Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-02-27
THE EIGHT-HOUR Law.
A Hearing Today Before . Congressional
Committee.

THE EIGHT-HOUR LAW.
A Hearing Today Before Congressional
Committee.
ALLEGED VIOLATIONS OF THE STATUTES IN Gov
IRNMENT WORK SHOPS AND BuREAus-rHE
CASE OF THE GOVERNMENT PAINTING oFFIoE
AND ST. KLIzAsRrH's HOSPITAL.
The House committee on labor met this
morning and gave hearing to Messrs. e. W.
Oyster and ]. L. Kennedy, representatives OF
the federation Of labor, on the matter OF the
eight-hour law. The members present we're
Messrs. Wade (chsirman), Farquhar, Osborn,
Gest, Bliss and Gambler.
MR. OYSTERS ADDRESS.
Mr.. Oyster was the first to address the COM
n1ittee. He said that the question beginning
to trouble the American people today was the
one which had bothered all Europe
for a long time past-what shall be
done with the great number, the vast
army Of unemployed? There were now
1,OO0.0O0 unemployed in this country and the
remedy for this condition was largely to be
effected by shortening Of the hours Of labor.
When the war Of the rebellion closed the men
who had assisted in the salvation of the Union
returned to their homes to find their
~ho stayed at home or by the enormous num-
Der Of foreigners who came here during the
great struggle. Congress then enacted what is
known as
THE EIdHT-HoUR LAW.
and with that came a small measure of relief.
That law had been fagrantly and almost con-
tinuously violated by government officials.
Letter carriers in this city we're actually and
absolutely tied down to eleven hours and over
a inht y,nf no ha
street more than eight hours, but they were
unable to get away from the Office under eleven
hours. AS to the government insane asylum
Mt st. Elizabeth's, he said, the law
was violated continuously. In the gov
eminent printing Office the law was never
enforced. Men and women worked ten, twelve
or fourteen hours a day, just the public
printer demanded OF them. The bill said that
eight hours shall constitute days work and
there could be no excuse for working employees
for any greater length of time. 1t was much
better to give employment to 500 people
at "a per day than TO give the situations to six
hundred people at SC per day. The law con-
templated the giving of work to the largest
possible number Of persons. The only time
when the law was adhered 10 was when Column
bia typographical union forbade its men,
bers to labor more than the specified
eight hours. Mr.. Oyster held that no
public printer or other government official
had any right to place on the shoulders of
OF law by giving them permission to labor be-
yond the legal period, and the fact that they
were compensated for overtime was no excuse
Tor the breach OF law.
Mr.. KENNEDY's ADDRESS.
Mr.. Kennedy followed and said: The eight
hour work-day movement is not of recent ori-
gin. Prof Thorold Rogers in his Work and
Wages" says he has indirect evidence that the
Roman workmen sixteen centuries ago worked
on the short-hour system. This will not be
surprising to any one who has, through the
medium of Mr.. C. Osborne Wards Ancient
Lowry" been made familiar with the thorough
and vast organization of the ancient Roman and
Greek workingmen the facts in regard to which
are suppressed in ordinary history. Prof.
Rogers also says that the hours Of labor for me-
chanics in England during the fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries are now known by recent
researches among British archives quarter ses-
slons reports, DC, to have been eight hours per
day, and 1t was by an act of Elizabeth that the
eight-hour work day was abolished and the
twelve-hour work day instituted. So, while we
reflect that this question is now coming to the
front in the industrial world to the overshadow-
ing and exclusion almost of every other ques-
ton, we are also forcibly reminded Of the
truism OF the 'wisest man the world saw
there is no new thing under the SUM-"
THE NATURAL DIVISION OF TIME.
Eight hours for work, eight hours for sleep
and eight hours for pleasure or the pursuit OF
knowledge is the natural division of time and
it will be established in the daily life of this
nation just so certain as any principle that
has ever had the grand forces Of justice, hui
mainly and fraternity behind it was ever estab-
hshed. The rapid growth and general use of
iabor-saving machinery emphasizes the ne
cessity for shorter hours of labor. Shorter
hours will, we firmly believe, have the effect
to wonderfully diminish poverty and misery
by giving to the unemployed work and giving to
those who now spend all their time in
toll and sleep glimpses OF the pleasures OF life
and the beauties Of nature. There are many
obstacles in the way of the coming of the eight
hour work day. In nearly every pursuit Of
life there are three parties at interest in this
matter-the employer, the employe and the
patron-and until all parties at interest are
agreed that eight hours is a correct principle
and they will all live up to it it will
not be universally and satisfactorily estab-
lished. 1t is the mi Ssion of organized labor
to agitate the question and educate the
masses that they will ultimately have an abid-
ing faith in the eight-hour principle. When
We have done this it will be established beyond
peradventure. Men of lesters-clergymen,
professors, students-have joined with us in this
movement, and it has acquired great momen-
tum.
One of the most serious obstacles in the
way OF this movement is our national govern
ment. You place upon our statute books an
eight-hour law 80 plain, so simple that a child
might interpret it its authors intended il
should be interpreted, and yet executive off,
GERS of the government fagrantly
VIOLATE THE LAW
by compelling men to work more than eight
hours without even giving them extra compen-
sation. Then there is the milder form of vio-
Iation-compelling men to work more than
eight hours with pay for over time. Officers
of the government who violate the law in this
manner construe that law in this way: Eight
hours is days work; that is, eight hours is
the unit of a days work, with pay for extra
hours; and no officer of the government has
ever declared that construction unlawful. We
believe that Congress should by law declare such
constructions unlawful, and we think you
ought TO prescribe penalties for violations of
that law. You ought to do more than this.
You should furnish to every officer OF the gov
eminent whose province it is to employ labor
OF any kind such facilities as will enable him to
comply with this law without blocking the
wheels Of government. Take the case Of the
government printing Office, for instance. On
the one hand the public printer is confronted
with the eight-hour law. On the other hand,
when he assumes the duties Of that office he is
sworn to his responsibility there and to
faithfully and promptly execute the
work of the government. He is also heavily
bonded for the faithful performance of that
work. His facilities, his means for doing that
work, SO limited SO cramped, that it is
impracticable for him to promptly aud faith
fully execute your work and at the same time
4 a. .l~x