The New York herald., 1874-06-01

danxered. European-particular,y British jour-
nals-palnt In vivid language the evti conse-
with the capitalist: but American worEingmen
being many times ireer than those peoples. are
privileges. -Four rance day are good wages ior
French mechanic; SIX shlllings fair remunerar
dIssat atisned with three dollars. 1t Is to be hoped
that no American tradesman will nave to work lor
. lower figure. and that their orefgn fenow-crafts
NAV get an advance on present rates; but at the
same time II Is an established fact tnAJ no strike
In country where the standard OF wages Ia low,
can bring rates up TO those OF another where
prices are better.
workingmen are apt to look upon capital ~
their creature, and exhaustiess. This ioea is not
wel founded, and any ill-considered attack upon
tue just prerogatlves oil capital would be like
attempting TO Kill the goose Tor the sake Of her
unaid golden eggs 1t is equally true that capital
has obligations TO comply with as well as rights 10
Claim The oounteous gifts Of nature, which come
every man who produces more than he consumes
is, as Tar as his savings go. capitalist. Out OF
savage's capital is the weapon with which he
brings down his prey; that OF Civilized man the
Wiling hands Nnen tee man who has not saved
asks HIM who has ior something to do, then
LABOR AND CAPITAL ARE BRoUGHT INTO CONTACT,
and their interests are OF an opposing nature:
Here 1t would seem that ne who has not saved
should subordinate his demands to the conditions
OF be VINO nas and can give him food and raj
ment But 1t would pe unjust and oppressive for
the man who employs to ask days work for
ent brother tne u value OF his labor after deduct
ing from the whoe profits the just earnings, with
interest, oil his own capital
glorious Union Is blessed leaves us with but very
few poor people compared 70 the population when
ferent in Europe, where the occupation OF the
land by the lew makes its acquisition nearly im-
poss Die 10 the many, and these are therefore poor
through no fault OIL their own, but are
SLAVES TO CIRCUMSTANCES
growing out oI tne ancient right or conquest,
when laie the weak at the mercy OF the strong,
and passed the Inhabitants OF province under
the power OF the conquered, ike 80 many yoke
Between the years 1890 and ls4s the question
mostly discussed by socialists was that the gov
ernments duty Is TO ind work and pay for every
one among the governed, whether or not the rn
ing power mIgnt need MS labor. In 1S44 book
on the union OF working people was published In
its object that OF uniting 5000, 600 OF French la
borers-men and women-by each one suoscrlb-
tion of iaborer's union palace. When
the socialists came into power In France alter
to establish national workshops, where needless
work was frequently done at premium rate Of
wages Tor ignorance. These wages were TO be paid
by q tax levy upon agrlcuture but this utoplan
scheme soon collapsed by the weight OF It's own
ciallsm, CabeJlsm and st. Simonism. The Organi-
cation OF labor was eloQuently and ably advocated
by N. Louis Blanc, one OF the provisional govern
ment that preceded she election Of the Prince
President TO office. Blanc thought that money
should be raised by the government for the estab-
lishmeDt OF social workshops, where operatives OF
botn sexes and approved moral character might
be employed in ali branches OF industry and paid
the highest rates allowed under private compett-
ALL COMPETITION Is WRONG IN PRINCIPLE,
because one laDorer was obliged TO nnderDld an
other ana one employer to undersell his fellow
1he government pan was TO destroy competition
and every workman should receive the same pay,
NO matter wlat his individual capacity might De-
The earnings OF these workshops were to be
nuaiy DIVIDED into three parts; one for equal dis
ports the aged and sick and TO provide for contin-
gencies; the tnrd TO be set apart for the purchase
OF tools, machinery. &c. As has been said the
whole system le to the ground.
may tie conceded that unlon!sts and capital
lists mean the one TO give and the other to get "a
talr days work Tor iair days wages;n but 1t Is
the misunderstanding between them as to what
constitutes tie one or the other that leads to all
the conlusion, and the bulk OF society is deeply
Interested to know now the dif1culty win rermin-
ate Should the laborers completely prevail society
Will III the end have to pay the difference between
and II the capitalists finally gain the day prices
VIII be nat, and operatives must remain in no
they can get or .'go West" A. 'lock out'' is the
only reply that employers can give to men WHO by
seek to impose prices at beyond paying rates to
the Capitalist. Inc capitalists next move in the
other labor market ior hands. case Is on record
where tle tailors OF Belgium and Germany refused
going 70 England, even at higher wages than they
manifest sympathy In strikes by the laporers OF
dinerent nations
COSMOPOLITAN ORGANIZATION OF LABOR
is proved. THIS is right enough, SO long as the
members OF different societies abstain from using
threats violence Tow ards outside operatives
who do nor choose to JOIN their organizations.
Also, they should not aoopt any rule that would
operate as an obstacle to good workmen earning
the highest wages, and not the worst or most ln-
efficient as unlonists seem TO demand. The first
preachers OF unlonlsm wanted TO benefit their
adnerents without injuring outside non society
men, but the trade unionists, as body, care
little gfat may happen to the rest Of the laD0ring
work too hard Tor them. st.iRe Oblges the
employer either to lock out his hands or comply
with their demands Tor an increase Of pay; out
In any case he VIII try to save himself and rise
In his lIne OF goods viii follow an increase on his
payroll Other trades VIII have to give higher
price goods advanced by the strike, they, in
turn. must suner or strike In seifdeience, and
even wnen, In the end, all the trades succeed in
strikes they will at the close OF the year. be
n early as badly on before the strike. When q
man earns 81 so a day and can purchase with it
earned 81 a day and could buy with 1t onlv tue
same amount oi provisions. According to this
theory, II general success OF strikes were possl
De, II would amount to nothing more than O
general rise In prices. Competition Of the working
men against the other classes brings about re-
Jchn Ruskln wants to establish uniform rate OF
wages and says that their intrinsic value can be
cessary to carry ball OF given weight certain
distance; and that 1t s the value OF the quantity
oil food aud air which will enable man &c per-
form given labor task without eventu-
ally losing aesh energy by it. But this
standard must differ Ia different countries. The
laborer In warm chimes does not need so much
food 10 make oil ior the lamp OF life IN the cold
lattudes The Hindoo Is happy on six cents q day;
tue Britlsher grumD es on seventy-nve cents, while
the American is miserable on SIS. Ruskin wants
nal dozen OF pay siclaps-though he forgets that
here would begin war of the 'pathies-to deter /
NINE the KIND and quantity OF lood and space OF
lodging requisite to healthy life OF the laborer
on gwen factory. and the NUMBER Of hours he
may work at nus trade without curtalling his |
probabirles OF llfe and the result would show
what ought TO be paid Tor his services. All EN-.
ployers s1oUd be bound to give their men cnoice
OF an order for the nxed quantity OF food and
space OF lodg ng, or the market price for that
ticuar amosnt OF work. Mr. Mill, who rather
favurs the uD&onsts thinks them wiser than their
employers, and says tnat they perceive man does
not AVE or himself alone, nor for his family only,
but for all. ii q man by working over time and
being ceverer than his fellows absorbs twenty per
cent more wages than the average OF them why.
THEY WILL BE so MUCH THE WORSE OFF.
II there are two citizens over jop, is it not on
the whole, better and more desirable that they
should get 81 so . week apiece all round than that
one OF them shoSld carry on SIS, and thus leave
the others with only little over So Is 1t not a
wider din0sion OF prosperity IN the one than in