New-York tribune., 1871-08-25

party foundcdi IT was 10 enact laws and bring to
the power OF the Government To emancpate the unpaid
abOerthe slayefrOm tho exactions of the alist-
his master That object pursued until il rosnted in
full fruton ana now no man in this broad land calls
another master, and no man answers IA a slave. Hav-
ing accomplished this great and good work why should
not sHG and eno h parry SUI 80 and adjust
and protect the Ill paid or oyerwOrked aborer from the
cxactions of ayace well from his own greed as from
the greed Of the empoyeri Is il moi clearly tbe duty OF
the state to protect those incapable of protecting them
| selvesl
TO this ia answered that labor and capita stand on
equality and their relations should be LEFT TO the Ord
nary laws Of supply and demand Bnt ia this trne DO
labor and capital stand equalityl By no means.
IL may be true as & s frequently said, that labor s
then It is capital which perishes in the using Which
cannot he h0ar1ed accumulated, put at interest and
Is wholly lost II not employed day by day Indeed what
is capital itself but the accumulated products of labori
And In any contest between labor and capital the simple
abOTcr stands alone for abOrCrs cannot aggregate their
labor against the accumulated power Of many OF their
coworkes whose production has taken the form Of con
solidated capital. Therefore it is that all
strikes by tho workngInan as against the
| capitalist "a means OF defense, are
useless and must as rule he unsuccessfni Strikes
are ilogcalj they are indeensibe; they are beneath
the dignity of the American workman. III the workman
quits his employment IN order TO cripple the capitalist,
he loses his his time i'm which Is his All the capitalist loses
fore IL Is that the laborers all is ped against the profits
only Of the capitalist such contest, therefore, can
have but result True in England and coun
tries where workingmen have no share place in the
fed as their only means OF defense however unequal
futile the contest, as We may fight IN selfdefense.
But strikes are incompatible with the dignity and
power OF the American wOrkingmen. In their hand IL
the ballot, the most powerful Of oil weapons when well
handled. They can enact their own laws and choose
their own rulers They can compel the state TO do its
duty I'm this behalf, and give 10 labor its rights, and
restrain capital within the bounds of It's privileges The
gother ana all the more surely If with the dominant
party compel that party 10 listen to their just de
right and just How modest their present demands
is in what asked OF the Last Legislature, that
in Tho NJ bg m adj
women and children Of tender years who are employed
in tending machinery. And even this poor ptance
refused them by the Senate which in the early theory OF
our Constitution was supposed to represent the property
Indeed the hours OF labor need only be restricted to
laborcrs who work with machinery. This restriction il
needed for the preservation OF the health and physical
constitution tho workman Therefore it is the right
and the imperative duty OF the state tn step IN ana
protect these against the demands of avarce
whether that avarice is in the employer who would
grind the young life Of the child OF IN the father VINO
would send for pittance into mills to enable hm to
live I'm denes instead Of sending the child 10 school to
become well-taugh good citizen.
to the capitalist i'll the shortening OF the hours of labor
that the workingmen had no right to dlmnution OF
those hours. have reflected considerably upon this
topic. / observe that within the last 80 years the
progress OF Invention in machinery has been such tat
its production has increased fOurOd That TO say by
the aid Of machinery the workman can now produce four
times much he could quarter OF IA century ago
Assume then that was necessary 70 years since that he
should work twelve hours day TO secure that amount OF
production which would make his wages an equal share
Of the profits with capital and his production equal to the
demand why, then, should he work twelve hours nowand
he produces four-fold more than thcni
HOURS OF LABOR PROPER.
! think the wOrkingman has right 10 claim, II he
chooses deduction in his hours Of labor his share Of
the benefits given by the goodness of God in the inven
ton of machinery Thus far he has received substan-
TALLY no benefit from increased producing power of
machinery All that has to the producer, which he
is not The workman is only an AID In productions s
the capitalist who employs both the aDorers ana the
Let me- Illustrate Thirty years since thero were two
sle1 i'm he
TRIBUNE and The Herald. They were edited and con
trollei by the same men as now-men OF the highest
eas OF TALENT in their profession The profits arising
from their publication were only dollars then where they
are thousands now. And whyi Because, with all the
labor that they could do upon the then printing press
and the cOmposors case, and with the ceerlty win
small number Of sheets But Hoes printinspress' t
tion OF workngmenhaye made IL possible now TO send
6OOOO Impressions In few hours. And the pro-
sands year, and the capital quadruped 10 millions,
while copostor and the pressman get scarcely more
now than then Let me he not misunderstood. do not
complain that Mr.. Greeley and Mr. Bennett have made
the Thousands wmc. INC tmef hn rncaG ,Se snp
Just reward But am asking how and when have the
5ensdt from this hundredfod production that their la
Dor rendered, aided by machinery mas gwen 10 thef
empoyerl Rcckoned in connection win ms EXPENSES
the working printer gets scarcely more now than then
But his employer gets thOusand-fod more now than
The share Of the workmen in this increased produc-
ton can only be obtained in the reduction OF the hours
Of labor II cannot be done by raising the wages oi
labor because the very facility and fecundity OF prodc-
ton by machinery lessen the demands for labor so tat
wages cannot rise beyond gwen point. Although
have used the prntngpress illustration, yet tins
same fact through every branch OF the mechanical
arts Take the cloth of which the coat Is illGe that
have on Twelve per cent only OF the cost OF tat cloth
is the labor employed to make IT, All the rest Is capital
machinery ana material Double the price VI the cOlh,
therefore. and the amount the laborer VIII receive iIoa
such rise in price will be only nominal Hence all tarinS
for the purpose of protecting the American aDolg man
as called vain and useless, ana the common cry
OF the politician that high tariffs must be imposed
for the purpose Of protecting the American NoLAnan a.
against the pauper labor OF EurOpc-tO use lhe cae
GifTreDce between the pay Of the skilled labor of En-
gland and skilled labor of this country Is scarcely 70
mir cost of ills article Of fine cloth is in the labor.
that the English manufacturer so iar as laoor Is eo
of the American manufacturer And yet u mas been
found convenient not necessary TO protect TINS iaDc
by 35 per cent duty only three per cent OF "hlch s
necessary to protect the aborer the rest Dehg hee9eu
protect the against sun o,er
protection to the cdpltalstpfOducei Vi tuc ID" l"
Witout pursuipg this topic further have demonstrated
that Inv mo rgslti0n can the wOrkngman obtain through
ncre6s of wages any substantial share of the benefits
arising from increased production by machinery. lhete
is then only other method for the w0rklngihah u
get OF that and that Is to diminish Ms hoGa V
labor IT, 20 years ago he required to labor IN olGer 10
make the Investment OF capital III manufactures ana
other productive industry profitable, twelve honIs da
now, when his labor by the reason OF the ~
IN machinery quadrupes that production why mas ne
night TO demand-nay why has not thc S,te s @ tho
right to enforce his demand as just - %
just claims of class Of citizens as aSast .,
that he share WIN ns m doing with his own hands
less labor. much being done by machlneIyi ..,.
For all this there Uecu not u lot,
auv antagonisIn between labor and capital. But II
there is then il duty Of the government 10 ADJUST
that ntagonisIn so that Justice shall he done 10 D0t III
order that accumulated labor In the form OF capital 5hal
moi oppTess and crush down individual labor III the sep
ardte hands OF the labOrT himself.
IABoRERs RIGHTS MUsT TRIUMPH.
IMPRESSED with these views the result OF lifelong
observation in the largest manufacturing clIy III the
country-nysef a manufacturer, largely interested III
manufactures, as well realestate owner
dependent thereOn-I am willing to submit the7e
md
questions 10 the calm Consideration anu soou
Judgment of the people OF the Commonwealth
and Iat those ouestious be settled by the lawmaking