The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1869-05-15
A WORD WITH NON-uNIoNIsTs.


While on this phase o. the question, let
Us give you an extract from letter, pub
listed some time since in the ADVOCATE, from
friend, visiting the factories in Lewiston,
Maine, il describing the condition Of those
operators who reside ID a locality where no
trades urions are allowed 70 exist We quote
his exact language;
vas 'ery much struck while standing look
Ing Al De mills the hour % dinner arrived
FIRST Jaw band Of bows and girls come bound
ing out Of school, ard how iovous they were
slidise and laughing along thc street, making
the ali ring SCALA with W---r laughter. Then
the fIctory bell rang, host of children
merged from there / VII now different T.
With their blood shot eyes (as almost All chi
dren IA factories are subject to- their sUukcn
cheeks and wasted forms, 2" thinly clad. /
watched With interest 10 see the play begin, and
hear the. merry laughter; but waited IL vain.
With E lent tongue ana dowucast looks. they
wended their way ONE 20 a dinner perhaps,
Cor / n told ,hat many are scarcely able %
provide one) every principle Of the JOYOUS germs
of chile hood and boyhood crushed out Of them
by tie errible system carried on BY the over
seers ii our manufactures here. / had right
before Ire two phases OF the lite OF our Youth +,
one was tappy snd juyous-the other desp0ud-
ent end iected ! asked myself what VS. the
cause OF i but | was soon able 20 answer it for
myself ! is long hours that j. the great cause
Of al the troublg-ihe ore arc kept 81 school
stnd ,ing nom 2 Jo o'clock which IL thought
quite lonr enough 10 Tax a Young child's
brain tn, others are kept often for Thirteen
long hours
What .3 cur friends who are willing e
enlrust leir interests ID their employers
hsnd., think Or this sxsmple-children Of
seven and eight years Of age, compelled to
work tr thirteen long, weary hours--uot IN
tile rice fields " Georgia, but u civilized,
Christianizel l7) New England! It is GER
tsiu'y in this connection, a comfort to quote
tLe sciiptural assurance. Vengeance is mine;
] wall recompense, saith the Lord" Think
sou, friends, that men VINO " B the widow
and tie iath,-lsss; who, il their dovilish
grasp.rg for wealth, are willing to destroy
the rising generation, have any conscientious
-crup'es shout making g0Er welfare subser-
Went 10 tbeir Jwn Out on such huuibug-
gerry
Tie following is fair sample Of
IRE means w which many Of tie so-called
ulhOuaires obtain tieir wealth NAV serve
stH further as an illustration
poor woml Nas given, at one ofihe largest
Establishments il New York a short time ago.
tie material ior ~ infants capc made 81 White
Msrseillrs, ~ Je elaborateiy worked with coz
ton. Il took Der fourteen ia 81 hard work to
complete il, and then she ives rewarded With the
mur iccpt SUN of four dollars The work was
sei DONE and ne tr.ice sold litet WaIds Tor
seventy dollars, Ihe material, iuCHdir0 cJt-
Tor, was worth seven dollars ald four dollars
Ne-a paid ior the making mp, leaving to the re-
taller profit of 6uy nine dollars on 40 invest.
ment of eleven dolara Il is no wonder
that div goods are sold ID marble palaces This
y but one sample of what cane. place iai'y in
this city.
Fourteen days Of iEressant toll rewarded
by the SUN Of four dollars thiriy-Gy cents
PEI day, while tie r95ber, who probably sat
"A his cushioned pew, received .Etty-niat
dollars as his share Of the spoils Let rs
trust-for the sake Of the down-uodden, at
leEs,-that - the hereafter, there i a good.
oie-fa' hioued, orthodox hell, N which Ill
such acoundrlls will De consigned.
WeWiu present but one more example of
the sane sort and then pass TO arothr--
phase or the subject
few years since, a commission was sp-
pointed IN Massachusetts,, 10 inquire into the
sZpediencY Of shortening the hours Of labor.
10 be applied q children under fourteeo
years o. age. Among those examined VISA
factory operative, whose child tad been CON-
PEELED 10 labor twelve and enc half hours Der
day, AMI Who YVES growing IN without edo
cation * any character. UFcn oae III ,hc
commissioners asking If the boy could uot
attend night school, be replied 'No, sir;
wher be comes home at night, The httle fell
low Is 20 tired, be j. ready " 20 " bed"
That answer We have never forgotten, and
We commend it's cons dtration TO those who
think 1t is as well TO let employers give what
they can afford, As 10 dictate to them. These
examples, furnished where such magma
nimity has been ezemplihed, have not been
confined TO abisb9died men, but to the un.
protected, and the child Of tender years.
Reader, are not trades unions The crea-
tions Of necessity, and is not self prcservA.
ton natures FIRST law2