, 1886-06-06
THE LABOR QUESTION.
REV. T. DE WITT TALMAGE AT
THE BROOKLYN TABERNACLE.

Men do not See tho Trials and Hard
ships of others-The Laborcr Not Re
sponsible for tho Acts of the Anar-
chists-The Woes of Women.
BROOKLYN, May SN-Rrv. T. De Witt
Taimage. d. D., preached to-day in the
Brooklyn Tabernacle. the third of his series
OF sermons on The Labor Question en-
titled The Genuine Hardships OF the
Working Glasses The Brooklyn Tabernacle,
which is the most spacious Protestant church
in America, largely overflows at ordinary
times; but during the present series of
serm s the multitudes who cannot get In
side the building are vastly more numerous
DR.. Talmages text is found in Isaiah, XII.
Z; 80 the carpenter encouraged the gold
smith, and he that smootheth with the
hammer him that smote the anvil" He
said:
You have seen in factories a piece of
mechanism passing from hand to hand and
from room to room, and one mechanic will
smite it, and another will hatten 1t, and an
other Will chisel it, and another will polish
1t until the work be done. And so the
prophet describes the idols of olden times as
being made, part OF them by one hand, part
OF them by another hand. Carpentry comes
in, gold beating comes in, mithery comes In
and three or four styles OF mechanism are
employed. 80 tho carpenter encouraged
the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with
the hammer him that smote the anvil"
When they met they talked over their work
eand they helped each other on with it. 1t
Was n very bnd kind OF business; 1t was
making idols which were an insult to the
Lord of heaven. | have thought II men in
bad work can encourage each other, ought
not men engaged in honest artisanship and
in honest mechanism speak words of good
cheeri
The Bible comes down-to the minutim of
everything. 1t tells us how many dollars
Solomon paid for his horses. 1t tells us in
Deuteronomy what kind of a roof we ought
to hive on our house. 1t applauds the indus
try and generosity Of the lsraelitish spin
sters, 1t gives us specimens OF old-time
needle work. leather making, tanning estab-
lishment, pottery. brick kiln, city water
works, ship building.
Men see in their own work hardships and
trials, while they recognize no hardships or
trials in anybody else's occupation. Every
mans burden is the heaviest, every woman's
task is the hardest We find people want
ing 10 get into other occupations and profess
sions. | hear men in all kinds OF toll wish
ing they were enabled to do something else.
sayin. 10 me: Il have mistook my path in
life; / ought to have been n mechanic and |
am n merchant or, 81 ought to have been
a merchant and | am Il mechanic. ought
TO have been a lawyer and / am an artist; il
i had undertaken some other path in life |
would have had an easier time and l wou d
have had grnnder SUCCESSES" / suppose
when the merchant comes home at night.
his brain hot with the anxieties OF CONNER
cial toll, disappointed and vexcd, agitatel
about the excitements In the money markets,
Ia 49, ~. 4. -.
when his days work is done, the mechanic
lies down, he is healthy in BODY. la, IN
mind, and healthy IN soul, but l can't Sleep"
while. p. Lat very moment. the mechanic is
wishing he were II banker or a merchant
He suys: Then | could always have on
beautiful apparel; then | could move in the
choicest circles; then | could bring up my
children in n very different sphere from
that in which | am compelled to bring
them up"
Now, the beauty Of our holy religion is
that God looks down upon all the occupa-
tons and professions, and while | cannot
understand your annoy ances and you can
not understand mine, God understands them
all. He knows all about the troubles of
these men mentioned in my text-ihe car
pcnter who encouraged the goldsmith and
he that smoothoth with the hammer and
the goldleaters
l will speak this morning of the general
hardships OF the working classes. You may
not be ong 10 this class, but you are bound
as Christian men and women to know their
sorrows and sympathize with them; and as
Political 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 frienis of labor.
shall conclude that all this labor trouble is
u hullnbaloo about nothing. Do not go
oil on that tangent. You would not, neither
would ! submit without protest 10 the op-
pressions to which many OF our laborers are
subjected.
You do n great wrong TO the laboring
classes II you hold them responsible for the
work OF the scoundrelly Anarchists You
cannot hate their deeds more thoroughly
than do all the industrial classes AT the
head OF the chief organ OF the Knights OF
Labo-, in big letters, / find the following
vigorous disclaimer:
Let II In understood by all the world that
the Knights Of Labor have no utilization. as
socintion, sympathy or respect for the band
OF cownrdly murderers, cut-throats and rob
hers. known ms Anarchists, who sneak
through the country like midnight assassins.
stirring up the passions OF ignorant foreign
ers, unfurling the red flag OF anarchy and
causing riot and ~bloodshed. Parsons. Spies
tAtAbAHht III MI tutlT lOllONfrN. SYM
pathizcrs, aiders and abettors should be sum
marily 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-
ploy s, but many do not, and the biggest
business firm In America to-day Is Grin
Gouge, Gr.nl & Co.
Look, for instance, at tho woes OF the wo-
manly %toilcrs, who have not made any
strike, and who are dying by the thou sands,
and dying by inches.
read n few lines from the last labor re-
port, just out. rs specimens OF what female
employees endure. Poisoned hands and
esnnot WORK. Had to sue the man for
fifty cetts' Another: About four months
OF the year can by hard work earn n litte
more than three dollars per week Another:
she now makes wrappers at one dollar pc
d z'n; can make eight wrappers per day"
Another; We girls in our establishment
nave the following fines imposed: For wash.
ing your hands, twenty-five cents; eating n
piece OF bread at your loom, ono dollar; also,
for sitting on n stool, taking a drink OF
water and many trihing things too numer-
Gus to mention" Some OF the worst villain,
OF our cities are the employers Of these wo-
men They beat them down to tho last
penny, and try to cheat them out OF that
IN, woman must deposit a dollar or two
before she : t. tho garments To work on
When the work Is lone II is sharply inspect.
ed, the most Insignificant flaw is picked out
and the wages refused. and sometimes the
dollar deposited not given back. The wo-
meas Protective union reports a case where
enc Of the poor souls, finding n place where
she could get more wages, resolved TO change
employers, and went to get her pay for work
done. The on p'oyer says: ~ hear You are
going 10 lanN. mas s.y.. - . -.