New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1868-08-01
COOPERATION.

the employnR classes of all nations III Is hecesSi-
- 49, ,.iati,,e social positions II is not per-
- o,,ooon,sn,. as between man and man, but the
taoisn, Of class against class. 1t is not premedl-
toted II is rather an eutgrOwth OF our Imperfect
civiItzatien 1t originates all the struggles WHICH
are continually taking place on the part OF the ell
Moved TO increase the sum paid for the remunera-
tion of their labor. Thus a continual warfare Is
waged betweeE those who.buy labor and those VINO
have it to SELL the ultimate result of when must DC
the loss to both parties of millions OF Va4uaDie
wealth not 10 mention loss of temper, good feelng
and the regard for each other which as the children
of one common Father we ought to feel. always
feel sorry when see through the medium OF the news
naner that tbe men in the employ of Mr.. So-and-SO
are obout to strike for higher wages. l know from
nm extensive experience of such modes of social war
fare what an amount of gold is useleSsy wasted and
what evil passions raised watched for 40 weeks
the brave but hopeless struggle of the Amalgamatod
Engineers which took place in England in the year
1852 They wished to limit the number of appren-
tees to their ideas of the requirements of the trade
TO put stop to the hire of unslilled labor and the
working of over time. Thirty thousand OF the clev-
crest. stcadcst and best of England artisans alte[
spending millions of dollars, and enduring months OF
pTvatiOn. backed by the funds OF the rchest WORK
ingncn's organization III the country, IN auultio W
the extraneOus help of outside sympathizeTs' were
forced to succumb and actually went TO work undeT
more unfayOIabe circumstances than those tley nau
struck against. About the same peIlOu tuo COttol
lords of Lancashire represented TO thelr men Iha6
they should be forced TO reduce the wages palG ~
per cent in consequence OF the depressed sae vi le
cotton trade, else be driven to the worse eApe9-
ont of disnissing a large number of their hands
They said that this was only to be
TEMPORARY reduction, and as soon as the demand
in"rrosed the 10 per cent should be restored
The men generously submitted. Inc masters IoIgot
the second part of their agreement THOUGH Tue
wear was one of unusual prosperity Inc III per CeHU
was not restored. The men turned out On MdSee,
they had the sympathy Of the whole naio MI'n o M
inCOnsiderabe pecunary NIP a., Money snent with
the most rigid economy; the press from tie snaies'
penny paper to the National ia 1 the h", dDe
poused their They struggled Win ihe ueoP55
ration of starving men for tmrtY-seven weeks spehu
ing it was computed, ESOC0OOO, and then haa 10 re-
sumo work Those who could procure ~ AT INC f Se
reduced wages could multiply INSTANCES OF Iall4If
by the score. know of but few really SuCceSSiul
struggles of labor against capital III mas Deeh Yum
puted that In England alone t2,O0OOOO nave peeh
spent during seventeen years in the trultless attempt
to make employers pay hlgher fareS u vii not
here assert that all this money has been wasted II
NAV have had a tendency to keep wages niue
higher than they would otherwise be. IL may nave
Epnt fine employing class up to the mark by placing
before them the wholesome fear of wages repetition,
which is runous to them as vel as 10 fnoSe oey 1l
pOy. But do most fearlessly assert thaI never was
SO little gained for such vast outlay. III has pro
NOTED disunion among the men themselves wnilc
protesting to unite them. 1t has engehoeIea tlle
bitter hate of the employing classes. 1t has drlVe
hundreds of thousands from their homes 10 seek d
precarious living in foreign lands 1t has forced the
masters TO form unions for their protection. Ii
has driven native industry from its own home to the
home of the stranger. 1t has discovered the rae
that where people are lightly taxed, and OF simple
habits they can do the work we have refused a.
good and SO much cheaper that they can come to ou
has thus ruined native industry in tina
part of the world forever. 1t has RENDERED
arbitration which is of the prerogatives OF Rea
son-almost impossible. 1t has pitted gold agans
blood and muscle and brain. Indeed, the very exist
ence of trades unions whether they DC tCS f %
false relationship which exists between labor anC
capital 1t is humiating confession Of our igno
rance of the laws of social and political economy
Its results are barbaTOus and bloody. 1t promote
rattenngs burnngs, secret assassination, ana opel
murder 1t engenders and indirectly builds VI
drinking IL sports with the sacredness of home
ties begets a roaming disposition; indeed 1t !:
E 1s We alWoVs 70 be the slaves of this nam
mon Were we created for nothing higher than
simply to struggle for breadf We may as well be
hereditary bOndmen at once. We shall have
less thought. We shall be fed well to
enable us to toll well. Why should we
fret about anything except just this let me live not
to think for that humans, dsgnSllhes me- put 70
lrOrk" The master may say, of what use IS wealth
lift brings not peace, II am forever 10 De DadgeIed
in this way for an advance of wages-an advance j
cannot sometimes afford If am forced to break
my contracts with those who employ me; or com
plete them TO my own ruin had better belong to
the meanest class of labOrers do but live as 1t Is
All that might be conducive TO comfort and ease Is
turned into qmnlt and dsquietu9e BY this eyer asst
foreverf answer, no; but It will last as long as
the cause for exists. will cease as soon as that
-
ing the two great powers of capital and labor into
one and thus making their interests identical This
can be effected IN two ways | purpose treating o.
York is the theater of this experiment That some
large employer of labor has with regret and per
aps has been made feel with painful loss the false
position in which he is placed When one man, the
representative of the 800 he employs waits upon him
and informs him that he Will have 70 advance his
rate of wages per cent by certain time or MS 5O
men will turn out, perhaps he says he Will think II
over He does so, aud discovers that he cannot. III
Justice to himself afford to comply with their request
he tells them so. and has the surety OF not being De
leyed for his pains They look it may be- at the
large house in which he lives, and they cannot be
made to believe that he cannot afford to advance
wages per cent. No matter about the circumstances
under which the contract undertaken, they turn
out and his contracts are bToken-he is ruined
man. Or it may be that he complies With their re
quest to prevent such a catastrophe He finds WORK
for 500 men, has all the anxiety and responsibility
and discovers at the end OF II months, that he ha'
added just nothing to his income. Perhaps he car
afford to make the advance and cheerfuy docs so
Then no discovers that he has inserted the thin enc
of the wedge TO his own certain DESTRUCTION for the
men, seeing the ease with which their first demand
was conceded are not slow to make second, and SO
on until open hostility is provoked and strike Will
all its attendant miseres to both parties Is the IN
evtable result. Knowing this from his own and
his friends experience, he adopts this plan: lie reck
ons up with care and puts down with candor the
amount of capital he has invested in his works cal
infers the rate il ought to yield in the future takes
note of all he has individually lost through strikes
waste Of material waste by lost time through the
unsteadness of his men, and waste through scamped
work weighs not only the posi- billes but the prob
abilities of increased profts IN the future he can
remove all these impediments and says We'll, hnd
that have made clear net profit of 10 per cent pei
annum since started business, which was 10 years
ago; l have accomplished this with bunglinR ma
antagOnistic 10 my own who do not care whether
win or lose in life's game; who are, in word
careless 50 long as they get their Weekly wages when
this principle: They shall pledge themselves not 10