The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1872-11-16
CHICAGO.


Un
pending ~ approaching difficulty between
the bo.s stone cutters AMI the iour:ieysIen /
stone cutters u Chieaso. Permit me 10
preface ny remarks by going back twelve |
months, ~ thcreabout5- that IA alter the /
ire. ! viii hers sot ont ~ saying that the
Stone cutters of Chicago showed = mail |
ness and fairness seldom c1ualcd, certainly |
never surpassed !y any Organization, | care |
net IN What sphere ~ life ynu search. |
Their WAGES al the time oi the ire Was a |
per day, and for hong time previous it |
was the ..uhl ret Of comment that this was
not An adequate amount for days labor, |
As that hal been the standard wages for |
years, ana a. tn nec-s'ar.cs 81 HE had IN
creased enormously they naturally felt chat
- ass insufficient IAy ST. NJ, mai.tal and !
physical LsbJr brought into rsquRi aon in
the discharge Of day. work.
Well, the ire occurred, AMI alas it is too
well knpHn with nat rapid strides the
demon paced the u.H ruined district, rp-
caiuif. nii1s..if ful' master % the soIi an
structures. over which he trOd ana spread
his iirrS wings. Alter this sal affair, IT Is
Wei known the demand Jhrre WIS for
lat.sr, tnr neyhanlcs ia the building trade.
And here il where the stone-cuTters dIstIn-
guIshed themselves Tor their fairness. The
demand for stone-cutters MS great. IL
any dispute this, he has only To search the
advertising columns Of American and Eng
lIsh Journals, copies of which | hold M my
possession, offering from - t. 81 and nj. %
per day. Now did the stons-cutters of
Chicago SAY to their bosses lou must
pay us higher figure Va can demand 1t
We are united. consequently We are strong;
Chicago must he built, and We care not
how long 1t may lake. We care not how
or Who il pleases. We see our opportunity,
and Just or unjust, viii take advantage
cf the occasion. DID the stunc-cuttcrs If
Chicago say this . NJ. But with u true
regard for the well-being ii suciety--with
a true and honest feeling for their native on
adopted city, with manlness seldom
equaled, they said II We will not.
though our demands are Just, ask any
more wages At the prcsent time. Our city
has suffered, the sJifcrers arc mer-nO mat
ter in what sphere of life they move and
"A such we have regard for their misfor
tunes. We viii distinguish ourselves more
for our mercy than for our enforcing what
IS Just. Such was the feeling that char
I act. rized the s.une-cutters Of Chicago,
| keeping as it were Shakespearvs plea Of
Mercy" in their minds eve, rather than
| enforcing their legal claims. Now come
to the spring Oi the pressn. year Things
had taken quirt. steady and progressive
appearance. Money had flowed IN from all
quarters. Those who had Lost a great deal
were partly compensated by the bcnevo-
/ lence IF Il faithful and generous public. A
/ great Il. al ii work was IN conrse Of erection.
/ Men wrre hurrying np their buildings %
4 aVuil thc payment ~ enormous rents that
! Wele eNa.te,l frpni them by sumo Of the
wealthy class, VIII, were fortunate enough
TO nos have their buildings d,.si royed, and
who, unlike the stone-cutterS. tnuk adyan-
titge Of the time, ard compelled he suffer
ers to pay the hIghest figure possible for
them t. pay. NnW the stnne-cut crs be
came aware 81 the fast t'Iatkhc pussa were
estimating On n per DAY basis, and they
notified them that snch amount should be
expected tor n dav labor IN ana after the
10Th of June. but before the time had c1-
pred that the stOne-cutiers should demand
~ per Gay, the bo4scs were paying and
offering that amount to E4en to induce
them ~ work for tnrn. Surely this clear
" demonstrates the fact that the stone
cutters were generous in their demands.
may add still further that the bosses were
even paying -. % per day. ami al that the
society ~f the stuns-cuttyrs demanded Was
b. showing still more p.sinly the fairness
of the men ia their demands for If a boss
pays ~ more than the standard wages,
surely by a combined action uf such organ
lzatlnn as these men have. thyy could if
they wished, make him pay s. per day, or
- more than The standard wages. But, to
their credit, they did not demand anything
more than th.y Nvrr sure of being only a
fair remuneration for their labor in ordi-
nary times, and only what they thought
should have been paid them years ago.
Now ! come to the pending or approaching
difficulty which is tho most important part
Of my subject The bosses have notified
the stcne-cutters, that on and after the
18th inst. the wages will DO onl, - per
day" They do not give any reason Tor so
doing, but acting on the theory Of ''brev-
ity being tae soul 81 Wit" they no doubt
have shown themselves philosophers Of the
first waters.
L cannot see any good reason why such a
reduction should he asked except il il On
the old aud Oft repeated principle Of The
golden rule, the simple plan for he to take
who has the power and he to keep who
can" try this action under such Law
and possibly they are Justified, but wo5 to
the people who establishes such law as this
Let the bosses remen. Der that the Stone
cutters can find law that will justify them
i'll retnliating and that is An eye for
an eye and a tooth for a tooth OF course
any rational man must beware Of the evil
tendencies Of such rules, but If man OF men
bring evil upon themselves they must put
up with the consequences. ! will try and
reconcile the matter in this way If il were
the fact that the Stone-cutterS could not
ace to work the full amount ~ time in
| winter as well AZ ia Summer, tbs reduction
would bear some reason with 1t, but such
an argument cannot b. put forward, As the
eight hour law, has settled that question.
Take another view ~ the question, can a
man work as much ia the cold weather at
stonecutting ~ in the summer season
Yes, and more with greater ease I" HIM
self, from the fact Of 81 much physical force
being required in performing his labor, 1t
does not require much from me to satisfy
any rational man that where physical pow
ers are used that a man is easier exhaust
ed in warm weather, than he is in cold
weather therefore il cannot he said that
the sfonecutter can work more in the sum
mer than in winter. consequently, he should
not expect so much for his work. This can
not be said, and none are better aware OF
this fact than the boss stono-cutters them
selves, who are all practical workmen, and
indeed the majority Of Thorn have only
been in business since the lamentable 9th
of Oct. 1871. Having, think, proven con
clusively that there should be no difference
in winter wages to that Of summer, as
man can do IS much work, IL not more in the
former as in the latter, except he is work