St. Paul daily globe., 1888-08-20

e M. w L ON. This is the
confident remark of a Well-meaning
skilled laborer.
His remark is entitled to some ana
lytical inquiry. Suppose we inquire of
him as to the faith that is in hinl-how
much the war tariff has profited him in
the past score of years?
for my labor" Such is his prompt reply.
Actual or comparative?"
Il do not,fully understand your ques-
tion"
"Then let me put it in another form.
You are in the employ of Grab, Get,
Hold & Co.?''
'Yes."
'Hew long have you been employed
by them?"
Il began in 1S7O-that is eighteen years
ago."
And you have received good wages
ever since?"
Yes, as rule, when l was en-
ployed."
Then your employment has not been
continuous?'
''Oh, no; you see we
WE'RE OUT
on strikes eleven times during the
eighteen years"
Out on strike under protective tar
iff! Is that possible?"
''YeS, Sir.''
'How much time did you lose by these
eleven strikes?''
THAT is hard to tell exactly; but the
shortest strike was for two months and
one lasted for eight, and it was really
year before some of the men got back;
for that time, you see, the firm inn
ported number of labOrerS from
N 20
work them out. | should say that dur
ing the eighteen years we have been
idle on account of strikes and lock-outs
almost five years"
What made Grab, Get, Hold & Co.
strike?"
"They didn't. 1t was their employees"
why did you strike against good
wages?"
I'VE didn't; we struck against reduc-
tionS, and often outrageous reductions"
There is some mistake about that,
isn't there?''
mo, indeed. What makes you think
so?''
Because there has been no bad wages
paid i'll the protected industries for
twenty years at least. 1t has been a
period of high protection, and there
could be no such thing as low wages"
'That is simply nonsense. 1t has been
a struggle, and hard struggle, right
along. Employers have seized upon
every opportunity to reduce employees
to the lowest possible point. Why,
they imported ship loads of foreign
pauper labor to help do it,"
THAT certainly can't be true, good
artisan. You must be mistaken"
How mistaken? Why do you say that
[ am Mistaken"
Drin llXr Af
statement. You started out by saving
that the tariff protected labor and Sc
cured it the highest possible remunera-
ton. Now you say that about one-fifth
of your time was spent in idlenesS
fighting
AGAINST STARVATION
wages. And yet during these eighteen
years the highest tariff of modern times
has prevailed in this country. If the
tariff bettered your wages, why did you
strike at all? What necessity was there
for it?''
''Well, can tell you. We either had
to strike or work for next to nothing"
SIS that true?''
''It is.''
''And this in the face of the fact that
the tariff tax for the benefit of the
manufacturer nearly doubled the cost of
the commoneSt necessities of life?
Comparatively. then, what did you make
by means of the tariff?''
What would we have done had there
been no tariff?''
''You couldn't have done much more
than strike against starvation, could
you? Suppose we pursue this matter of
comparison further. When did Grab,
Get Hold Il Co. go into business?"
In 1870"
"You were employed by them in the
beginning, then?'
l was.
"In what capacity?''
GAS principal foreman"
''Do you know how much the firm put
into the business in the beginnng?''
''Each member advanced $4,000 in
cash and $4,000 in nOtes-S9O,O cash
aud the same in notes, secured by their
friends"
''Then there was actually $4,000 in
cash put in at the beginning?"
"Yes."
''But the plant has been greatly en-
larged since then?'
II should say so. The firm has five
immense mills, representing million