New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1850-12-13
labor Reform In Philadelphia.

noticed IN my last communication the move
mentsi in favor OF Labor IN this city | have now
to chronicle some further progress The Trade
Committee have decided upon holding Mass
Meeting presume to devise ways and means
10 do something 1t appears to me to be sheer
folly TO convene mass meeting. unless they-ths
Commit;ee-haye cles-. practical. well digestea
plsn 10 propose 70 be adopted at said meeting
lii evident that the operatives want something
there is huge chasm that wants bridging over
the question is, are the members OF the Commit
tee architects sufficient to build the bridge l
sn, certain that some of them are, but the qGory
arises, will they be permitted to do ii hope 50.
for Will not anticipate failure.
In my last letter | referred to what appears 10
NE to be the three immediate pressures upon our
producing citizens. must allude to these agan
The first is the rapidly increasing and improving
productive machine power. Let us exsmlas
this question fairly let US silt Il thoroughly
There IS a factory employing 500 persons. Tho
machinery is Of that nature that 700 persons have
fall employment at IA or II hours day athoush
this is twice even three or four times As Iong as
it would be necessary TO abor dld the working
men understand the true principles of social and pc
htical science However will speak OF this Ia ttS
proper place. Some Ingenious mechanic hits upSa
an Improvement N machines, the effects OF when
are 10 displace one hundred of those at work
IL
Gated to this kind of work and to none other. ID
they TT, to become Printers. No. no, say they, you
must'uot work among us The hatterS, jewellers.
bootmskors &c. &c. say the same, nor is this
wonderful, because self preservation IS the hrst
law OF nature and it is matter OF seh-preserva,
top with cQcb and al trades 20 prevent turthes
increase Of laborers in the various trades And
why Because there are already too many me-
ehauics in every trade and 1t is well known thae
wherever ard whenever there are too many la
borers in any trsde that then they are more at tha
mercy of the employers than they are when there
are fewer. deem it supertiuous to attempt illus
trating q elfevient proposition like this Bat
the unfortunate one hundred thrown out OF en-
povment-what is to become ofthcm Is incon-
temptation to point out remedy am inclined
to believe that the Trades Committee ought to
look ut this part Of the subject
again ask what will the 100 persons do
will show exactly what they will do under our
present system of civilization After the explra
ton Of three or iour weeks unwilling idleness.
they behold their wives and children oreadiesA'
their homes-if the miserable cellars and gaTeS
in which they reside can be called homes-tre-
less the landlord demanding rent the grocer
craving money. Have these men the attributes
of humanity Do they feel as husbands ana
(athers2 Has not the iron entered their souls
w IN thew 20 forth TO ask brother of tho earth
10 give him leave to toll r. They have done that
already, and could not find employment. Shall
they 20 forth and beg in the public highways and
streets or shall they and theirs break up the en-
dearing ties of family and wend their way TO the
almshouse2 No, no, they feel TINT they are men,
and that they will not do Shall they take to the
highway and become ootpad pickpocket or
burglar Their sense Of Justice, OF right, and
wrong forbids them to become thieves or robbers.
What then shall they do Alas alas tor the Dug
nity of the treeborn citizens OF our great ttepue-
lie, to what straits they not driven TO OBTAIN
the commonest necessarles OF Ute lor themselves
cDd tbpir halneeg starving tamllle5
The only resource left is this. The loO or that
portion which has not been fortunate enough 10
procure livelihood at other occupations go 70
the boss of the factory and offer themselves tor
less prices than they have been working at as
natural consequence they obtain work at reduced
wages; others are displaced, who in their turn
have to endure the same prlyatlona, go through
the same ordeal, and in their turn oiter to WORK
for less than those in employment, and thus Things
! retrograde from bad to worse until the lnctory
operatives of America have, us general rule to
toll as long and for as little just suits the ca
prices and whims of the employers. wish to
caution the readers of TIE Tri5uHe against the
idea that include all employers in the catalogue
of tyrants. l DO no such thing; for | know that
among the employing classes there are honorable
and worthy men who feel for the position OF their
! hands and who would ameiorate it did they
know how. ! spoak OF tho systcnl as 1t IS 1t
makes a class of cruel despots on the one hand,
and class oil crnging seris on the other; and
whenever the former class acts humane and the
latter independent oil it, it is not because the sya-
tenn encourages humanity or independence, but
because the nature of men rises above the sys-
tenn | now tell the Delegates from the Trades
Associations, that unless they have the intelii
gence and the courage to look at this growing
evil and devise a remedy forit, that thelrschemes
will prove miserable abOrtions; nay, more, may
prove evils instead OF benefits to the vast body OF
worklDgmen. This huge monster called machine
ry will devour them every one. | have had it
stated to me that men employed as lnachinsts,
have earned as high as SOB in two weeks in GER
tain shop in this city upon piece. work. Now,
venture to assert that before twenty years ez-
pire, should there be no method adopted to use
machinery in favor OF the loborer that machinists
viii not average s. per week.
The position have taken upon this question
regarding those five hundred persons employed in
factory is equally attributable or rather appli-
cable to improvements in machines for making
shoes, hats coats or any other branch of trade.
ask the Trades delegates to point out safe path
tor the dispossessed to travel. VIII they be paid
weekly wages out Of Trades Union fund must
they become paupers are they to become
thieves or shall they lie down and die of the
slow tortures Of hunger! This is no tancifu pic
ture OF mine relating 10 men being thrown out OF
employment by Improvements IN the mechanical
and chemical sciences. Up then Messrs Ahern,
Helg Shedden, Brown, Champion, Dutton, Nc
Gensy Warner Lockwood, ct cetera, and prove
that you are equal to the task Of directing the
powerful intellect and energies OF the laborers in
to a proper channel know that you know tina
remedy the query is, will You allow yourseyesto
he oYeruled by IDEAS merelyin favor OF Trades
Unions and strikes? Ii so you will greatly disap-
point me. | am anxiously waiting to see the ma
ture OF the address which is TO be submitted TO
mass meeting to be held shortly in the Chinese
Museum. Let that document be clear, concise,
practical and re0rmatory, so as TO give satlstac-
ton to every wofkingman and TO every working
mans friend Tonight Friday. meeting favor
able to the Industrial Union will be held in the
Franklin Hall. w. j. Mullen, Esq. has the good
work in hand. and ii s only necessary to add that
this gentleman never wearies in performing hui
name and nsefu! acts. II ives me pleasure tore.