The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1873-11-01
THE LABOR QUESTION.

rus Ho> e. H ALLs>. lL. o.. ~ clKARD goLLSsE.
FflNpELftliA.
The question Of the relations Of labor
and capital is one Of the problems of So
cial sciences science whose domain Is hu-
manlty. and whatever concerns humanity
cannot be alien u Christianity and Christ
ians W'rkngmen are dissatisfied III
America. and more dissatisfied IN Europe.
They alege that while they are the pro
ducers Of ali wealth they do not receive a
fair share of the products II their labor ;
and they are cropping IN the dark to dis
cover The cause and the remedy. The in
dictment which they lind against the exist
ing order NJ things, charges that 10y means
OF unequal legislation capital takes the
lions share of the products of industry /;
that the power " money to coerce men is
increasing by the aggregation IL wealth in
corporations and that the rich are grow
ing richer while the poor are growing poor
er. The struggle Of individual workmen
against the alleged aggressions of capital
bong hopeless, recourse was had 70 COM
Ainauon. and trades unions were organized.
The leading objects NJ these unions were
higher wages. fewer hours IF labor and
emancipation from the tyranny Of capital.
The unions regarded capital as their enemy,
and declared war against it. They armed
themselves with the strike a weapon az
dangerous Ia the assailant as to the assail-
ed Capital accepted the gage If battle,
aud undertook To- starye the strikers, or
dispense them 10y employing non-u union men
br-t ua1tgb hpr-
ing cities and towns In this trial Of
strength capital had the advantage. The
next step was the contcderacy IF the unions
of each trade M several adjacent counties
or in a State Great strikes we're then or
dered. and these were sometimes successful,
and sometimes they failed Men could
still he brought from adjacent States If
protection from violence were guaranteed.
Finally National Industrial Union has
been organized. which Is designed to EN-
brace all classes of workingmen in the
United States II this shall be sustained
and consolidated IT would seem that moth
ing but dIssensiOu IN lts own ranks can pre-
vent the victory Of labor in the battle Of
strikes IN this country, for a strike in any
branch Of industry IN one place vii be
sustained by the financial aud moral aid of
all the workingmen of the nation. But
We shall see that such victories lead to
RUIN. In Europe, however, it was soon
discovered that national unions were mad
equate. English employers starved the
strikers by employing workmen from Bel
GUM, Holland, and France.
A logical response to Ills vas the organi-
cation Of an international Society. an ALI
ance toproclaim the evangel Ot labor a uni
versal brotherhood Of workingmen- which
should ignore political and religious differ
ences, disregard national boundaries and
languages al the affiliated having similar
interests and similar grievances all
pledged to sustain each. and each to sus-
tain all in any authorized conflict. whether
Just or unjust, with employers Of labor.
The conception was grand, but many diff
cultIcs have been encountered in its reali-
cation. The International Association il
now nine years Old 1t has held some four
or five congresses IN which opinions were
anything but harmonious, and it has pro
mulgated doctrines which have alarmed So
Getty and made governments hostile. If
the international Association would con-
fine itself to legitimate and practical OBJ
jects, II might do much to ameli0rate the
condition Of the working men Of Europe
But il it has no higher aim than to organize
and sustain strikes. if il contracts the
faint OF Communism, il its leaders form a
cabal hostile to property, inheritance, mar
rage, the family, and God, and seduce its
membership into the adoption of destruc-
tive principles and measures, it will perish
by internal dissensIons or be engulfed in
the vortex of political revolution. If
workingmen sought only to advance wages.
and to make strikes for that end success
ful, every movement in the organization of
Of these societies was dictated by correct
reasoning and made IN the right direction.
But the successive advances in wages which
have been made during the last thirty
years have given nothing save only tempo
rary relief, because the prices Of commod
tiles have risen with the rise Of wages
Worklngmen appear to have overlooked
two important facts, one, that they are
consumers as well as producers the other.
that whatever adds to the cost of the pro-
ducts OF labor diminishes the purchasing
power Of the wages of labor
by not giving thought to these obvious
truths, they are surprised and indignant
that while their wages have been donbled
within thirty years, their condition ia mo
better now than it was thirty wears aoo
The cost Of living has kept even pace with
wages, and the unions are inconsistency
doing their best TO make it outrun them
A number OF causes over which the nnions
have no control have doubtless contributed
to the general advance Of prices Among
these are the increase q gold since the dis.
covery OF that metal in California and Ans
tralla; the excessive issue Of bank notes
before the late war, and an irredeemahIe
national currency. The effect of the IN
crease Of gold has been less in degree bnt
similar IN kind to that which was cansed
by the influx of the precious metals into
commerce during the century succeeding
the discovery of America. Without anS
scarcity Of produce prices advanced three
and four fold ; and it will always be fonnd
that when gold is produced with less labc-
than before, its value compared with other
commodities viii be reduced and prices
which are the measure Of this comparative
value, viii advance. But the reject Of the
increase of gold on prices hiss been exao-
gerated by an irredeemable currency, For
tunately the old State banks can no longer
Aood the country with notes having only =
local circulation. The Government Of the
United States reserves to itself and it's Ma
nUnal Banks the privilege Of issning notes
payable on demand, but which cannot be