The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1868-03-21


scarcely church on WAbash avsnpe III khlel
q workingman l. not regarded a. a. intfadst.
We know there are many Who viii ipks On.
cepticn 10 this statement, but Il 10 essentially
true nevertheless Fashion ! 40 even appsopti:
ated the house Of God, in which TO air its vani.
~. anil the hard Ested mechanic who would
dare to place his carcass on cuahi6ned pew,
alongside ono Of the mandy pamby dolls. who
occupy them, would be regarded % an igaoraas
nOoR. Had those who now raise a hue and CRY
about the Dissertation Of the Lords day, showed
their sincerity, by giving their employees an op-
portaaity Of enjoying H. eight hour system on
week DAYS, We should have little objection 10
offer. As il is we hope our friends Who see
through their triekery wiz refnss to have any
thing to do with the DIT iect
Tar coorERAsK QUESTION. following
letter from journeyman cooper Of this city, in
reply to the charges Of an employer. is 90
pointed and truthful, that We transfer it to our
columns. 1t appeared in the Chicago Tribune
Of last "Wednesday -
There appeared in Jour issue Of Sunday,
March Is, a communication from boss cooper,
purporting to correct several statements made
hy the journeymen coOpers OF this city relative
TO the grievances OF which sbey have % long
complained, which ia the main Is 90 false and
unwArranted that deem it my duty to make q
plAiu statement Of facts Before attempting 70
90 so, however, il may be well TO state By way
of preface that Abe writer OF that article nov
employs 120 couEicts at Michigan City at
cooperage, 20 whom he pays the sum Of 6ity
cents per day.
With regard to the statement that he jour
neymen Of this city nave averaged twenty one
cents per barrel during the past season, all
can saw 10 that every cooper knows its falsiIy,
though the fact that fourteen cents Is the maxi
imum now paid is carefully concealed. Nor
vet is il true that a good workman can make
one hundred barrels per week--seventy being
more than the average. Thus We see that un-
der present circumstances 60. so are the wages
of Chicago cooper, instead Of &2l, an repre-
scented BY your correspondent. Quite mate
rial difference, to a poor man at least. The
truth IS, that even we're the advance We have
asked tax cents per barreU granted, osr income
could not possibly exceed &l4-little enough,
surely, for a married man TO keep his family on
the year round. These are facts which cannot
be gainsayed and which defy saeeessfal contra
dictsn.
His attack on cur union is also on a par
with bis Other statements No one knows bet
ter than he does, that We are willing TO exhaust
every means or honorable settlement before
embarking il stdkes, but that We hAi 10 alter
native left Why did he not state that when
appointed BY that body waited on
the employers to present their grievances aud
secure redress, before resorting 10 extreme
they were discharged 20 I msn, while,
ia the present instance, he request for an ad
vance, sent by mail, was refused, because the
bosses preferred to have a personal interyiew
Eith the men. No, no; the truth may as well
tie told. We simply demand, as honest me
shanies. that 'tbe labor OF the convict shall
rot be used by unprincipled employers 10 crush
our legitimate demands and rob Us Of our daily
oread- fair days wages for fair days
work is the motto OF our union, aud duty to
)urselves and families demand that We shall
sever rest copteatsd until the foul, wrong OF
which we o. nplain Is .sdressed. To an honor
lbIe and justice loving puokc We are willing 20
sonEie our cause. A bona tide
JoURNEyNAS COOPER