Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1877-08-08


and hence manufacturers
failed to find as ready sales fortheir
articles as they expected. Railroads
didn't pay, and iron manufacturing
throwing out of employ
ment thousands, and forcing them In
to other avenues Of business, not on
ly in this but every other branch Of
the demand lessened
owing to a forced economy, and the
fact that enough had already been
of certain goods to
meet the ordinary demand for wears
to come. In addition this we were
paying the national debt at a very
rapid rate. The crowds of immi-
grants coming to our shores without
trade or profession augmented the
already too great supply of that kind
of labor and hence the general stag
nation. The "crash" came in 1873,
but has been continued on till the
present.
Right here let us criticize Mr.. Iri-
Jane. The Starving, destitute sur
plus labor of the cities is willing to
take "remunerative employment" on
the farms, as farm hands, or farmers,
if they can. n.
But they cannot. Why? Because,
i wing in destitution, they have no
means of transportation to the west
ern farms nothing to live on while
they "open up" the farm for cultiva-
ton and wait for their ''first crops"
and meantime the family would be
starving. AS farm hands they cannot
get, on an ACREAGE, more than $l4 per
month and board during the farming
season, and that is not more than suf-
ticient to keep two, but nota half doz-
en- of family. Besides thereare now
as many farm hands in the West as
there is any employment for.
Talk about fascination WHAT fas-
cination is there in restitution and
starvation in the city if there is such
large opening 60 for labor on the
farm? II is easy to talk about farm
ing successfully with capital of one,
two or three thousand dollars to
commence with, and an assurance of
something to eat and wear till the
first crop is harvested and marketed.
But with nothing, no, not even a house
"a dug-out, to live in, and not a
weeks provisions ahead, it is quite a
different thing.
Fortunately for the editor of the
Tribune and unfortunately for the
truth, he don't know what he is talk.
ing about. He never did one honest
hard days work on farm in his life
He, unfortunately for himself, but
without his fault, belongs to the dam
phool family, who think farming il
as easy to run successfully, as it is fol
him to sit in his arm chair and hur
his editorial thunderbolts in the fac,
of the honest, but poor laborcr, Il
whose nerve, muscle and sweat Ii,
owes all the luxuries he enjoys.
We agree with him that il woult
be we'll if the poor laboring men il
the city were engaged in filling tn
soil, but neither he, nor any Of tn
rich corporations in whose interest h
howls, would ever contribute pen
ny for their transportation or subsis
tence while getting to the paradise Q
the farmer.
j The editor of the Tribune thinks i
the desperate problem of the ag
how to get these men into farm wori
But in his wisdom he fails to sugges
t a plan. Il have none to give him.
, Most of them, no doubt, would be a
+ far from the sphere to which the
] were naturally adapted, if they wer
farming, as the editor is in lecturin
} them about that of which he know
. absolutely nothing. However, l hay
. a few suggestions to make, whic
} may be of use and may serve to ind
( cate the course which will best prt
0 mote the prosperity of the peopl
l generally and bring about renewe
Y enterprise. 1t may be the veriest pr
J, sumption in me to make the sugge
ton to the wise editor of the IyTbun
but do not expect to be needed |
him; on the contrary, it is dcsigne
+ for mon who know something abol
the difficulties the laboring men l1a'
+, to meet with.
: Paying per cent. interest on mo-
n ey does not enable the borrower
V do more than to pay the interest
e any honest business. He cannot pt
If the principal. The day of compar
d lively honest speculation has passe
e if man can do more than this no
v he does it dishonesty, hence, to G
= able business men to carry on the
1t avocatiOns the rate of interest shou
v be reduced to six per cent. with su
l. ficient security.
ii There is NO necessity in the Cover
ic ment paying off its debt of ~, 100000
to GOO, lust at once, in order TO ha
SO "good national credit" when it
go done at the expense of poverty
the laboring classes who have to
N the paying. Government bonds m;
IN sell above par and at the same tin
A. the laboring man may starve becau
8 he has no money and nothing to
.e Talk about immigration to a count
y in that condition! No wonder it b
,e fallen Off 50 rapidly. With less lu
r urious living and less expense in Ii
ID ing on the part of the employer,
It, win have more to pay the cmplo.
RI and more to invest in business.
a. government officials spend less of t
I'd public funds in junketing trips a
IS costly suppers at the peoples e
a. pense: let capitalists live more plai
to ly and cheaply than they do, and tn
v. will not aggravate the poor emplo
ch whose small salary scarcely keeps
he wolf from the door; whose childr
he go without shoes and cOmfOrtal
in clothing in the winter, whose table
X spread with a limited supply of t
re coarsest food.
OIL We have no sympathy with strik'
a who incite riot, but when their Oh
r. dren go crying and hungry to b.
ar while their employer luxnriates
ps his palace car, on the choicest Wan
l. it is almost sufficient to exasper'
ne him, and the man who has no SYM
v. thy with suffering, even in the fam
es of a striker, who does not get enOu
ar to support and feed his family,
r serves the name of fiend more TIL
ne man.
r. suppose it is not the time M
is when the ideas here expressed "
Of be conceded by the wise editor of I
A. Tribune, or by his admirers who
g. obsequiously bow to the shrine
l. railway divinity, but it should be
&c membered by these same men W
is write these fiery editorials in favor
ID capital and against labor, that the
le boring class composcs more than tw
re thirds of the people of this count
n mutually sympathysing witheach Of
Sc er, although they have no organ I
Nv voted to their interest, willing
give them a fair show in the "
no which has just been inauguratcd
er save them from starvation and wa
evil The great principle which govel
in the rate of compensation which
Ise Dor should receive is this there i
Of common interest the employer q
IN, employee have in each other, and
on quires the employer to pay the g
ed ploye sufficient to keep him FRI
actual want so long as he remains
ST. his employment, irrespective Of I
les question of profits. If the time !
tut come when the laboring classes {
lie, to make their homes with their ia
'or lilies at the poor house, while tn