The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-06-16
pocket. They are crossing

| laborer. and this day wave flag OF truce be-
tween them: There is going to be vast inn
| provement In affairs when we shall realize
that the old tent maker was right when he
said: The eye cannot say to the hand have
no need Of thee"
There is also going to come great allevia-
tion on this subject by cooperative institu-
tionS. am not referring now to labor or
| ganizations, I am not referring to trades
unions. but to that plan by which laborers
enterprise and conduct it themselves.
1t has passed beyond experiment.
| DO not say it is experiment. In England
| and Wales there are now 7G5 cooperative in
stitutions, with 300, 900 members, with cap
ital of ST., 900, 00O, doing business one year
of S57, 100000. The first experiment in this
country was the Troy Cooperative Foundry
| which had large success and went on long
| enough to demonstrate possibilities. But
there are scores and hundreds of these coop
erative institutions, and they are going to do
vast improvement They have ceased
to be an experiment or
mere theory. Thomas Hughes, the most
brilliant friend of the laboring men in Eng
land, says the cooperative institution is the
John Stuart Mill gave half their lives to the
discussion Of those subjects. Sir Thomas
Brassey said in the English Parliament CO.
operation is the one and only solution Of this
question. 1t is the sole path by which the
lahoring classes as q whole, or any large
number Of them, will ever emerge from the
hand-to-mouth mode of living and get their
share of the rewards and honors Of our ad-
vanced civilization. The principle was
illustrated in Ireland, where traveller left the
mail coach and saw workman standing up
to his waist in the water repairing dam, q
mill dam. He said to this workman: "Why,
you seem to be bealone-nobody to watch you"
The workman replied: II am all alone,
watch myself" Where is your steward"
masters" We have no master" "Nhy,
who sent you?" ''The committee" "Whose
committed" "Well, I belong to an
association and we elect certain
members as committee and they
regulate this whole thing We belong to the
new system of labor, the new system of as
sociation, the cooperative method" But
not been failurel Oh, yes; all great move
ments have been failure at the start. The
application of steam power failure, electric
te.egraphing failure, railroading failure
at first; but afte.ward the chief success OF
the century. Co-operativei institutions will
60 on to larger success. You say-some one
says to me: "Why it is absurd to talk about
laborers who cannot get enough wages
to support themselves and their families,
putting their surplus into an institution Of
this kind" My reply is, that if you will put
into my hand the money which during the
last five years has by the laboring classes OF
America been spent for rum and tobacco,
will establish cooperative institution might
ier than any monetary institution in Amerlca.
There will also be alleviation Of this whole
subject when employers find the Importance
of telling their employees just how matters
stand. You know as well as do
that here is the difficulty in great
many stablishments-whilet the laborers are
at their wits ends the capitalist is also. How
he shall pay the rent, how he shall meet the
taxe:, and how he shall keep the machinery
going Meanwhile the laborer thinks this
man is rolling up large fortune 1t cannot
of the capitalists of to-day are not making
out of their investment 10 per cent. nor per
cent, nor per cent, nor Tper cent, nor
per cent. nor per cent, nor s per cent.
labc it's wits ends because of small wages
CAPITAL at it's wits ends. l know there are eS-
ceptions. There are great anacondos that are
swallowing down everything. am not re-
mass Of capitalists. Now do you not think it
would alleviate this matter if the capitalist
should say: I'll explain this whole matter
to nv men, There is all immense amount OF
common sense abroad in the world. There
is an immense amount Of good, kindly feel
ing I do not believe there would be one
strike, where there are ten strikes, If it were
the universal plan that capitalists should let
their laborers know just how matters sand.
I had friend who had thousand men IN
his employ. Some years ago when there
were strikes often said: How do you get
alongs' He said: Every we'll" 81 suppose
YOU had strikes?' '"Oh, no; i never have any"
sNever have any? What do you mean"
"Well," he said, II call my men together
every little while and say: 'Boys, let US see
how matters stand. Last year l made SO
much. Tais year you see we are making
less. I want to know what you think
to be and what ought to get on my invest
ment: for, hoys, you know have got every
thing in this thing aud I have got to keep it
going. Iwant you to tell me, looking over
the whole affair, what Your wages ought to
be- and what nv interest on the investment
ought to be. We are always unanimous, and
my men would die for me- But suppose
capitalist acts with superciiious or,
and drives up to his factory as though he
were the autocrat Of the universe, the
sun and the moon in his vest
pocket, chiefly anxious lest some greasy or
smirched hand should touch his French
broadcloth That man will find his awful
mistake In the vast majority Of cases be.
lieve there would be but little or no trouble
if the men who own immense establishments
fairly and frankly told their employees all
about it.
Then there is going to come great altera-
tion of this through the religious influence
which is to be brought upon the country
Why is it that in this country we have moth
ing less than penny, while in China they
have the money they call cash put on threads
and put around the neck, and this cash-n
takes ten, fifteen, twenty of them to make
penny? The only difference is that which Is
made by Christianity. Heathenism depreSse:
everything; keeps everything down. Chris
tianity enlarges everything; lifts people up
You 90 through community where intdelity
is abroad and controlling everything: wages
are down, and employers are hard on thell
laborers. Let the religion of Jesus Christ
the old fashioned religion-dominate COM
muuity. and you will find the employers
kind and the wages good, comparatively. The
religion of Jesus Christ is democratic re-
ligion. 1t teaches the employer that he il
brother to all the operators in his mill. born
of the same Heavenly Father, redeemed by
the same supernal Christ, to lie down in the
same dust. Not much chance to put on airs
IN the sepulchre, or at the Judgment. The
engineer in a New England factory gets
sleepy. He does not watch the steam gauge.
Then there il wild thunder Of explosion, in
which the owner of the mill is killed and
one Of the poor workmen in some part
OF the factory. The two slain men
come up toward the gate Of Heaven.
The owner of the mill knocks at the
gate. The celestial gatekeeper says: "Who IS
theree' He says: Il owned mill at Fall
Fiver: there has been a great explosion
there and lost my life; came up here and
I expect to enter heaven" what right
have YOU to enter heavenf' says the celestial
gatekeeper The other says: Il was great
man down there and employed 20O hands
Employed two hundred hands, did you!