Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1851-05-26
A Picture Of New York Slavery.

alStuie vi NEW 10TH slavery.
We find the following in late number
Of the Wall Street Reporter, Of New York
city. From this it would Oppear that the
curse Of human slavery has not been COM
fined to tbe limits South Of sMason and
Dixon's line::"
al that is paid for making up flannel
undershirts and common cotton shirts is six
cents ench. BY wofkihg hard oil day, a
good seamstress may possibly make three
OF them by laboring the bes, part Of tho
twenty-lour hours. Tho best Of cotton
shirts with fine linen bosoms are made for
twenty TO twenty-five cents each, while
the rich linen shirts with plealsd bosoms
are made for the scanty price of iriy cents.
Cloth pantaloons, vests, drawers. and so on,
range in price from sixteen to fifty cents,
which, when taken altogether in the be St
light, shows that the best wages viii run on
an average from one dollar twelve and q
hall cents TO two dollars per weak-sayipg
not one word about allowing for sick
ness, accidents, being out Of work, or for
holidays. Only think Of it.
Now is this rightl In the narae Of hu.
manity and in the name OF God we do ask
ogain, is this is right! Are we not informed
by the good book that the laborer is worthy
of bis his hire? The laborer is minister
ing directly to the wants of our citizens.
and the fair fame of our city should not be
sullied with the imputaton that hundreds of
It's daughters, Virtuoas and well disposed,
are obliged TO become prostitutes, followers
of the path Of sin and vice, because the
price of labor is not sutficien, to efford
! them the means Of comfortable and honest
subsistence in reward for their severe toll.
Oh, what shame! Wha. disgrace i
We do hope to see the press in general
come out and declare as duty dictates, thar
humanity demands reformation at the
hands of the public in regard to this subject.
Search the records, and there see for your.
self how many poor girls are continually
turning out upon the world 10 die of starya.
tion and despair, or become inmates Of dens
Of infamy. And why is ,hisi Turn your
eye toward the principal and prosperous
establishments reared by the needle, md
ask the pfoprielors who degrade labor!--
Look on them who are not satisfied of Civ.
ing next 20 nothing for labor wrongh, by
the needle, but will wrong poor females out
Of everything, and you then see the chars
| acters who cause all this.
Such is the slavery of the North-wa.
ges slavery-the slavery which favored
capital is seeking TO impose Upon unpro-
tected labor. 1t is a system OF grinding
oppression which is most felt in large cities.
but Which is gradually cx ending itself over
the whole country as that country becomes
older and its wealth becomes more and
more concentrated in the hands of the few.
To guard against This concentration OF
wealth is the first d.ty of the people. But
how is this duty performed! Look at il.
The entire Legislation o. most of tie States
has been such as to place the con troll Of al
most the entire monetary affai s Of the
States into the hands Of the few, thereby
in great degree giving them the control
of oil else.
This species of wages slavery differs in
some respects from the chat,el slavery of
the South, but it is scarcely less calling 10
the limbs or withsring 10 t e soul. A wri-
ter has thus with much trnth conthastsd
these two species:
"The poor negro mus, work for others
or be hogged; the poor white mnn must
work. for others, or be starved. The poor
negro is subjected 10 a single master: the
poor white man is subjected 10 many mass
ers-to master class. The poor negro
| leads the life Of farm horse: tie poor
white man, like horse kept at livery
stable, is worked by every body aud cared
for by no body. The poor negro has n
master both in sickness and in health; the
poor white man is slave only so long as
he is able 10 toll, and q pauper when he
can :oil no more"