The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1871-12-15

Last evening, despite the storm and snow, a
large audience came out to hear Anna q. Dick
inson on the subject of Demagogues and
Workingmen.' The Portland Band gave one
of their admirable concerts before the lecture.
The speaker came at about clock. The for
NAL introduction was omitted, the lady stepping
to the front of the platform and surveying her
audience for few moments before beginning
On the platform were Dr.. Gordon, the President
of the Army and Navy Union, Col. Titon, of
the U. s. Military Asylum at Togus, Gen. Jas.
A. Hall, of Damariscotta, who is engaged with
Mrs Livermore in discussing the Woman's Suf-
frage question, and other gentlemen Miss
Dickinson commenced by saying that progress
was the mood of man, and that the collective
story of the human race might be told by the
one word-Progress. 1t meant an advance of
the nation, and an advance of every individual.
The most permanent tendency in history was
progress toward equality of right. 1t had its
battle grounds, hating Places and nights when
it slept, but nevertheless the movement had
ever been onward. In our age it had been call
ed by one name, and another age by another
name 1t was now the old question of capital
and labor, and the special phase Of to-day was
that we were endeavoring to substitute justice
for generosity There was discomfort among
the vorkingmen, and she would include in this
class physicians, lawyers, editors, chemists,
biologists, botanists, manufacturers clerks and
tradesmen. The assumption that they were
not was false one. The artisans assume they
nave not the homes they should have for the
labor they perform, that they have not proper
opportunities for education and culture, and
that they are the victims of capital for all which
tl,AxYa tlnryA h1A
Their spokesmen generalize, and accuse the
civilization of the 10Th century, asserting that
few moneyed men own all the labor of the peO-
pie.
er, tell us among other things that the condition
of the American mechanic has fallen below that
of the European mechanic. In the recent Eng
fish strikes laborers suffered all but death, and
even death itself, for the death rates were
doubled during that period for an increase of
eight cents day, but that increase doubled
their pay A late strike in this country was or
ganized for raising the wages of brick-layers
from So 30 to $50 per day. Now, in the face of
this, which is better off? Whoever says that
man with $3.50 per day is in danger Of dying
in the poor house insults the common sense of
his nearer, and whoever says that a man with
school houses all around him need bring up his
children in ignorance makes great mistake
In this land where there is great deal too much
legislation, workingmen are told by class of
demagogues that the ballot box is the place to
redress all their wrongs. What is the result of
this telling man to consult some indefinite
thing other than his brain? Nobody has right
to forbid man to sell silk at 800 yard, but
there is law that forbds our silk merchant to
get over his counter and strange the man who
won't pay his price. Who does this? The
trades unions do it all over the land. There is
great deal of talk about the starving miners
Investigation shows that the lowest price paid
to the miners in certain quarter where this
talk was current was $73 per month, and the
highest 500, and the average was $1,000 per
| year-a higher average than is received by eth
er of the three learned professions Have men
right to hinder other men from putting their
own price on their own labor? When man
joins trades union he puts himself in state
of servitude. The price of his work, the hours
of his work dictated He is no longer his
| own master He is a man whose work is worth
! IS week; here is another man whose work is
worth $50 week, and the union puts them
| both upon the level of $40 week. Suppose
| there is shop and 500 men it. There is a man
skilled and industrious in their midst, and the
employer is asked to dismiss him because he
does not belong to the association, being able to
earn far more than he could inside. The en-
ployer is obliged to dismiss him at last, and he
Is driven from shop to shop, and at last leaves
the country and goes back to Germany. This
case is real one. All tyranny is bad, but the
tyranny that works with freedom is the worst,
and the trades union is the most autocratic Or
| ganization that the century has seen.
Here is printers shop, hundred printers;
there is tie foreman. A man enters, well dress
ed and well to do another enters thin, gaunt,
ragged. The first asks for work and is accept
ed because he is a member of the union; the
second asks and is refused, and he is not mem
Der because he is shut out by the very rules Of
the union. He did not work as many years as
required before certain time; yet he is good
workman and thoroughly knows his trade. His
entreates are all in vain, for though the fore
man remembers that he is a man and gives him
work, hundred men interfere and he is driven
away. This is brutal tyranny and not an effor
to get justice from capital, but effort to weak
en- the poor and the unsklful.
Tades unions allow only a small per cent OF
apprentices to work at the trades, in some cases
but two to q factory whether there be ten
twenty or fifty mechanics AT best but small
per cent compared with the number of skilled
mechanics employed. Boys are driven away
They must live some way, so ignorance causes
ideness, idleness causes want, want brings
crime, and crime punishment In the prisons
eighty-two per cent of the criminals come from
the ranks of the unskilled labor-the man with
ont trade or profession-and the ranks of crmi
nails. There is nothing so costly to society a.
an idle man Of all the means to lift the sou
from the mre up to where it can look God il
the face. nothing can equal skilled labor, Worl
$ forbidden to the convict; Legislatures ar
annealed to. and it is said to be hurtful to pu
The labor of convicts in competition with homes
men The sneaker here went into the subJec
of the Chinese, eloquently taking up tine caus
of the transplanted Celestial. On the Pacih CIT,
csast said she, there are u a0ics toi
the fruit; minerals are lying untouched in tn
heart of the earth for want of men. 80 60 t.
San Francisco, and see multitude OF working
me receive shipload of Cinnamon with cup
VI ii the streets ran literally with blood. An'
TINS Is the welcome that Christianity accords e
. ueaIhenlsm This scene in San Francisco /
v .lie Hgitlmate result of trades unions and labo
relorm conventions of the East. And all thi