Litchfield enquirer., 1867-02-14
- . s---------------- TO CONNECTICUT DEMOCRATS.

The Connecticut Democracy at Hartford yestsr- day adopted one 'un-Dsmocratie resolution, viz: that declaring themselves 'in favor of making "eight hours per day legal days labor in all me- "chanical and manufacturing pursuits, in the ab- "sence of any agreement to the contrary between contracting parties."
 Do Connecticut Democrats recognize the right or the power of their State government or the fed eral government, or any government whatever. to make sixteen hours per day or two hours per day legal days labors Do Connecticut Democrats propose to commit such e power to the men whose fanatlcism has reduced the amount and value of what every laboring mans ten hours labor once purchased, twentyAto fiftyper cent? # as@'
 We, Tor our parts, will neither consent to commit the welfare Of the workingman to the folly of those leg1siators nor the wisdom of anybody else. It is that any man shall work, just two people have con- cern-the man who gives labor for money and the man n! who gives money for labor: And the Connec- the employer how little he shall receive as to the employee how much he shall give. The right to prescribe eight hours carries the right to prescribe sixteen or two. The man who votes to put this dangerous power into the hands of the Connecticut Legislature or any other Legislature, votes to de- liver foul blow upon the person of Liberty; votes to commit the dearest interest of honest labor to anothers caprice interests, or passions; votes to subject hard-earned capital to legislative spolia- uOn.
 This is not true Democracy. This is the very thing which everywhere true Democracy grapples
 
 right of the laborer and not less the right of the employer of labor. Subjection to the wil with ca- price, the interest," the passions of the chance ma lorty of chance set of men sitting in Hartford or borers have both of them most to dread. To-day the hours of labor may be reduced and the labor CT congratulate himself on his better bargain To- morrow they may be increased, and tho capitalist think he has the best of it. -. t .
 Both are wrong. Neither can profit by any leg lslation, though both together may suffer- for the eight-hour law will neither draw from the employ CT more money for the same work, nor let of the laborer with less work for the same money. Eight hour laws would be as impotent to accomplish their purpose are usury laws to accomplish theirs. Both are interferences with freedom of trade which no true and enlightened Democrat can The employer has right to demand freedom in that which he furnishes to the transaction called exchange" or ''trade;" the laborer has an equal right: Each renders equal service to the other, both being judges of equality. They exchange those services; each may justly resist the attempt of the other to be the sole judge of that equality in l exchange, no man can afford to be counted out in the estimate of the value of his own service in e1 change. But both may justly resist, and both have the same common and supreme interest in resist ing, the consignment to any third party whatever man, woman, or General Assembly of the State Connectlcut-the valuation of the quotas in that equal exchange The equality of the law would speedily become the hideous inequality of oppres. 1 sive class legislation; and if any hard-workinR Democrat in Connecticut thinks that since he has labored, he at least will not be the one, to sufe, from such legislation, let him count up the ssm. forts of life which his ten hours work brought him in, six years ago, and those which the same labo, ! brings him in now.
 Democrats of Connecticut there is one word which must shine upon your banners-Freedom. Democracy means nothing if it does not mean freedom for your persons, freedom for your facul ties, freedom in exchanging the property that you 1 acquire by applying them. Your eight-hour reso-
 ution proposes to give up the custody of this last named of your liberties, to-day to pack of Radical will guard it's guardianss Keep what liberty you have like true Democrats, at every opportunity en- large tgivs the Legislatures less and less to do. At any rate, trust no government to weigh your wages or measure your work.-Nesc York World Fe5. 6h.