Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1890-04-05
IN NEW HAVEN.
Prof. De Leon Addresses the Trades
Council on the Labor Question.


Council on the Labor Question.
In response to a special invitation Of
the New Haven Trades Council, Prof.
De Leon delivered an address in the
Atheneum last Friday evening. In the
audience were several students of Yale
College, but the noted professors of
that great seat of learning-Sumner and
Brewer, for instance, whose notions of
economy are a century or more behind
the age-were conspicuously absent.
Prof. De Leon said in substance:
Zone of the commonest ISLANDERS
against mankind in general and labor in
particular is that its instincts are both idle
and slothful. The labor exploiting clas
ses who make this assertion do not seem
to be aware that just the reverse is true.
The craving, passion for ~ork is feature
of man. The songs, the literature and
the art of all ages attest to this to such
an extent that it stands writ en-, he who
can take rest is stronger than he who
can take city. In view hereof, either
you here in New Haven are becoming
unnatural in that you are stirring for
rest instead of giving loose to the hui
man instinct for work, or something
else is out of gear that forces you out of
a common into an uncommon attitude.
The latter is indeed the case. Your un-
common position is not the only one in
the land. Look around and you will see
broad acres of land lying fallow from
which man is kept by force or by law
while on the other hand thousands of
human beings are huddled into noisome
tenement houses; you will find corn
dear in the east hle the Nebraska far.
mer is forced to burn it up for fuel, be-
cause our railroad kings won't transport
it; you will find able men thrown
out of employment, and women and
children drafted into the factories.
These and a thousand other contradic-
tlons you will see on all sides; and see
ing it you will perceive that the special
issue before you is but one OF the many
fold issues that agtate this and other
Labor or Social question"
The lecturer then explained in detail
the reasons why it was, not labor right
but its duty, to take stand by which he
shall have the opportunity of keeping
himself abreast of the civilization which
the great inventions of the age have
made possible. Without doing that,
labor would be guilty of aiding a return
TO barbarism.
The lecturer then switched off into
the broader question of the Labor Move
ment. He showed the sophistries with
which 1t "as being attempted TO enthral
the intellect of the people, and the ne
cessity of conquering all the Businesses
of capital in order to enjoy freedom. In
this nay he exposed The fallacy of the
alleged Liberty of Contract' which
Labor was now claimed to enjoy; he
elucidated the significance of the mil
lions OF unemployed in the country, and
explained the urgency there was to tro-
vide against the existence of such a
class. He pointed out the development
OF monopoly and the sage-system and
demonstrated that their abolition
through the naturalization of the land
and the instruments of production, aud
the establishment Of cooperative com
monweath had become an imperative
necessity TO the people of the country
and the only means OF their salvation.
Alter the lecture several very intelli-
gent questions were asked by the audi
ence, and gave the lecturer an oppor-
tunlty to elucidate his points more
fully.