The Labor enquirer., 1886-05-01

without anv fuss and quietly submit to
see others take their place and leave
them to tramp. OF course they don't OBJ
jec. to peaceable strike-why should
they? Organized men step out, the un-
organized step in-wages reduced-or-
ganized men get hungry and mad to
think their jobs have been taken BY
scabs-the scabs get organized and strike
the ex-organized take their places,
and scab-another cut in wages. And
80 the work goes on, with the unem-
ployed used as lever to break up Or
ganization. And thinking men must
know what the final result will be under
the old mill law of supply and demand.
Men will begging soon for some mas
| ter to take them as slaves for board and
covering perhaps they will get 80 de-
graded they will do without the cloth
ng. Times ar 80 hard already that
many men would be glad to be slaves ii
their pressing wants could be relieved;
but no man wants them. >
Capitalists and those in power should
know that The first law of nature Is SELF
preservation the first and greatest law
of God: Thou shalt love thv neighbor
as thyself." All of us believe that it is
wrong to murder; all of us believe 1t Is
horrible to eat our fellowmen-and yet,
when we read of the sufferings and hun
ger Of those who, like the Greeley expe-
dition. killed and eat their fellows, we
condone their offense and can hardly
call them criminals.
If God commanded that the OK should
not be muzzled while treading out the
grain, how much more a crime is it to
star7e and deny the wants of Ia or that
produ es all things?
If the rich violate the first law of ma
ture and of God, contem ptuously sourn-
ing the highest laws that can be con-
ceived, it is impudence born of hell for
them to say anything if the poor should
kill and rob to preserve the lives of
themselves and families.
We hear continually of capitalist and
chamber of commerce meetings debat-
Ing the labor troubles; they are like
Pharaoh of old calling conventions of as
trologers, magicans and soothsavers to
concoct schemes to enslaye people. If
Pharaoh had given the Isfaelites plenty
of straw for making bricks, and treated
them half right and not listened to the
counsels of unwise and bad men, Egypt
would existed the strongest nation OF
the world to the end of time. If Solo
mons son had listened to the counsel of
the old men instead of following that Of
the young men who told him to answer,
when the people promised if he would
make their burdens lighter they would
serve him, that his little finger should
be thicker than his fathers thigh and
that his father had chastised them with
whips but he would chastise then with
scorpions; the sons of Solomon would
have ruled in Jerusalem until to-day
that is, if they had not practiced some
other tyranny and injustice.
How strange it is that men who have
the foresight and cunning to take ad-
vantage of their more ignorant fellows
to steal their inheritance, and who are
so careful of their precious selves that
they prepare for almost any weather,
should not be able to understand his
tory, read the signs of the times and
save themselves from the wrath now at
their doors.
If the rich were wise they would pay
labor a wage that would enable it to live
in comfortable house, have good food
and time for recreation and amusement
he that hath eyes to see let him see
The rich have gorged themselves to
sleep; hunger has aroused the poor who
seek to allay the pangs of physical and
mental want. To the latter all laws not
meeting heir case are now but slightly
considered, as thev now see that under
them the rich have every advantage.
Demagogues make a great mistake
when they abuse the leaders of labor.
Were it not for the leaders, the un-
learned and ig4orant among the op-
| oIa
destroy and chaos would be let loose.
The leaders of labor know that with the
power at their back they are already
able to destroy-but, they wish to save.