The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1861-08-08

CONDITION or THE 0RKINd CLASSES--DEMA-
GOGuEs AT WoRK.--We see that efforts are being
made to stir up the working men Of this city to
a disturbance of the public peace, under the
pretcnce of extorting from the authorities q
guarantee of what some are pleased to term
"the rights Of labor The movement originates
with small knot Of restless agitators, who are
eager to profit by any unusual excitement in
the public mind TO force themselves into notice.
II might inspire some uneasiness If it really
emanated from the working men themselves, or
had foundation in aggravated suffering. It's
authors, however, are known to have but few
interests in common with the hard working
operative and but little actual sympathy for
him. They are for the most part idlers and
loafers, who despise labor and those who have
the manliness to live by it. The character of
these men is well exemplifed by sentiment
uttered by a speaker at one of their mcctings:--
'As far Us regarded work." he said, abe did
not care great deal for it, but they must devise
means to make themselves comfortable"
This is the whole point involved in the move
ment. lts promoters want, under cover of al
legged suffering among our operatives, to COM
pei the government to supply them with the
means of living a life Of laziness and idleness.
They will not, however, succeed in making
dupes of Tie honest and intelligent working
men Of our city. The latter must feel that their
statements have but little foundation in truth,
and that even supposing them to be correct
there is no plan deyisable by human ingenuity
which can guarantee the existence and welfare
Of the laborer." The experiment of the States
supplying work to carry out this theory was
tried in France in lS48, under the direction of
Louis Blanc and only contributed to plunge
the working classes into greater misery than
before. II can never by any possibility be at
tended with success, for it is at war with natr-
raj laws which forbid any interference with the
free course of labor.
But there is no justification for even an elee-
mosynary appeal on the part Of our operatives
So far from there being any truth in the state
nept that there are forty thousand of them ont
of employment, there are probably but few
hundred more than is usual at this time of the
year. The majority of our large manufacturers,
where they could not give full work, have made
it point to continue their hands at three-quar-
tiers or half time The requirements of our army
have besides opened up many new branches of
industry and given employment to vast num-
bers who would otherwise have been idle. That
there is anything like extreme destitution or
suffering among them we do not believe. If
there be, however, it il their own fault No man
need starve or let his family want who is cana
bic of shouldering 4 masket. The increased
bounties and pay voted by Congress will, with
his raticns, place the common soldier in q bet
Ter condition than many clerk on whose edu-
cation thousands have been spent. And then
he has this additional spur to his ambition, that
he may rise to the position of q brigadier or
general, like many of the sclfmade men who
are now at the head of our army. There is no
reason why he may not even become sort of
republican Napoleon, provided he has brains
adequate to his aspirations.