Wichita eagle., 1888-03-07

Is trouble about wages, when the owner
ought to divide his increased profits with
the employees Turn it the other way.
Barrels go down, and the cost of living
goes down, and workmen are happy. Soon
the owner has a long face The money
may be coming out of his pocket. He tells
his men and they ought to be willing to
take less wages. But remembering that
he refused to give more when barrels were
high they refuse to take less"
ANY man has right to join
any society to better his condition but not
the right to interfere with any
individual who refuses to join. This plan
is today injuring the cause of the laboring
man. l know an instance OF this kind
A gentleman seventy years old was hav-
ing house built and the carpenters were
ready for putting up the doors The old
man bought the necessary irons one even
ing and left them TO be used next morn
ing. Near noon next day he went down to
his new house and the carpenters were
sitting around doing nothing, and he
much surprised asked them the trouble.
See that package" they said. lit has
been bought OF so and so, who has been
boycotied by our union. We can't work
for you unless you take the iron and buy
it at the store we tell you to-" They GER
tainly have not the right TO decide where
shall buy. am often told when get 10
this point that they have Well
its poor rule that don't work
both ways. Suppose everything had
been going along nicely with that old
mans residence. The work was being
done well and the old gentleman had come
down one morning and said, 81 see all
your tools have been bought of so and so.
Why did you buy of him." They all reply
that he keeps the best of tools, lowest
price and as result buy of that man. He
tells them that he won't allow man
using that kind of tools to work for him
and they are all told to skip. AT this time
when am talking to hundreds of work
ing men it is silent and no one ventures to
remark. Neither employer or employees
should assume to dictate concerning a
third party to the other Don't please
try to attend to other mems bust
ness. An orphan boy near Phila-
delphia goes to Pittsburg seeking
employment of nail manufacturer
who was the college chum of his father
The friend of the father takes in the or
phan boy and tells him to take charge Of
some nail machines and learn to be a
mailer. He is in the factory fourteen days
when the manufacturer is visited by a
committee from the nailers' union telling
him they will allow no one other than the
son of a mailer to learn to be a mailer. They
will certainly leave in body. close down
the factory unless the orphan boy is dis
charged Immediately. How can any man
defend such selfish proposition? The
nail cutter pedigree causes much of the
trouble in nail factories. An attempt to
dictate what work man shall do in life
Interfering with natural rights given us
by power higher than all human power
This eight hour plan is thrown in the
face of the legislators. People a few
years ago worked twenty hours and now it
is generally ten hours for a days work.
No legislation made the change but gen
eral custom. If further reduction is
made it viii be in the same way, not by
law or force. You could not legislate for
a man working for himself to quit at a
certain hour; neither can you for en-
ployes"
"Of all the anarchistic speeches l have
heard never heard one lament about his
wife working from twelve to sixteen hours
at home for his support. He holds pain
full silence on this question. This disturb
ing element of so-called teachers, foreign
ers. mostly. who know nothing of our gov
are always berating our institu-
tons. They try to make our laboring
men believe this is the meanest place on
earth; try TO make them think they are
living among robbers and nothing is too
violent for them to do
For more.harmony between capital and
labor l would suggest that employers be !
more willing to pay labor something near
what it is worth. Let the working man
be willing TO work for the amount he
earns with a fair percent to capital.