Workmen's advocate., 1889-12-07
COMMUNICATIONS.
My Three Friends in the Glasshouse.

house, the other three and myself, and l try to give you a sketch of their ideas, MT. Editor
 My first friend is young man of the average run as young men run nowadays. He thinks q great deal about dressing nice, goes to church, balls and parties, plays base ball, l5 ball pool and euchre to perfection. When he runs short he goes to the uncle of the three balls. He votes the Democratic ticket because he can make ten dollars, besides the drinks. on election day. He gets drunk once in a while and is glad of it. He reads the Police Gazette and belongs to the Union because he must, but is growing con- tinually about the dues and imagines the officers are making fortune. The above isa pretty far outline of his conversation.
 My second friend is a man with large family. He is very economical and regular in his habits. His intention is to do what is right. He reads the Herdld has no time to go to church because he is patching shoes for his children Sunday mornings. He hopes to go to heaven for all that. He ought to because he is an honorable character and don't know of any sin he is guilty of. He is an officer of his union and is proud that his union is conservative. As long as he gets fair days wage for fair days work he is satisfied. He claims there fought to be" harmony between capital and labor and puts up gracefully with being out of work in slack time because the boss cannot help it. He votes the Republican ticket so the boss may profit by the tariff and indirectly give him share of it in the form of a doubtful chance to work. He thinks that workmen don't stick to- gether" and he won't have anything to do with other trades unions and their troubles "Why ain't they organized as well as we are? They are as a rule too ignO ant to accomplish anything. Let every one fight his own battles and mind his own business"
 My third friend is a man of education, skllful worker. If he was not, the boss would have bounced him long ago simply because the boss does not like him, He devotes all of his spare time to the study of books and papers contain ing arguments about the labor movement and attends labor meetings. l like to listen to him because, strange as it may appear, he makes me think and look at every thing about me in another light than used to do. Sometimes 1 cannot follow his line of argument and then he tells me to read books like Looking Backward" "The Cooperative Com monwealth and other works sold by the Labor News Go. He also made me subscribe to the WORKNEN's ADVOCATE. saw him reading a book with the title "Capital," Karl Marx, believe, is the author l read a chapter of it but saw that the education l received in my young days was not sufficient to under stand it. l hope, after 1 get through with other books on the same subject, that 1 will be enabled to understand the meaning of it, and then l am sure l can down anybody as far as argument is concerned.
 But l want to give you some of the ideas of my third friend. It seems to me he was born about a century too soon; but l admit that if his plan was carried out wOrkingmen and their families would indeed have heaven on earth. Here is one of our conversations:
 As you are so hard to suit tell me how you would spend the day if your idea was carried out.
 T would rise about seven o'clock, partaBe of a breakfast Ca better one than the boss enjoys now) either at home or at the public restaurant; then take a walk in one of the beautiful public parks to inhaIe the fresh air, then go to the Glasshouse of the United States to con- mence work at nine o'clock. The latter Is not like factory of to-day. Instead of the dirty, miserable, black place we work in now it is well lighted, we'll ventilated hail furnished with all the accommodations that modern science affords. A bathroom, dressing room, a library, a laboratory to make eXperi- ments in, etc; to be brief, the Glass house of the United States is arranged in the interest of the men who work in it, and not like the glasshouse of the boss of to day to save his expenses. My work IS not hard and not dangerous because the improved machinery owned by the Glassworker's does the work twice as good and in much less time than in our days only assist the machine. l work till twelve o'clock. Then, after wash in the marble furnished bathroom, eat a substantial dinner delivered from the Nations Restaurant. At one o'clock 1 resume, work which consists of setting the machinery in good working order and prepare work for the day following At two o'clock my work is done; take bath, dress in my new suit, jump on an electric car to ride to the grand meeting