The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-11-15
Work ans' Wages.

| 'CObIisiOl Is 50 S;ltutilrf. as well as DOW
"crfnl, thai il is often capable of securing
"thc progress Of society," in spite OF the
folly and extravaganza Of the rulers of man
kind. Where placid content slumhcr0rsly
rcigns, there is neither progress nor i'm
prorcment. Dissatisfaction is the prccur-
sor Of inquiry, Of thought I'D CT action
And in the stcadincss with Mlich the work
ing CLASSES, the wide world over, strive TO
elevate themselves to II plane of superior
prosperity, we recognize. not only II sense
of the necessity Of advanccmrnt Int also Il
consciousness THAT the power is possessed
to obtain, sooner or later. all that is 50
eagerly and anxiously desired
| The working classes us those are dis
| tinctivcy called who earn their daily bread
| by manual labor, must be in the majority in
every community. Under any social organ
lZalioh, the lot OF the many must he one Of
prlvation, hardship and toll. To make that
toll rs easy rs may he, to secure To the
worker all the fruits OF his labor, to reduce
as far as possible the necessary pains of
those who obey
-''lhc original ordinance that man
'iiSt sweat lOi His poor rittanCc:'
these are the aims of the enlightened states
men and economists OF the age. And much
has already brcn accomplished While the
working classcs of Europe arc still knock
inS at The gates, the workingrnen of Amer
ica stand within the citadel. Here there are
no laws which prevent the workinyncn from
regulating their own affairs in their OWN
way. Although protective tariffs, and le~-
islalion for the benefit of the monopolis.
blot the statute books, there is no enactment
which cmbarrasseS the workngncn in their
cndeavofS to increase the benefits and cxalt
the dignity OF labor. The ballot gives them
power; the schOo!nlStor, the lecturer and
the Journalist will teach them how Ia use il
Alright; and there are not wanting stai,l and
thoughtful men who believe that, in less
than ten years, the working classes of the
United States will cOntro! every popular
election.
Slavery, which prevcntcA white immigra-
tion, anu made competitive free labor i'm
possible, allowed the atmosphere of The
South to remain undisturbcd, and perhaps
unpurllted, by the currents Of economic agi-
tation The cooperative store, the indus
trial partnership, the combination of en-
ploycrs against The employed, or Of the en-
ploycd against the employers, was unknown
i'll the Southern States. When the war
close,i, the freedmen held aluof, and Tie
white w0rkinSmcn were eager for employ
mcnt. There was no Immediate talk of
making the position of the willing worker
more pleasant and secure. This. indeed,
appeared 10 be imprac;icabc. But, now,
circumstances are declared to have changed,
HE wave OF agitation breaks on our uuiel
shores, and the white workinglncn, assem-.
i'lcd together give expression to the opn-
ion That they must he up and doing, 10 oh
Tain better wages, and TO guard themselves
well from oppression and from wrong.
Oh the attempt which is making to use tic
wofklESmcn us II means OF girin. notorie.y
10 political advcniurcrs, and OF impar;in.
new life to :. moribund political party, we
have nothing now TO say. What we have
TO deal with is the fact that 0ilr white work
inSmen are determined TO obtain, if posi-
| bic, better price for their labor; not by
threat or Intimidation. bui by peaceful COM
bination and concerted unity OF action.
This is Il matter which touches each and
every one of us The price Of labor in the
| absence Of combinations is IL fair gauge of
the prosperity Of a community Where the
price is low, the supply of labor outstrips
| the demand, or else the demand for labor
has decreased while the supply has remained
stationary. Either horn of the dilemma is
bad enough. In neither case is wealth
accunlulatinS, nor are the people growing
| rich. We are, therefore, deeply Interested
in asccrtoinng the reasons why labor in this
community is poorly paid, and in dctormin-
| ing whether this unfortunate result comes
from natural and temporary causes, or from
the absence in South Carolina OF tho pro-
tectiyc Trade Unions which exist, we be-
lieve, In every Northern and Western State
If there has been any overt combination
among the employers TO keep down the
wages OF the W0rkingman, we know il not
u there has bcci' any desire among the cap
ia'ists few as they are. 10 oppfcss and de-
grade the artisan and laburer, il has not
come u our ears. IInL we feel thai every
man is entitled 10 "a fnir days wages for II
"ialr days work." AMI, when !. body of
hardy worhiiSincn desire To make known
their grievance and explain their pressing
wants, we, at least, cannot throw cold water.
on their toing. On The contrary, we shall
aid them TO the best Of our ability in acting
with prudence, temperance and justice in
The grand work now seriously hegun.
-s+- -s-%4
COMPLAINT is made that the watchmcn did
moi promptly ring the alarm when the fire
broke out in Calhoun street on Sunday