The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1873-11-15

l
o their friends our land by millions of
'cres they have put their hands into our
rockets and stolen our money, which we
rave to earn by the sweat If the brow
hey have petted and fostered railroad
'chemes, which have brought all this ruin
lpon uS.
My countrymen and fellow-workmen,
What will You do at the next election, when |
We will again be called upon to elect pub
lie servants (or masters)l Will you again
bow the head and lick the hand that |
smiteth your Or will you throw off the
political yoke, and declare your independ- |
snce. as our fathers did in Is, for much |
less cause than We have at present Now
is the time to rise in our might, while we
feel the keen pangs Of the wrongs done
us.
Fellow workmen, we could make the very
earth tremble if we but knew our power.
Large manufacturing corporations and rail
road companies have banded together for
the purpose of closing their factories and
workshops. Why in this combination Of
these corporations Time will tell you
that il is for the purpose Of a general re-
ductiOn of wages. Great heavens, If our
poorly paid railroad hands here are to be
reduced, what will become of them and
their families They now receive from
S1.25 to -. 80 per day, not enough to pay
for all they get, and keep body and soul
together. They are compelled to put their
small children to work in order to get
something to eat instead Of sending them
to school. Under such circumstances,
what will the growing-up generation and
all hereafter bel Will they be enlight-
ened Americans, such as the politicians
boast of upon the hastings, when he wants
your vote to elevate him to q position
where he can rob you, and make you still
poorer When the smooth-tongued poll
tician comes around and solicts your vote,
spurn him from you as you would the
devil. THINK of the ruin they have
helped to bring upon us; think of the
many poor families that were happy six
months ago, but through the misdeeds Of
these very politicians and the avarice Of
the capitalist, have been brought to the
point Of starvation. See that honest, in
dustrious workingman walking the streets
Of our large cities, from day to day, seek
ing any kind Of honest employment, but
without success, not because there is moth
ing To do, but because the capitalist wishes
to humiliate him 50 that he can get him to
work at his own price. See that father re-
turning home at night, not to that humble
but happy home he returned to six months
ago, but to garnet or cellar, in some
howell. There he finds his children and
his wife, huddled together in rags, trying
to keep the cold away with bed Of straw
i'll one corner Of the room, maybe an old
table, two or three old chairs, no FIRE, no
wood or coal to make fire with the fur
niture and all clothing all sold to keep the
wolf away then the children crying for
bread, but there is no bread to give them.
See the young girl, who has always been
happy in making an honest living by her
daily labors in some manufacturing estab-
lishment, now stealing into some dingy
howell with three golden balls hanging over
the door, which denotes a pawnbroker's
shop. What is the object Of her visit to
this God-forsaken place To dispose of
some Of her clothing, to keep herself and
perhaps mother, young sister or brother,
maybe a sick father, from starvation. But
in a short time all is gone 70 the pawn
brokers' What is the next step, in many
cases Prostitution. Great God 1t is
enough to make the blood boil in your
veins to think Of such state Of things.
But still they are living facts, and hun
dreds of cases exist among workingmen.
Are such scenes not enough to awaken a
spirit Of independence within you ! and
say that you will be a sovereign people, and
rule your country as it becomes the land
of liberty to be ruled Let US say to-day
to the men that assume to be our masters,
and avaricious capitalists, beware, for you
are treading upon a volcano, and know not
the day or the hour that it may break
forth in all its fury and destroy all oppo.
sItion. God forbid that men should be
driven to such course, for it always
brings many excuses and evils with it.
Therefore | say, be'cdrs =
JoURNEYMEN T4ILoRs.
Since the last meeting Of their Inte.na-
tional Union, they have formed Local
union here, and have recently struck for
their new bill Of prices, in which they
have nearly all been successful.
CIGAR MAKERS UNION NO. |.
At the October meeting Of the above
body, they unanimously rejected the Con
stitution adopted by the international
body, at Detroit, in September last. The
principal grounds upon which 1t was reject
ed is the clause which says that Union men
may work in shops where the fller-break
ers are employed, provided they do not
work with them OF do not use them them
selves Now, this is directly in opposition
to the principles upon which Trades I'm
ions are organized. Working under such
laws, why, in a short time, there would
not be Union shop in the country, for all
EMPLOYERS could then have their work
made as they pleased. II they wished to
get up cheap work, why they could EN-
ploy the filler breakers THAT is, unskilled
labor for all such work Then, maybe,
employ three OF four practical workmen.
Of course they might be members Of a
Union, if they saw tit to belong to such an
organization but, III course OF time, un-
der such laws, they would become luke
warm, and leave of from the Union alto
gether. 10, instead Of the Unions increas-
ing they viii decrease, if that COnsttu-
ton is adopted Far better for the cigar
makers to throw their doors open for all
that are working at the trade, making
cigars. and make Union hands out of them,
than 10 send Union men among them and
make rats out u them. Make them all
Union men, but do not prescribe certain
price for their work for as soon as You
DO that, you dcbar them from membership
IN most cases, but you do not debar them
from making cigars they will still make
them and be opposed to you and working
against you. So would it not be better
for those people to be in our Unions than
out Of theml BY driving them out Of
our Unions you do not deprive them from
making cigars. To adopt such a course as
above named, would, in my opinion, be
| Al 4. Il.