Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1886-05-18
WORK AND REST.
Don't XIII the Tree That Shades i"u-it
May he Old fashioned, but There, Lots
of Shade In IL.

Don't XIII the Tree That Shades You II
May he Old fashioned, but There's Lots
| of Shade In II.
| The Rev. DIR. l.. A. Gotwald, pastor ol
the Second English Lutheran church, sends
us the following. We append the article
TO which he refers, at the end OF his com
municatiOn Editor of the GLOBE -RErUB-
Liz.
| SPRINGFIELD, o., May :, 1856.
! To the Editor of the Globe Republic:
DEAE SIR l send you enclosed copy "t
| an article which have cut from The chris
tan Press, of Cincinnati, and which Is So
full of excellent common sense and 81
clearly in the line of the best interests of
| the wOrkingman both morally and physl-
Cally, that | thought you would be- glad 10
publish il. 1t bears upon subject which
many OF our wOrkingmem have never prop
erly considered, and with regard 10 which
their rights are often shamefully and wick
edIy violated sometimes voluntarily by
themselves, but oftener by the arbitrary
will of their employers. taking advantage
of their necessities.
The article from the Press is as follows ::
Rest is word that sounds sweet 10 us
all. Rest is joined to work rs the shade is
To light. and no man thinks more Of his rest
than the man who tolls day by day with his
hands for living. You, my friend, are one
of that sort; You earn your days wages by
honest labor, and ne less you earn your
rest. When you have worked out your
day, and your mind is easy, and your body
is tired, then comes the kind of rest that Is
worth having-the kind that money can't
buy.
Now. you live in world where il Is
dark half the time. and that gives chance
Ia sleep, and so brings you up to the mark
for work next morning. But sleep is only
part of rest. A man wants to know he Is
resting, Ia feel his time is all his own, to do
with it as he likes. Ia sit down. lie down.
walk, talk, read, or do nothing, just as he
pleaSeS.
AT night, after your days work, your
body is master; you must eat. and pretty
soon you must sleep; then, in moment,
ZONES daylight and work again. What you
want is a day TO yourseIf-not night only,
but whole day-and. strange enough. that
is what you and great MANY other work
ingmen in this country have got now-one
whole day in every seven that is all your
own-yOu know mean Sunday.
What will you do with your Sunday? One
thing surely: don't work on it. To work
on Sunday is 10 lose it. But you don't mean
To work on Sunday. Yes. | know that. but
there are some who would like you to work.
if only they can gain by it. There are
plenty who would get seven days work
from you for the price of six. if they could.
But this talk vexeS you; no man can
make you work on Sunday. | hope not;
all am saying is that many would if they
could. 1t is for you TO look out that they
don't How will they 90 about it? Why.
It's as easy as lying; they will make believe
they wish 10 do You favor. Some one owns
a Steamb0at-he gets up an excursion for
wOrkingmen on Sunday; another man owns
a shOw-he'll try to have the wOrkingmen
come and see il on Sunday; Others have
shops, and gardens, and saloons they must
be open for the workingmen to buy on Sun
day. Much they care for the workingmen,
What they want is gain. Now. every
one of these things makes good many
men work on their Sunday; the StOkerS
and the deck-handS must work on the steam
boat, gangs of men must work about the
show, clerks and pOrters must work around
the stores. waters and helpers in the gar
dens and salOOns-they have got to do it or
lose their job. This thing goes on growing
work or lose your job; then You will say
you have right to rest on Sunday. You
want chance now and then TO look around
you, on the sky and water, the grass and
trees. and tO feel you are not a mere beast
of burden. This is ali true. but the work
men on the steamboat, and in the show, and
in the store, would say the same. If you
are willing they should be forced to work,
don't be surprised when your turn comes
In some of the old countries work goes
on pretty much on Sunday like any other
Lighthouses are built, roads and streets
are made and mended, stores are open:
whatever will pay 10 do is done. How
long before it will be so here, if the work
ingman slackenS his grip on the Sunday
that now belongs to him?
But you tell me these people are paid eX-
ira for Sunday work. Not bit of il, They
are paid like all other workmen-juSt
enough 10 get along with. A man ought
to have living for seven days out of the
word of six days. These men who work
on Sunday get living for seven days by
working seven; and, what is more.
they are knocking down the price of labor
just 80 much.
The employer says to himself, pay this
man so much week, and he works seven
days; that's so much day. Why should
pay this other man more than that for a
days work? The price for a days work
now is fixed upon the idea that the work
ingman must be paid while he is resting on
Sunday; but let a great many men stop
resting and begin to work OH Sunday. and
your Sunday will soon have 10 pay for its
own bread and butter.
Depend upon it my friend, every man you
see at his regular work on Sunday is doing
his best To pull down your wages, and you
ought to stop him if you can. In the old
countries the wOrkmen are finding out the
worth of Sunday rest, and they are tighten
ing their hold upon it. In Germany they
are asking Prince Bismarck 10 pass law to
protect them against being forced TO work
on Sunday, and in France they are begin
ming to unite TO demand the same thing.
Will you here in the United States let 20
what these folks are trying to get hold of?
hope not.
In England lately. when it was talked of
opening the amusement and picture CALLER
les on Sunday, the societies of the working
men mostly opposed it. They said they
did not want To work at seeing sights un
Sunday, they wanted to rest, and the
mlstruSted any change upon the old fash
iOned English day of rest.
In these days you wOrkingmen are com
ing to the front, and you are letting the
world know what you want. You want
shorter hours for work; you say eight
hours day are enough; you want half a
holiday on Saturday. 1t is
hard TO get these things from the
bosses, and harder yet TO keep them.
You have 10 watch all the time to see that
some one is not cutting under, that some
men are not persuaded 10 work all hour or
two longer for extra pay, for you know if
any workman works nine or ten hours he
helps to cut down your rate of wages for
eight hours work. Believe me, it is just
the same with the man who works seven
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