National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1885-09-16
CONVICT LABOR.
Protest OF tiic Federation of Trades and
Labor Unions.

action Of the Secretary of tho Treasury In
awarding n contract for public work to om.
piOyC.s OF convict labor: against the contract
system on public work, and against the viDln.
tionsor evasion Of the Cight.hOur Law. IL was
unanimously adopted July ~, 1857 and pre-.
'cutcd to the President July 80, 1857
lEAuQvArTEEs FEDERATION OF Llp1a
tNiUSs, WSSlltSGTOS, ID. c., July 2S-Tu rdE
lusinE$r! by direction OF the nbOvc-namcl
organization this protest has btrn urrIarrd AMI
submitted to you.
ing prCnmblus and resolution were adopted
Whereas the platform aud principles Of the
orgaui2cd trades and labor unions Of the
United states and Canada declares
That the national Cight.hUur law Is intended
tobcnciit labor aud relieve itpiuly Of It's heavy
buIdCns, and that the evasion OF Its true spirit
ard intent Is contrary to the best interests of
hor Is n species Of slavery in its worst form;
that the system OF letting ont national state,
and, municipal work 9y, contract tends to de-
unct system On public work should be abOl-
"Whcrcas the knights of Labor and other
organized bodies OF wOrkugmcn have en-.
lodiCd the obOvc declarations in their plat
forms; and
Whereas II Is reported in the plbiic pres,
that the Secretary OF the Treasury has decided
that tho Department should not dictate the
means by which contractors are to perform
their work on public buildings, anl that thcy
arc ~ llDCllE 10 employ II lnCN sAC ltt, tho
most degraded of all labor-prison contract
labor. Therefore
"Rcsolycd That tho president Of this body
he directed to Inquire Into the trdth of said
newspaper reports. and If he finds them cor
rect, 10 prepare protest against said decision
and submit the same to this Fcdcgd.ijn fOr
such action as 1t may deem right and proper"
On the 18th instant addressed the Secretary
OF the Treasury as follows:
HEADQUARTERS FEDERATION or LABOR
INloNs, WAsliiSgToN, ID. c, July is lSO.-
Hos. pANlrL nANNiNg, secretary of the
lreasuy-SlR have the honor to transmit
herewith copy of pre0mbcs and resUlutiOn
adop.td by this organization on Tuesday even.
Ing last.
the policy Of the government in relation to con.
tiucts for public work has been made. aud be-.
ing dcsirous oisccuring the mot reliable in.
formation on this subject so as TO be enabled
to intelligently aud inirly discharge the duties
imposed upon me by the incl0Scd resolution, |
respectfully request II copy of your decision
concerning the public building AZ Peoria, Iii
and also n copy of the protest of Mcssrs. straub
X Co, of Buffalo, against awarding the contract
i3r that building to rrison.inbor contractors OIL
the ground that they would employ such labor
in lis erection. Very respectfully,
l.. W. OYSTER, President, sc.
The following letter was received in reply
TO the above:
TREASURY DEPARTMENT OFFICE OF THE SEC.
RErARN, WASHINGTON, ID. c., July 20, lSSj-E.
W. OYSTER, EsQ, President Federation Of La.
lOr Unions, Washington, d. C.-SIR Referring
10 your letter of the 18th Instant, huv1tD re.
ply that in determining to whom should be
given the contract for stone and brick work
Tor the additional story to the Peoria (lll) post.
office lhe department was governed solely by
the lids, having IN view the greatest economy
Rraincgd " Go. bid to do The whole work fjr
s5i25, and this was Sl,hSj less th IN the prJpJ.
sition Of the next lowest bidder
beyond this there was no thought of dciin.
ing the policy OF the government IN relation -
contracts for public work. Respectfully, yours
DANIEL MlNStSG.
1t thus appears that the Secretary of tho
Treasury having had his attention directed to
convict labor; has either ignored the Issue en-.
tirCly, or has determined that n sIulll gain to
the treasury ought TO outweigh any consider.
alton of the wrong and injustice of subIeuting
honest and free labor to the competition OF
convict hircllngs.
4 different policy has been defined by tho
people. In the platforms ofall political parties;
In the demands of all labor organizations: In
national and state legislation, anl in numer-
Gus verdicts at the hallot.bOX, 1t has bsea de.
clGrcd that free labor shall not be forced lnto
competition with scrvile races and criminal
classes, and that the evil effects Ofunrcsrlctcd
competition among ourselves shall be mitisated
by considcrations of justice and humanity
when the government, in behalf of all the pro.
pie, becomes an employer of labor.
This was the policy intended when the people
ofCaliiornia east 10000 votes against Chinese
immigration to sj7 votes for 1t; when Congress
passed the laws TO restrict Chinese lmml!rl-
tiOn and to prohibit the importation of labor
under contract from Europe; when the ma
ttonul eight.hOur law was enacted; when the
people of New York gave the stupendous yer.
dict of la9.O25 majority against contract CON
vet labor; and when the people In the city of
New York condemned the competition of con-
Nictcd criminals with honest woriingmen by
q vote ol llS,777 TO l4,3Ol.
The national cight.hour law declares that
eight hours shall constitute Il days work for
all laborers,. workmen, and mechanics who
may be employed by or OH behalf of the gov.
ernmcnt OF the United States"
The workingmen Of the country secured this
law in order to show that they, rs employers
of labor through their representatives, were
willing to COnccde to their employees that re.
lief from ovcrtoil and that fairness of reward
which they demanded from their own employ.
Crs. They believed the system would be uni
ycrSally demanded by laborers and accepted
by employees Us soon as 1t had proved its ad-
vantage by Il fair experiment.
But from the date Of its enactment, the
eght-hour law has met with bitter hostility
nom government officials whose duty 1t has
been to enforce II, and IL has operated spas.
medically, briefly, and within narrow limits,
and that only when an impending election ha.
Afforded IN opportunity for wOrkiugm1n to
give weight TO their demands.
The favortc method Of evadng this law has
Eecn TO turn all public work over to contract.
ors. This TOO in spite OF the fact that from
me early day when the abuses attend
government printing office into existence to
the recent failure OF the contractors for steel
cruisers, the contract system has been unique
rings legislative corruption, enrichment OF
Adventures, and oppression Of workingiaen.
This system "tends to degrade and lmpov-
irish labor" by subjectng 1t to the intense
competition between bidders, whereby wages
arc often unjusty reduced and thus the bur.
dcn of workingnen made almost unbeGrable
in order that economy" may be secured 10
the government. The evils attending the exc.
cution of public work by contract are still fur.
ihCr intensified by reason of the fact that work.
men are frequently robbed of their wages by
contractors; and us the government Is exempt
from the operations of mechanics lien laws
which afford protection to workmen who may
lie deirauded Of their wages by contractors for
private work, those employed by contractors
on public Work are completely at the mercy OF
their employers
The pnStrrcrs recently employed on the pcn.
sion office building IN this city, ut wages CON
siderably below the prevailing rate on private
wOTR, were deiIGuded out of n considerable
portion of their earnings by the, "lowest bid.
lcrs," to whom the contract had been given
for that class of work. and not only we've the
workmen robbed, but the people were swindlcd
by receiving, In return for the money paid 10
the contractors, very inferior work. The OIL.
Ger in charge of the construction Of that baild-
ing is responsible for this disgraceful state of
aiiHhS, u Is bitter prejudice against the eight.
hour law has dulicd his sense of Justice and
blinded him to the best interests of the gov
Crumcnt lie Is II believer in "low bids" long
hours, ana cheap labor all Of which he has
hgd 4t the expense OF workingmen and the
There is no law which compels government
officials to give the public work to contractors;
aud there II no law which compcls the nccep.
tancC ofthe lowest bid Having all these facts
within his reach, the Secretary Of the Treas
my has deemed II wise to adopt the oliOuS
contract system, and to adopt 1t in its most
CbuONiOus form,
When the Democratic convention OF 1881 de.
nounCed the Republican party for "proicsSing
II desire TO elevate labor while 1t subjected the
american workingman to the competition of
convict ana imported contract labor" II did
ret say thAt n saving Of POS would Justify n
Democratic administration in doing the same
thing.
Tho Democratic platform repeatedly and
Justly condemned the excessive aud unequal
laNutiCn which falls with crushing weight on
Tie producing masses; yet our Secretary ofthe
Treasury seems willing TO so disburse the eN-
Ccssiyc revenue rs 20 break down and destroy
lnl