The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1872-05-18
LABOR REFORM.
- PENNSYLVANIA CONVENTION.
THE TICKET AND PLATFORM.
SchsH, Thompson, BiIItIU0feIt,
and Hopkins.



svlvania was called to order az 10 A. NJ on
Monday last in the Court House at Will
Transport by John Siney. A temporary
organization WAS effected by the election Of
Hon. Richard Williams as chairman and
James Kelley Of Schuylkill a. Secretary
Some seventy delegates were in attend
ance representing one-half the counties.
Letters and kilograms were received from
persons who had been elected as delegates
from nearly every county, bidding the
movement God speed, and averring inabil-
ity TO be in attendance, the greater num-
Der because of a want of money to pay ex-
penses. A permanent organization was
effected At the opening Of the afternoon
session by the election of the following
list Of officers. President, John Siney,
Schuylkill county.
Vice Presidents, j. L. Brotherton, Phil
adelphia; Hon. Hiram Finley, Beaver
county; G. r. Weaver, Esq, Dauphin
county and Hon. Richard Williams. Lu-
zerne county Secretaries, DIR. +. n. Bur
dick, Philadelphia; Thos A. Armstrong
Of Allegheny county and Thos. II. Greevy
Of Lycoming county. Mr. Smeys ad-
dress on taking the chair was an eloquent
appeal for harmony and 8 combined effort
to select such candidates and adopt such a
platform as would unite all reformers and.
without abandoning any Of the principles
of the Labor movement, secure . victory
in October. He administered scathing
rebuke 10 the State Legislature for cring-
ing to the perjudices Of the few and for
its disposition to yield to the dictation Of
the monopolsts A committee on Plat
form and Resolutions, consisting OF Messrs.
d. Y. Kilgore, G. Ben johnson, n v.
Mcdowell, H. L. Acker, H. s. George, Z.
ID. Killian and James McFadden, was next
appointed to whom was referred without
debate quite a number Of resolutions bear
ing upon many subjects This committee,
after having attended to the duty with
which it was charged, and after having
carefully examined all the resolutions re
referred to it, returned to the convention
and made a report recommending the
adoption Of the Columbus Platform entire,
and the following as an addition.
We demand
Fret Absolute purity Of the elective fran
ehise, As the sacred birthright Of every citi-
sen, the only safeguard Of liberty, and the Sc
surity Of Justice and equal rights to all
Second. The repeal Of all partial and I'M
just legislation, by which corrupt politicians,
irresponsible commissioners, and gigantic mo-
nopolies have been able to disregard and defy
the people, and grow rich at their expense
Third That the present system OF assess
ments, patronage, speculation and defAlcation
Of public officers in this Commonwealth shall
give place to one requiring honesty, capacity
and fidelity, a. necessary qualifications for
employment as public servants, giving them
Just compensation, in salaries, for work done
and tho naN-rOant at all fees IDtO the
public treasury.
Fourth An equitable system Of taxation,
legislativeencourAgement cooperative enter
prises among the working people and laws for
the protection Of the lives, limbs and health
Of all employees on railroads, III mines, fac
tories, mills, etc, in Pennsylvania
The presentation Of this report gave
rise to considerable debate; one of the
delegates from Allegheny, Mr.. Armstrong,
being DESTROYS Of substituting for the Sixth
Ssolution Of the Columbus Platform, the
following:
Resolred. That it is the true interest Of the
labor1ng men Of the country to sustain the
policy Of nA,ionAl protection to American in
dustry II the oft-repeated sentiment that
1.-THE laborer is worthy Of his hire, and that
"a fair days work entities the worker to .
fair days pay" be true, it is incumbent upon
us, in order to maintain that principle, to ad-
here unquAhfedly to the protective policy,
which alone makes Labor contented and Cap
itAl secure. 1t renders employment certain,
and places us upon q broad field by which the
pay will be satisfactory, whilst free trade and
its tender" Revenue Reform, means that We
shall work for the lowest Of low wages, and
that our factories and mills shall close
through foreign competition-depriving the
toiling millions 81 our country OF employment
thus reducing them 10 the condition OF pau
pers.
The substitute WAS opposed by nearly
every delegate, notwithstanding there
were but two or three believers in Free
Trade present The discussion was lively,
Mr.. Armstrong maintaining that the reso-
luton was a milk and water" or "a
wishy washy" affair, and the opposition
claiming that it was sufficiently explicit to
indicate the intention Of the Party TO ad-
vocate the policy Of tariff protection. Mr..
johnson, Of Schuylkill, said that he
thought this question Of Tariff was one
that ought to be tenderly handled He
came from a district where the working
men were as strongly in favor Of the main
tenance of protective tariff as those of
Allegheny, and while he did not like to see
any tariff resolutions defeated, for the bad
effect it would be sure to have, the fact
that Horace Greedy had pronounced the
Columbus resolution good enough pro-
lection" for him, and Mr.. Bannsn, OF the
Miners Journal, the most positive Advo-
cate Of the tariff in the coal region, had
endorsed it, he thought it unnecessary that
the convention should officially give utter
Ance to any farther expressions upon the
subject, and wrong that they should stul-
tify themselves by declaring, as Mr.. Arm
strong wanted them to declare, the I'M
truth that protective tariff ''alone makes
labor contented, capital secure, and ''ren-
ders employment certain" He then off
cred the following as q substitute for Mr..
Armstrong; resolution, and it was adop-
ted
ReSoIved That the question Of Tariff pro
lection having been disposed Of by the siHth
resolution OF the Columbus Convention, in q
manner declared to be satisfactory by the
most earnest advocates Of that policy, we
deem it unnecessary for this Convention To
make any further declaration Of opinion upon
the subject.
NoTE-This matter has been grossly
representated. The Labor party Of the
nation, and Of Pennsylvania, is a tariff
party, and the efforts made to make it Ap-
pear that it is otherwise are not backed up
by any evidence to the contrary. Mr.
Armstrong; resolution did not carry be.
cause the party was already committed t.
the protective policy, and because it con
tanned statements ~ to the effect OF the