The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1874-09-05

PoNrI&, Aug. 20, 1874. :

PoNTI&, Aug. 20, 1874.
=" me Editor The woRKISee ANS ADVOCATE ~
lou take the true ground in advocating
the formation of a lakee party and the
repudiatlon Of the olf political factions.
hat has any party done for labor since
The formation of the government 2 Moth
'ng. 50 far as results go, what matters it
whether Repuhlicans,i Democrats or ''lib
erals are IN the ascfndancyt They all
represent interests hostile 10 labor. and
We may turn to one or the other until
d"omSlay Without being any better of
There has never bceh ~ much political
r'uennesS since the formation Of the
OnirIls and things grow worse and worse
every vosr.
II "o hre ta,bo savel from utter serfdom
II mdSt BE- through ourselves The farmer
aud sw"tkinsmah. having identical inter
osts aud he'ng ,Nually plundered, must
t"rnt brow party, throwing aside the
ta'th kami drop I'll the old parties II
martcM hot that Wa be defeated IA all
directions Labqk must inaugurate a war
fpr ITS 'wn redemption, and trust for vie
tory to the Justice Of its cause and the
greatness Of its principles Every vote
gwen by working man to the candidates
81 the old factions Is a vote against himself
The ballot was intended as protection
20 us from Just such rascahties as now
beset us on all sides. For ne rly cen
fury We have worked faithfully for one
party II another, but herer for ourselves.
IL Is time we ended our political appren-
ticvshP, and set up for ourselves We
elevate one HONORABLE" humbug after
another to State Legislators and Congress.
and our condition becomes only worse and
worse
We need man identified with labor and
acquainted with its wants, but We cannot
hnd such men among the old party hacks
To- make the matter worse Labor itself
Is IN a chaotic and transition state more
Z nscious of lnnumerable wrongs than able
to devise a remedy. in this consists our
Weakness. We have no agreement among
ourselves as to ends or means We are in
the mann an undisciphned mob, beaten BY
clubs IN our professions. coerced bv the
military in our strikes and repudiated and
suubhed IN political conventions. And
yet the ballot rightly llsed in support of a
broad and comprehensive policy would
remedy all this and place us in the ascen-
dency.
Cur adversaries are fully acquainted
with our position, and that Is why they
I treat MS 40 contemptDously, Labor. in all
I Is platforms and struggles, tacitly accepts
4 its condition Of inferionty and semi-serf-
I dom, Just az the soHthern "chattel once
accepted slavery. But events are rapidly
I forcing labor to a new Declaration of indie
! peudence, and the liquidation of serfdom
y to men with money. Until it reaches this
! point its efforts must necessarily he desul-
tory and unsatisfactory, whether acting fo1
itself OF as an ally Of other parties
The question between capital and labor
is gradually narroving down to this funda-
mental idea shall labor continue to be the
docile serf Of other classes, pilmg up their
untold millions of wealth while itself suf-
fering poverty and restitution. or shall
labor, like present capital, have ~ our,
factories, mines and workshops. us OwH
banks and currency, and keep to itself u
o,rn profits and denominations This Is
the great issue, before which all others
sink into insIgnihc=tnce Let working men
of all grades lookia it necessarily, in all
its aspects, IN all their conflicts and troub.
les. VIII the independence Of labor from
serfdom to capital klrnish a remedy
J. f. BRAY.