The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-07-30
FOR W0RkiNGMEN .
Gov. ClevGiand's Record on Labor Mea.
| SureS


From the Brooklyn Union.
Mr.. ID. j. Hagerty, president of the Ma
tional Hat Finishers' association, was met
by reporter of the Union who asked him
what he thought of Gov. Ceveland's re
cord SO far as it relates to the interests of
labor
Mr. IIagerty said: Il do not see how
laboring men who have the interests of
their Class at heart can misunderstood
Gov. Cleveland's record in that regard TO
the extent as portrayed in the Blaine or
gans. | consider that his record on labor
measures compares favorably with that of
any governor who preceded him. Ours
ing the SESSION of the legislature of 1888
| was not only working for the success of
of the bill prohibiting the making of hats
in the prisons of the state, but | was Sc
lected us chairman of the legislative com
mittee of the trades assembly of this
state, and | did what could to forward
every labor measure IN the legislature. AT
that time the legislative committee of the
trades. assembly discussed among Them
selves the elevated railroads five cent fare
bill, and they concluded that while it was
measure of general interest it could
not be classed as one of particular inter,
ests to the wOrkingmen, and the commits
tee concluded that we had our hands full
of labor measures without advocating the
passage of the five cent fare bill. Wal
ter n Trayer, the president of the trades
assembly, and George Blair, chairman of
the executive committee of the State
Workingmen's ASSOCIATION, agreed with
the rest of the committee that We should
not advocate it as labor measure because
the laboring men generally travel to and
from work during the commission hours.
What were the labor measures that
passed the legislature in 1882"
"A bill passed during that year which
prohibited the manufacture of hats in the
prisons of the state which met with the
governors approval. He also approved
the tenement house cigar bill-prohibiting
the making of cigars in the Overcrowded
tenements of New York city, which
bill was amended during the session of
this year, and the amended bill was also
signed by the governor. Then in 1888
the governor approved the bill creating
the state bureau of labor statistics. This
was a measure which the trades organ
iZations of the state have been trying to
have established for years, and they at
last succeeded During the session Of the
legislature of this year Gov. Cleveland al
the request of the trades organizations of
the state, signed the amended tenement
| house cigar bill as previously stated. The
| legislature of 1888 passed a bill which left
the contract prison-labor question to the
! people Of the state to approve or dIsap-
prove Of it. The proposition to abolish
the contract system was adopted by the
people by majority of about 10000
During the Legislature of this year the
friends of the prison contract system
tried TO delay action on the matter by eX-
| tending the time of the commission tcreat-
ed during the beginning of this year
| to investigate the system) until the sitting
of the next legislature. This was clear
| " a dodge to set aside the will of the
people as expressed at the polls. Senator
Comstock of Troy also introduced bill
which prevented the making Of any new
contracts for prison labor, or the renewal
| governor veOted the bill extending the
time of commission, and after sending
! the Comstock bill back to the legislature
to be perfected so as to include peniten
tiaries as well as state prison, he signed
it."
What do you think of veto Of the
mechanics lien bill?'
| GU I IL MT no O Lou
have talked with many representative
workingmen and others who agree with
the governor in saying that the bill, by its
defects, if it had been approved, would
have defeated the object which it was in
tended to accomplish. Its object was
mechanics and laborers should have first
lien for wages, but l understand, from
labor representatives who examined the
bill while it was in the hands of the gov>
ernOr, that it allowed the contractors and
merchants from whom the contractors
purchased their supplies to come in on an
equal footing with those to whom wag-
es were due | was also informed
| by those who were watching
the laboring mems interests at Albany
| uuIluS Tit past SCoSlou LudI II lt pCdlt't
nine other lien laws, and they blame them
selves for not seeing that the bill was per
feet before it reached the governor.
what do you think Of the governor 5
veto of the conductors and drivers bill
Il am sorry that the governor did not
sign that, because many of the horse rail
road employees think that it could have
done them some good, and there are nc
men who are more deserving of sympathy
because of their long hours of labor. than
conductors and drivers of horse railroads
in New York and Brooklyn. Yet the
governor thought that the bill, whether
constitutional or not, would have resulted
if approved by him, in cutting down theil
wages, as most of them are paid by the
trip and not by the day. In my opinion
if the governor made mistake in no
singing the bill, it was the only mistake
which he made on any of the labor meas
ure's which have been sent to him by thu
legislature | am satisfied that if any
workingman will look over Gov. CleYe-
lands actions for himself, instead of lis
tening to the chap-trap of intert stet
politicians, he will vote for him for pres
ident. Ihave been broughtin contract will
Gov Cleveland on many occasions since
the first day of January, 1888, and Away
found him easy and approach, an ATTENTIVE
| listener, and kind and sympathetic"