The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1866-07-28
NATIONAL PLAsTEHERs' UNION
Address ny President Mclean.

A meeting of the National Convention o
Pasterers was held in Philadelphia OF
Thursday, 18th inst, Charles Mclean, o
Boston, 10 the chair, when, after reading o
the minutes of last meeting, Mr.. Mclean de
Iiyered the following address; a
GENTLEMEN - Since we last met in our de
liberate Conventio the condition of the la
boring classes, their duties and responsi
Utilities, the relative condition Of the employ
ers and capitalists Herewith. have much en-
crossed my attention, the result Of which
has been that serious faults and hindrances
Tare fostered and engendered by both parties
| The wolkinamen. en- the one hand, by rash
mess in the advocacy of just claims, without
affording sufficient time for reflection or pre-
paTati0n Hurried counsel, local orgaBiZa-
tons, sometimes prtcipitate strikes, and
involves the whole working community in
the contest whereas, proper appeal
through the press. or other method Of com
municaton, properly stated, would go far to
convince the pubic that our claims were
founded in justice, causing the capitalists to
cede, both for their interests and ours, high
er remuneratiye prices, and less hours in
which to earn those advanced rates, for II Is
apparent from past experience that cool and
combined action is necessary in many re-
spects and in order to repair and rectity
past mistakes, unite all the varied interests
of the working classes, educate them to
drink from a higher and holier source Of
know ledge, sometimes less selfish than hith-
eTto; imbue their minds With better con-
ception Of their destiny let them fully IN
derstsnd the true Interpretation OF the golden
rule, the Dseum and tetem OF society; and
thus, in the plentItude and grandeur Of both
his ply steal and mental power, the producer
Of all wealth will assuredly be best able to
determine how to dispose OF 1t. Strikes
rashly entered upon are productive Of evil
TO all concerned. Let the laboring classes
be united not TO assail, hut TO protect. Let
them be prepared for emergencies armed With
moneyed and moral power, taking the ad-
vice Of ''Polonius," not be readiest TO quar-
rel, but once engaged, SO conduct themselves
that capital will hesitate and reflect before
engaging in q second contest.
By what principle Of justice, on the other
hand, does capital array itself against its
creator and protector, especially when emery
encies have arisen in the country requiring
higher prices, brought about, not by the la
boring man, but by the evil uses TO which
capital was prostrated by the purchase Of
the labOreF himself and not his labor. This
antagonistic condition Of things, contrary to
all the principles of equity, brought on and
cherished in one section Of our country in
volyed US in war, and at its close found us
with an enormous national deDt 10 dlsburse,
more assessors and other snecuTe officers
salaries than are necessary, as a still further
incubus to support, legislators imposing
taxes who are mere tyIos in the knowledge
Of properly proportioning them. National
bonds exempted and held by the rich, whilst
the necesssries Of life are bnrdened to the
straining point, and yet It's accounted sacri-
lege to complain or even quest higher
prices for labor, more especially if combined
for that purpose Now, gentlemen, ! con
tend that nom paid labor, which has brought
about this condition Of Kings will ultimately
bring about worse. the claims Of Hire
Quilted labor are to pass unheeded--if, as IN
"Frankenstein," the creature attempts to be-
come too powerful for its creator, then it be-
comes the duty OF every man existing to
eonfine and limit it's power. The tyranny
inflicted by two Of the three classesof society
in France, (the moneyed twO) upon the
third estate brought about the revolution.
line foundations upon which the fabrics OF
Christianity stood were assailed by atheists
Of their own creation, for men reasoned that
the true God could rot infiict nor tolerate
such wrongs as the clergy taught and inn
posed The other, the nobility, so-cailed,
imperious by birth and education, spurned
UNDECIDED the petitions of the working
classes, destroyed faith in monarchical insti-
tutions, and, drunk, with madness ut thosq
two classes, retalated With fearful retribu-'
ton for past injuries. But while we depIore
that the claims Of certain classes Of our
countrymen to obtain shorter hours Of labor
have not been granted in another section Of
the country, but retarded, and the capital
and wealth of still another section arrayed
against the caulkers Of Boston to force them
TO submit TO the conditions OF the first class
for having expressed sympathy for their Eel
low craftsmen in New York in their hour of
trial; we deprecate both tynnnies, bat es-
pecially the last, as they committed no act
but the above, and should be supported BY
every workingman in the country.
For what purpose do our State govern
ments expend such vast sums for education,
to teach boy the theory Of demonstrating
a problem in Euclid, and then sent to trade
whore his physical powers are FRUSTRATED by
long hours of labor In what condition is
his mind at the end Of each oyerstraiued
days toll to grapple with and develope the
hidden mysteries Of chemistry, or to invent
and bring 10 practical use those school
taught theoriesf His mental and physical
powers, jaded and oppressed, render him un-
fit, amid the inexhaustible resources Of this
great country, vet almost unknown, and
their application obscure. Now, gentlemen,
il the dull ear of power (power created by
you) would but listen to reason, and take
an uaseiksh view Of this matter, before il Is
too late, let them reason and compromise
The workihgman is fast rising to . higher
civilization, by which he already begins 10
perceive that in . better conditioneI state
Of society, towards which he is fast tending,
viz: labor, Its hours, its remuneration, etc,
wlst IT sll.timessthsrk i,self, nor require an.
called for nor unwarranted dictation from
capital. sz sa
&~.,mk Ia L. 1890 a