Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1885-05-16

filed Tuesday evening with an
audience called together by the an
nouncement that Capt. R. F. Trevel-
lick would speak upon wages and
Short Days" The address, as is usual
with Trevellick, brlstled with strong
points and funny hits, which drew
forth frequent applause and laughter.
1t was general in scope. but few and
slight references being made to the
loca. situartion.
After several preliminary social
references Mr.. Trevellick began by say
ing that he never saw a darker cloud
overshadowing American labor than
now. He referred to the widespread
depression in all lines of productive
activity as one where the :'silver
lining" was invisible, but as every
cloud has that embeliisment he hoped
for better times for American work
ingmen. There have not been less than
four million workers idle during the
last six months, a suspension of activ-
ity imposing more loss upon the peo-
pie than was sustained for the same
length of time during the war.
He had heard Hon. James G. Blaine
say in IL speech last fall that thirty
three thousand millions of dollars had
been added to the wealth Of the United
States during the last twenty-four
years. During the same period the
average population was forty mil
lions, making a pro rata addition of
$6l3 for every man, woman and child
in the land. Had all these people
really realized this fortune more en-
ployment would have been given to
workingmen than they could have per-
formed, and demand for every pro-
duet of human hands would have been
created which could hardly have been
met. Moreover, in its social and
moral aspects, how much restitution,
degradation and crime we would have
OSou SJdIcu ID lHCdlCul~DlC.
While the lecturer was disposed to
hold somebody responsible for a state
of affairs so suicidal he deemed it I'M
fair to load it on the great political
leaders of that age. Leaders, like
laws. ale just what the people them
selves make them, and they are made
by process III and through which we
employ others to do our thinking for
us. Hence, workingmen never will
be better off until they do more think
ing for themselves. They must learn
more of government, or continue to
wear the saddle. Under our system
of credit, the mother of improvi-
dence, II out of 20 laborers are never
30 days ahead of hunger. The mo-
ment they are compelled to make their
credit good that moment they begin to
write mortgage upon their labor yet to
be performed. Here followed an il
lustration of the great good that
number of small payments will dc.
The lecturer drew his point from an
incident reciting the result of pre- natal
Influences. In times of idleness and
poverty nobody felt the stress more
keenly than wives and mothers. The
foundations laid in such periods were
of terrible import to future society.
Through the impressionable mothers
the seeds of avarice, greed, etc., are
sown to blossom and ripen in thieves
and murderers.
Attention was then given to discrimi-
nations favoring the property to the
neglect of health and life. In many
States the horse is protected against
over-work, the driver not. The one is
limited to so many hours or miles daily ;
the latter, when through with him, may
take fresh horse and must work on
with no shield to protect him from
corporate rapacity. Why is this 7
Because the horse is property. Mary
land has declared that ten hours be-
tween the rising and setting sun is a
working day. Is that carried out
Through his nose) sob, my Lord
MOI" replies the operator, who says
''some OF my men can't make living
at IL, II or Is hours" And some poor
short-sighted miners say the same
thing. The speaker went on to show
how supply of labor overreached the
demand for labor through lengthy
days of labor how the employed
fearing loss of work, and tho unem
ployed, greedy for work, each incen
i've fed and fostered by the system
were used to menace and destroy eacl
other.
In answer to the proposition tina
''labor creates wealth." the capitals
says "yes, and so does money: 0, yes
money creates money; everybod.
knows that But 'my friend" re
piled Trevillick, ''if a young man ant
woman wed, and there is nothing
wrong, the probability favors offspring
but if the two cousins, Mr.. Silver Dol
I 4 1 ~