The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1869-06-05

opinion, all Of them instigated and sane
tioued by the several unions in the districts
in which they were respectively committed.
They were all deliberately planned and ex-
&c ed in taFtherance Of system, which
had for i5s object the subiection Of both
masters and men to the rules Of the union,
and the destruction Of the freedom OF Ia
bor."
EVIDENCE FROM N0N-UNI0NIsTs.
F, (j0.) One observation, however, We feel
it necessary to make. Leaving out Of the
question grOsser cases Of outrage, and con-
hning ourselves to the more ordinary cases
I Of vexatiOus interference with the work
mans liberty which have been brought be-
fore u, il must be noticed that very nearly
the whole OF these instances rest On the tes-
timony NJ the employers; the work men
themselves, those on whom the alleged tY-
RAINY actually pressed, have not come for
ward in any number in answer 20 our gen
eral invitation, TO substantiate them. As
far as the workmen are concerned-if we
except the evidence of the Free Labor Reg
istrati0n Society, body organized for the
particular purpose of e0unteracting the
trades unions-feg complaints Of the pres
ent influence of trades unions, and no sug-
IL
nave been brought before US. No independ-
ent and insulated workmen have volunteer
ed 70 express themselves ia that sense.
bis may be interpreted, either az implying
that the IA boring classes Ia general are not
l.isc q tented With the restrictions .shich the
,rades unions appear TO impose On industry,
or las we beiievs) a. imvlying that the in
auence Of those unions is SO very extensive,
4 a. =
general dislike t. oppose an established
class feeling 50 strong, that the real senti-
nents Of the workman opposed to unions
ha7e been, to great extent, withheld from
us.
EFFECTS OF TRADES UNIONS ON THE
TRADE AND INDUSTRY OF THE
COUNTRY.
EFFEcTs cF TRADE UNIONS on TRADE NOT EAsI-
.LY DETERMINED.
(5l.) The effest which unions have had
ia impeding the Development Of trade,
whether by simply raising prices, or bv d.
Verting trade from certain districts or from
this country abroad, ia a matter excessively
difficult to determine. That uniunism fre-
qnently occurs with declining trade is
sufficiently Flain that they stand 10 rela-
ton of cause and effect Is another thing
It ls obvious that many points in a yerY
complex chain of reasoning bave to be de-
teTmined before this can be proved. Il must
GTst be shown what is the actual as we'll as
the relative diminutiOn in production. Ii
must then be determined how far this rep
resents general diminution in demand, and
how far it stands fpI production of other
markets. Then, if distinct case is made
out that the trade has gone into other chan
nels, il remains to be shown to which Of the
possible causes this is due.
oBJEcTIvSABLE PRACTICES OF UNIONS.
(52 There are many rules and practices
OF trade unions of which it must be predict
. ed that their efforts, in so far as they are
really effective, must of necessity be to en-
hance the price of commodities by raising
OF artidoially keeping up the cost Of produe-
tidn. But whether such rules and practices
are really sufficient for that object-whe eth
er they are not either far less effectual than
is commonly supposed, or liable TO be
counteracted By other causes operating in a
contrary directloA-is a question incapable
OF solution without an investigation extend
ing to great variety Of subjects besides that
directly submitted to us.
f53) The industries on which trades
unions may be supposed to have had an eff
fecs must be divided into two classes
those in which foreign competition cannot,
aad those in which it can, materially in
terfere with the prod active industry 0f the
country.
E.rECFS OF UNIONS IN TRADES FIXED 70 THE
SOL COST OF PRODUCTION POSSIBLY EN-
HA cED.
t54.) In the first case, there is nothing
a prt0ri to prevent the operation OF trades
unions from raising the cost of commodities
until the rise is checked by the diminusion
of consumption. Such an instance is af-
forded BY the various trades engaged in
building in these uDionism extensively pre-
walls, and to its tory much Of the early
part OF our inqui. lirected. Referring
to the evidence whieh !. , have received with
respect to those trades as containing our
sources Of information, and expressing no
positive opinion on an extremely intricate
question, we are disposed to think that the
/ operation OF trades unions may have tended
to enhance in these trades of late years the
cost of production, and that houses and
other buildings might bave been somewhat
better and cheaper at the present time had
not trades unions Interfered 80 extensively
and so vexatiously with the proceedings Of
I thA an mr1avarc r. Iaos Yot