Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1877-09-12

The annual fair of the White River Ag-
ricultural Society was held ut Bethel, com
mencing the It'll instant. and continuing
three days. The show of stock and tools
was not quite up to that of former years.
nor was Floral Hall as well filled, though
the character of the exhibition was of the
best.
The balloon ascension was successfully
made by Prof. Grimley, though by some
accident it came oIlnbout an hour before
the time announced on the programme
The address by Senator Edmunds Wa
excellent, and was listened to with undl
vided attention by the large crowd in at
tendance.
The question which he discussed being
one of general interest, we give below Il
pretty full abstract of it: Mr.. Edmnnds
said he should not endeavor TO amuse, bu
should devote little time to the consider
alton of Il question of vital interest to oul
whole country; II question which but now
interrupted commerce, raraIyzed indus
try, and shed blood-the labor question.
The first and simple principles, the ten
commandments of labor, should come frs
in order BY what law, and by what
principle is u man protected in holding
what he has earned? and why should h,
not Mt once divide his corn or his cattle
with whoever shall claim share o.
either? 1t WAS the very foundation o.
personal liberty, an inalienable RICH
which the law secures to every nan in The
pcaceable possession of-the right Of every
man to what is his own Every man has
right to all he can gain without wrong
ing his neighber.
1t is first principle, the fundamental
stratum on which society rests, the private
right of every one to be master of what
he owns, his own farm, or his own potato
patch, if he has but that beside the rail
road track, and it was the first duty Of
every government to see that this liberty
should be preserved. To do this, every
one must contribute according to their pos
sessions, and the only liberty any one part
ed with was liberty to do wrong. Another
first duty of society was the protection OF
labor. No man should be deprived of lib
erty of labor any more than of life; no
man should say you must work for me
far such u price; that was slavery.
Neither should one who had labor to dis
pose Of say, you sh@ll employ me at such
Il price or will burn your barn, or shop
or house.
A want of understanding these simple
principles has been the cause of all this
trouble. 1t would be better that we should
live under Il king who should by decree
fl the price of labor, than to have a large
number of persons controlling it by force,
and if the law could declare the price
which should be paid to labor by whoever
wished tie buy it, it would run us into Il
savage condition in Il century.
The other thing we have 50 much of.
which is said to be antagonistic to and
comes in collision with labor, is capital.
Does the demagogue who talks such stuff
think what produces capital? Work pro-
duces it, and any man who has worked
day and got dollar for it has become
capitalist to just that extent. Capital is
the aristocracy of work; where then is
the ground for antagonism between CAPT
tai and work? The man who has gained
Il few potatoes and little pork for hi
winters need has just rs much interest in
the rights of capital as the banker who
counts his thousands.
There have been short.lived communi.
ties where property was held in common
where the man who worked but part of Il
day shared equally with him who worked
all day; but human nature is so constituted
that till the millennium (when he suppos.
ed no nun would have to work) there
would be aslistincton between those who
wurk and those who do not. 1t must be
so. Tie principles of industry and fru
gality which parents instil into their
chldren's minds show its truth.
The rights of labor and capital are such
as have said; yet with thousands upon
thousands of acres of uncultiyaed land
in our country, hundreds and thousands
of virtuous men and women go hungry to
bed. This is indeed a sad spectacle, while
in other parts Of our country labor is
scarce and dear, while food is plenty and
cheap. How has this happened-this
want of employment by those willing to
work Tor fair wages? A great war had
produced great excitement not of pas.
sion, but of production. The farmer who
had raised two hundred bushels of pola.
toes raised three hundred; and if he had
raised three colts lie raised five; factories
sprang up, machinery was put in motion.
and government, with beneticenCe which |
is now us bitter us it was sweet, poured |
out carloads Of paper money, and extrav-
agance was the result; new dresses, new |
shoes, new laces and new jewelry; new
wagons, fast horses and new houses. till
there was competition of pride and ex-
travaganee. Industry over pro luced, and
" broad views were entertained, and the
production was more than the healthy de
mand. 1t was like arriving at 24O gai
when we had only three minute horse
and we kept on at that gait seven years
after the war closed before we found out
the fact To illustrate: suppose our forty
millions of people had each two pairs Of
hoes a year. and when hard times were
coming on felt that they must economic
md make the old ones do, or buy only one
lew pair, the falling off in the manufac.
ure in the old Bay State of forty million
airs of shoes would be break. down. .
nd those who made them would be GU; S
f work. They can't work on the farm; |,
1ey had lived extravagantly, like every A