, well paying position. My employers were cutting down expenses and I had to be cut down with the rest of the extrava gances. My wife and I were not at all worried. 1 had a little money laid by, I knew I was competent —I had good letters from my old firm—and I thought I could walk right out almost any day and get a good position. We had comfortable rooms, plenty to eat, good clothes and we knew some very nice people who seemed to like us. I rather enjoyed my idleness for a week or so. I had worked hard for a long time, and my wife and I took a kind of holiday together. We went out to the parks and went sight-seeing in a small way all over the town. Then I started out to look for work. I went to see people I knew. They were all very glad to see me. They all said nice things about my abilities, but they were all “cutting down.” I ad vertised. No answers came. I read every paper in New York —but the Journal —and I answered every ad that seemed at all promising. Our money began to dwindle. We took one room instead of two. We laughed and said it was easier that way. My wife said she thought It would be fun to do a little housekeeping, instead of board ing. and we cooked and ate our meals in that one room. We said It was fun — like a picnic all the time. I went out every day and spent every evening writing letters in answer to the different advertisements. When I went out In the morning I always brushed up and looked the best I could, and my wife always told me I looked too prosperous for a man hunt ing for work. She kept my clothes furbished up, and when I met people I knew I talked with them just as if everything was all right. None bf our friends dreamed that we were really in danger of being hard up. We had always been econom ical and thrifty, and my wife has such a way of putting the best foot fore most that every one thought we were very well to do. I go!, to haunting em ployment agencies. I talked with men there and at the park3. When I had walked till I was tired out I always went to one of the little parks and sat down to get time to brace up a little before I went home. The parks are full of men who are trying to “brace up.” My wife began to look anxious. One day she was sitting by the window sewing and the light shone on her head. I saw something shining. I bent closer and saw a gray hair. I noticed that she had been wearing her hair differently for a while. I pushed It back off her forehead, and there on the temples, under the front locks, it was all shining like silver. She began to laugh, and then she threw back her head and burst out crying. Then the whole story came out. She had been looking for work, too, but had found none. When I was out tramping the street she was out, walk ing up and down the city, trying to get sewing or something to do. She had had charge of the money, and she told me then that it was all gone but one dollar. Well, we sort of faced things that day. She said that she would get a little something to do somehow, and get money enough to go home to her folks on a visit. They lived up the state, and they wouldn’t suspect any thing. She hated to leave me, but we both knew it was the best thing we could do. But we never could get enough money together to pay her way home. We pawned everything we had and lived on one meal a day, and that was not a very big one. I had been out of work fourteen months. One day a neighbor came in and showed me a Journal. There was an advertisement In it: WANTED—For temporary work a double-entry bookkeeper who has had experience in a public accountant’s of fice. I had answered so many advertise ments "and found nothing that I’m afraid I wasn’t quite as grateful to the neighbor as I ought to have been. To tell the truth, we had just 10 cents left in the house —and we hadn’t one thing we could raise one cent more on. I wasn’t going to waste two cents on a stamp. But that night my wife came up behind me when I was sitting with my head on my hands. She put a pen into my hand. “Try this time, dear,” she said, “Just for me.” So I did. I mailed the letter be fore I went to bed. The very next afternoon the post man brought me a letter. It wa3 from the advertiser and asked me to call at once. I went. I was so weak and nervous that I coukl scarcely talk, but I man aged to answer the questions some way. and I got the situation. When I went home I ran the last two blocks. I guess people thought I was crazy. I was—almost. My wife heard me coming up the stairs; she caught me when I came in the door. “You needn’t speak, dear,” she said. “I know. I heard you come in the door. Let’s be thankful —oh. let’s be thank ful." This happened in April, 189S. I began at sls a week. POINTS FROM THE PRESS, If you don’t believe that prosperity is here, just look at the Oregonian this week. It only contains 72 columns of sheriff sale notices. That is indisputa ble evidence of prosperity (for the Ore gonian and money brokers). —People’s Press. The politicians will find in due time that the question of municipal owner ship of important city plants will be a popular one and will find that the party which demands municipal own ership will be Indorsed by the people. —Cleveland Herald. The man who has to wait til.l his political party convention is held be fore he expresses his convictions is about as useful to his country as a rutabaga.—lndustrial Freedom. After more than five years of busi ness adversity, depression and distress the periodic revival of trade has set in, and the relatively prosperous or active period will last until the greed of land lords, bankers, capitalists and profit seekers has taken and hoarded from the people enough of their rightful earnings in money to cause another glut In the market. Producers being unable to buy back out of the mar kets as much as they produce is what causes periodic dullness. —Social Gos pel. Recently the Apollo Iron and Company of Vandergrift, Pa., issued an edict “requiring their slaves to work up until 4 o’clock Sabbath morning, thereby giving God’s day, as parsons say, a foul blow below the belt, so to remark—Spirit of ’76. It sounds queer to hear a man talk about equal opportunities for all, with special privileges for none.and then see him advocate a system which gives to a hundred men in a state tbe special privilege of making laws and denies all opportunity in that line to a million. —Commonwealth. “He That is Thinks All Sq ® Thousands are "cotd”M , that they do not understate the glow of health. plies disordered kidneyM liver, bcnvels , blood or Hood's Sarsaparilla, ma c®' 44 warm" because it ofSl all who take it perfect healt S' dlccd 'A Sauobomk Hood’g PtlU cure llrer Ills; the only cathartic to take with Hood-* A Hairy Tree. B J. W. Roach, who has been down hB Madison county, has made a.l JB that is a revelation to us, says tH Carnesville (Ga.) Advance. ' with him a fine specimen of hair tX appears to be as fine as human S and very strong. It is as black as9 and as straight as a line. It grows'® l black jack trees and very luxuriant® It was found ou the'land of Dr. G. w® Westbrooks, near 11a, and it promiaa® much for utility. It can be used f.® weaving into cloth, stuffing collar® buggy cushions and various other pu® poses for which strong hair is used, ® seems that in its discovery Dr. Wes® brooks has become the owner of a very I fine piece of property; and when it® fully developed its uses will be many® We will watch with much interest tin I result of this discovery. I Locusts Made a Delicacy. S In certain parts of the world son® species of locusts are eaten, and art I considered a delicacy. The Arabs® the Kingdom of Morocco boll the® The Bedouins roast them a little, the® dry them in the sun, and pack the® into large sacks with salt. Other i® habitants of the Eastern countrie® when bread is scarce, pulverize then I and make a sort of bread of them. 1 The American Volunteers have et I tabllshed work in nine of the prlncl-l pal State prisons, and are In touch I with nearly 90,000 prisoners. THE EXCELLENCE OF SYRUP OF is due not only to the originality and simplicity of the combination, but also to the care and skill with which it is manufactured by scientific processes known to the California. Fig Syrup Cos. only, and we wish to impress upon all the importance of purchasing the true and original remedy. As the genuine Syrup of Figs is manufactured by the California Fig Svrup Cos. only, a knowledge of that fact will assist one in avoiding the worthless imitations manufactured by other par ties. The high standing of the Cali fornia Fig Syrup Cos. with the medi cal profession, and the satisfaction which the genuine Syrup of Figs lias given to millions of families, makes the name of the Company a guaranty of the excellence of its remedy. It lS far in advance of all other laxatives, us it acts on the kidneys, liver and bowels without irritating or weaken ing them, and it does not gripe nor nauseate. In order to get its beneficial effects, please remember the name of the Company CALIFORNIA FIG SYRUP CO. SAN FRANCISCO, Col. r/insViLLS. Kr. yOllK*®-'' THE REASON WHY For man or beast SLOAN’S LINIMENT Excels —is that it Penetrates to the seat of the trouble ini' mediately and without irrita ting rubbing —and kills the I pain. Family and Stable Slzaa ISold by Dealers generally. Dr. Earl S. Sloan, Boaton, ****** GOLDEN CROWN LAMP CHIMNEY? Ar„ tlip best. A-k f< r them, tlut'i common climti*y. Ail '•' 1 1 , r*. VITISiiLKU tiLAss CO., '