The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1869-10-02

hlust pe aumllteu 10 the union 10 whom they
are under charges
All Of which shall remain in full force until
the first day Of January, A. D., 1870.
Believing that the above will accomplish great
good, / earnestly hope that all local unions will
fully comply with the same. Yours fraternalIy.
FREDERICK BLEND.
President Of the Cigar Makers International Union
GENERAL BUTLER AND CLASS IE
GISLATION.
General Butler is bis address before the
Massachusetts Agricultural Society Thursday
Sept. %, devoted large portion Of his ad-
dress in discussing the sntagonism between
labor and capital, and he denounced in
unmeasured terms the present system Of
special legislation as tending to Cypress the
laboring men, to make the rich richer and
TIE poor poorer. correspondent Of the
Chicago IribUns gives the following passage
from bis speech:
When our fathers abolished primogepiture
anc entail, by constitutional enactment. tbsv
I22T, posed that the law should require such fire.
= distribution Of property, through the
uiusttly rich. They 10 the Old World that
The immense riches, which made an aristocrscy
Of wealth, arose from continued sccumulatious
iu single iAmy guarded from distribution by
law. They assumed that, in single lifetime
such al foundations would be I'M possible how
ever successful, or however enter prisinR a mar
might be- That WBs true in their generation
IN lts9 two men dled-the great farmer OF the
county George Washington, and the great mer.
~. nj Q no L
saChusetts. The fortune of the merchant was
100000, ard Of the farmer, 500, 900: and
those we're the very largest fortunes Of that
day, obtained under the most advantageous cir
cumslances But now, by manipulation of
stocks, by taxing the productions of agriculture
IN their transit from the farm to the market
by employing men in large numbers to work
and taking the profits Of their labor in mapufsc.
turing; by taking advantage OF or evading the
laws relating 70 The Importation of merchandise
by evading the internal taxation. which the
wants OF the coRntry impose by loaning the
money received from the government without
interest at enormous profits; nay. by buyiny
and selling the Indictment of the nation itself.
by subsidies, and grants Of special privileges bv
law by the power OF association of capitaI nm
der the forms Of law, by any and every means
except hard labor, We see many hundreds ave
Thousands, of colosal fortunes such as in other
countries anc-ln other times ere only the result
Of the long continued nurture of wealth locked
Up 10 single families for generations Indeed.
all special Legislation tends to make the rich
richer, and necessarily, BY comparison. the NOR
poorer In fact our system of INCORPORATED
wealth has brought back the laws of entail and
primogeniture, with all their most odious fea-
lures. The property Of the husband invested
in the stocks OF corporation, bars the widow
Of her dover, and enables the father because
his property is in stocks which are under the
care and perpetual directory Of others. 70 give a
fortune to an imbeci son, which, without these
legal provisions EhiCl keep it productive for
his use, would have been distributed in TIE COM
munlty of HE tollies or designations. Our leRis.
lative acts Of association give another advantage
to capitalists and to the accumulation of wealth
which the laws OF primOgeniture and entail never
DID. They 80 aggregate capital that it can es-
cape the eye OF the taX-gatherer, whether State
or national, and thus work practicable Unequal.
ltJ al Injustice in its taxation. While we boast
al the boast Is true, ii the laws could be
honestly and efficiently administe red-tnat all
taxation is equal yet as We have before seen
the LAND and the farm stock lie out under the
eye, while moneyed capital by the very proVi
sions Of the laws which aggregate it concaals
itself in q thousand forms, 50 as to he whoII1
beyond the reach Of taxation. This state II
things mas not YET gone past remedy. Let us
take timely warning. Let US examine carefnIIv
into the evils OF this system Of legislation. Let
us reform them altogether. One means of pre-
venting TOO much legislation would be meetings
Of the Legislature once in two or four wears
only. we have system OF general laws, come
down from our fathers, with all their wisdom.
perfected now through more than eighty wears
Of careful revision, ample for all the general
wants Of the people, ample TO furnish crime. to
determine rights, TO protect the person and pre-
serve the property-ample for oil purposes for
which laws are good"
General Butler thus presented q very fine
outline Of some Of the evils Of labor robbing,
be however, not only fails to suggest any
adequate remedy for these evils, but be ac.
tually presents his views in such manner
as is calculated to mlslead lsboring men and
all others who have not carefully studied |
TINS labor robbing machinery. In say
ing one means Of prey enting TOO much e-
glsia'lon would be meetings Ct the Legisla-
ture once in two or four years ONLY" This
as we well know in Illinois would be simnIv
preparing the way to steal all the peonle
here 1t might be slight mitigation Of ID,
evil, not to have the Legislature meet on.a n
ten years, 1t would give the people time to
breatOe-an ample subject for contemplation
hence we think the only remedy for this
evil Is a better knowledge of the laws. Bot
whenl General Butler declares that the " sys. |
tenn Of general laws" which has come down
from our fathers with all their wisdom pro
jected now through more than eight years o.
careful revision, ample for all the genera