Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-05-31
HARDSHIPS OF WORKMEN.
TALNIAGE DRAWING CROWDS
TO THE TABERNACLE.

the Poor.
BROOKLYN, N. Y, May SO.-Rev. t.
Dewitt Talmage, ID. D., preached to-day
in the Brooklyn Tabernacle, the third OF
his series of sermons on "The Labor
Question:" entitled "The Genuine Hard
ships of the Working Glasses" The
Brooklyn Tabernacle, which is the most
spacious Protestant church in America,
largely overfiows at ordinary times; but
muItitudeG who cannot get inside the
building are vastly more numerous.
DIR. Talmage's text Is found in Isaiah,
xii, :: $50 the carpenter encouraged the
goldsmith, and he that smoOtheth with
the hammer him that smote the anvil"
He said:
You have seen in factories piece OF
mechanism passing from hand to hand and
from room to room, and one mechanic Will
smite II, and another will flatten lt,and another
Will chisel 1t, and another Will polish IT, unui
the work be done. And 80 the prophet de-
scribes the idols of 0lden times as being made,
part of them by one hand, part ofthem by an
other hand. Carpentry comes IN, gOld-beat-
ing comes in, smiLhery comes Inland three
or four styles OF mechanism are employed,
80 the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith,
and he that smootheth with the hammer him
that 5mote the anvi.U When they met they
talked over their work and they helped each
other on with IL. 1t was very. bad kind OF
business; it was making idols which were an
insult to the Lord OF Heaven. have thought
If men in bad work can encourage each other,
Ought not men engaged In honest artlsauship
anu in honest mechanism speak words OF good
cheer?
The Bible comes down to the minutiae of
everything. 1t tells us how many dollars
Solomon paid for his horses. 1t tells us in
aa.rWw
have on our mousse. IL applauds the industry
aud generosity Of the lsraeltish spnsters. 1t
gives us specimens of Old time needlework,
leather making, tanning establishment, pot
terry, brick kiln, city water works, ship build
ing.
Men see in tnelr own work hardships and
trials, while they recognize no hardshlps or
trials In anybody ese's occupation Every
mans burden is the heaviest, and every
wOman's task is the hardest. We find people
wanting to get into other occupations and
professions. | hear men in all kinds OF toll
wishing they were enabled TO do something
else, say ing to me: II have mistook my path
in life; | ought to have been mechanic and
am merchant" or, II ought to have been a
merchant and l am a mechanic. 1 ought to
have been lawyer and am an artist; If
had undertaken some other path N life
would have had an easier time AMI would
have had grander successes" l supp lse
when the merchant comes home at night, his
brain hot with the an nXletie5 OF commercial
toll, disappointed and veXed, agitated about
the eXcitements in the money markets, he
says: 20, l wish were mechanic! When
his davis work is done, the mechanic lies
down; he is healthy in body, healthy in mind,
and healthy in soul, bat ean't sleep;" while,
at that very moment, the mechanic is wishing
he were a banker or "a merchant He says:
"Then / could always have on beautiful ap-
parel; then could move in the choicest cir
cles; hen | could bring up my children in q
very different sphere from that in which am
compelled to bring them up"
Now. the beauty of our holy religion ls that
God looks down upon all the occupations and
professions, and while / cannot understand
your annoyanees ana you cannot understand
mine, God understands them ALL He knows
all about the troubles of these men mentioned
in my teXt-the carpenter VINO encouraged
the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the
hammer, and the gold-beaters.
/ will speak this morning Of the general
hardships OF the working classes. You may
not belong to this class, but you are bound. as
Christian men and women. to know their sOr-
rows and sympathlze with them, and, as po-
litical economists, to come to their rescue
There Is great danger that the prosperous
classes, because of the bad things that have
been said by the false friends OF labor, shall
conclude that all this labor trouble is "hul-
labalOO" about nothing. Do not go OF on tn at
tangent. You would not, neither would /,
submit without protest TO the expressions to
which many of our laborers are subjected.
You do a great wrong to the laboring
classes IL you hold them responsible for the
work of the scOuDdrelly anarchists. You can
not hate their deeds more thoroughly than do
all the industrial classes. At the head Of the
chief organ Of the knights of Labor, in big
letters, | find the following vigorous dis
sLet it be understood BY all the world that
the Knights of Labor have no aniliation.
sSs bsnd eowardy rGSPeS d9r
cut-throats and robbers, known as
anarchists who sneak through the country
like midnight assassins, stirring up the pas
81.
flag of anarchy and causing riot aud blood =
shed. Parsons, spies, Fielding. Most, and
all their followers. sympathizers, aiderB ana
abettors should lie summarily dealt with
They are entitled TO no more consideration
than wild beasts. The leaders are towards
and their followers are fools.'
You may do your duty towards your en-
ployes. but many DO not, and the biggest busi-
ness firm in America to-day is Grip, GOuge,
Grind and Company.
Look, for instance. at the woos Of the WON =
anly tOilers, who have not made any strike,
and who are dying by the thousands, aud dy-
ing by inches,
read a few lines from the last Labor Re
port, just out, as specimens of what female
employees endure: "POisO ned hands and can
not work. Had to sue the man for 80 cents. -
Another: "About iour months Of the year
can. by hard work, earn little more than
SO per week." Another: "She now makes
wrappers at 81 per dozen; can make eight
wrappers per day" Another: "We girls in
our establishment. have the following fines
imposed: for washing your hands. % cents (;
eating piece Of bread az your loom, 81 ; also
for sitting on n stool, taking drink OF
water. and many tfining things too numer-
Gus 10 MENTION" some OF the worst villains
OF our cities are the employers of these
women. They beat them down 10 the last
penny and try TO cheat them out OF that The
woman must deposit . dollar or two before
she gets the garments 10 work on. When the
work - done IL Is sharply inspected, the most
insignificant haw Is picked out, and the
wages refused, and sometimes the dollar de
posted not given back" The wOmen's Pro-
tective Union reports a case where one OF the
poor souls, finding place where she could get
more wages, resolved 10 change employers
and went " get her pay for work done. The
employer says: Il hear you are going to
leave me2" Yes" she said. land / nave
come % get what YOU owe me-" lie made no
answer. She said: "Are you not going to
pay mer "le.," he said, "l will pay you, I"
and he Kicked her dowo stairs.
never swOre "a word ia al my life, but
confess that when / read that felt a stirring
within me that wnB not ~ all devotional.
BY what principle of Justice is 10 that
women in many Of our cities get only two
thirds as much Hs men, and ia many cases
only halii Hero i the gigantic icjusuce-
that for work equally well. if not better done.
woman receives far less compensation than
man. start with the nutiOnal government.
Women clerks IN Washington get $500 for do
ing tnat for which men receive 3l.S01. The
wheel uf oppression is rolling over the necks
OF thousands OF women who are ~ this
moment Ia despair about what they are 70 do.
Many Of the largest mercantile establish-
menta OF Our cities are accessory 20 these
abOninatiOna, aud from their large establish
mcnts there ARE scores of souls being pitched
on into death, and tholr employers know t.
rs there GpdY Will there DO q iudgmuntY
! tell you, n God rises Up % redress woman's
WruuFa. many OF our large oetuhi Cd monta