The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1872-07-20
THE FIGHT HOUR SYSTEM


The renewed aei'r'ian fnr the recognition
and adoption u the t..ght Hour system, |
las ca.!yi isrtl,. as might be expected, di-
vcrs opinions from, the political and reli-
sicus press and the verdict has been, with
afew exception, that it is both unnecessary
and imprac;icahlc. Aud yet their argu-
mrut have all been advanced from n pure
" scli 2. dollar ami cent standpoint, while
Is trl, merits have either been dismissed
sa unworthy e: consideration or entirely
"yorlnok.d
The sane argumeniS that were used
aeainS, thccl.ansc fran the twelve to the ten
hour system has been r., amIed and urged
with all the rcrtnacity which characterized
'hciradVcn;, butt. u" puTp'sc itsopponcnts
have nuJ and comet meet the claims Of
,tS advocates - their merits. or successful
y rciutr the arguments q its advocates
The Pl,A that twn h"urs extra leisure
would increase drunkenness. v.lgrancy or
CRIME and this seems t. ~ the staple Oh
jec'ion il "nc altogether unwarranted by
facts. besides hcing a gratuitous insult to
the working classes. Ii Was ans @crcd 81
ctlcctually by the late Richard Golden that
We cannot do better than reproduce his re-
! ply. II il well known that il was owing to
has cXcrtions and his desire ts educate and
consequently elevate the masses that the
Manchester Athenaeum was built. The
manufacturers, especially, denounced him
rs an agitat"r, protesting, that il succt ssful,
his scheme " oulI end in anarchy and blood
shed. Meeting, one day, III company Of gen
tlemen, somewhat boistcrous opponent Of
his scheme was to furnish a reading
and lecture room for the mechanics Of that
city, where their leisure hours could be
spent appeal was denounced as the
appeal II the denagogte. "Why 50, my
friend T. he calmly inquired, Upon what
do you base your assertions Are you ac-
qnaintcd with the history Of England If
81, you must admit that her mechanics are
more thrifty, more intelligent, more enter
Prising than they were a century ago, and
this has been the result of more leisure for
study and recreation. In fact, do You know
a time when you would feel so secure in
person and property as you are to-day :" A
liberal subscription was the response
And gentlemen" said Golden, ON its
opening night, THAT argument built the
Athenaeum."
There is one fact, however, which is in
itself, sufficient to prove the expendiency
and justice Of the eight-hour system The
records, both our own and the British
Patent Office, proce that nine-tenths Of the
labor-saving inventions Of the nineteenth
century, have been the creation Of the
tcor.iagDidH'S brain, and it is certainly lust
that the creator should reap some of the
benefits to be derived thcrefrom. Every
workshop and factory bear testimony to
the skill and inventive genius Of our work
men, -a and yet, what incentive have they
to help enrich others, while their own con
dition remains unchanged. The effects of
these laborsaving inventions have not only
had the result to overstock the market, but,
in many instances, have proven injurious to
the mechanic himself /; his functions being
purely If an dItOmdtic character. Take,
for instance, the man who was formerly
required to plan a. well rs build his men
tai faculties were all engaged his brain AS
well As his muscles, were ut work. But
with the introduction Of our so-called
ldbor-sacimg inventions, his work in many
instances, became purely physical Week
hin and week out, he tolls as more
machine, no thinking, no exercise Of his
intellectual faculties is required. Andthis
is one Of the reasons why, ia many trades,
50 few mechanics are found And We ven
ture nothing in asserting that nine out of
ten Of our cunning craftsmen, would to-
day prefer to work ten hours under the old
system, than work in our illy-ventilated,
over-crowded factories. The new system
| may, anu uoeS cloSt 'Ao hi''iiSi'i Oh 'AAo
hill, but it also erects the novels in the
valley it widens the gulfalroady too large,
between labor and capital, and hourly as
Stimulates our institutions to the monarch
cal and despotic institutions Of the Old
World, while we are thanking God that
we are but as other men.
Let IL roll along the prairie,
| Let it come from vale AMI hill
Eight houn for work, eight for rest
l r,..IA 49,. - ,uhni 40 Iii