Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-08-01

Els OPPONENT y AST SEsTrcT.
Aboat zoo people iistensd with attention last
night to the joint debate between Messrs- ".
A. CTofas END T. ". Oyster on the general
| subject Of the labor problem bat with especial
bearing on the matter Of the competitive sys-
tenn Of labor. The debate took place in Grand
| Army Hall under the auspices of the Fedora
ton of Labor Unions. and with 1lr. Paul T..
| Bowen in the chair presiding genius. The
! speakers started in at O'Clock and, taking
turns at the business. talked until 10 o'clock,
and II is probable that they we're just an FAR
apart when they left of as when they began.
| Indeed. there seemed to be o total lack of
| harmony between them both as to views and
as to points Of view. They came together ON q
pro-and-con argument but once or twice
| in the course Of the evening, and then
only minor branches Of the main
/ topic. Mr.. Croifut. who opened the de-
bate spoke of the danger OF this, and called
! attention to the difficulty of conducting such .
debate. owing to the lack of a common point
OF view. He realized, lie said. that this Ques-
tiCn Of the state of labor Is the most important
of the age. and if Ire did rot believe that it
was being solved by the. circumstances Of the
times ne would not be there to argue. He did
not think that all things are rushing to ruin, as
some would have the world believe. In his es-
, tmat.on the condition Of the laboring man has
been bettered as time has gone on: there are
more wages, mere comforts, more conven-
fences ard more advantages. He then read q
| long series of propositions that he advanced as
his points OF argument. which. he said, were
based on facts and figures. and these, he as
serted, underlie ali civilization and all that
nan has TO live for. There were fifteen of these
propositions, and they went to demon
strete, ia far mere assertions could
&c moRssrate. the advantages which the COM
pstItve system OF labor has over any other.
MR. OYSTER Taxes HIS TURN.
The reading OF this hiss occupied all Of Mr..
CrOfiut's first slice Of time and Mr.. Oyster then
opened. He said that he was quite familiar
with those fifteen propositions, for they we're
the same as those that he has advanced On
other occasions With some of them he agreed.
but be did disagree with these that would tend
10 assert that labor has been Bothered by any
other than its own organized efforts. That was
his platform, and the burden OF his remarks
throughout was that every improve ment among
the labOriaS classes has been brought about ny
tn Ilselves in their organizations, and against
the opposition OF employers and the wealthy
classes Good effects. he said. might come
from "a true competitive system If such existed.
but there Is mono extaEt to-day. He went on TO
quote 1t length from various authors
Of note TO prove his theory that the
labOriIg classes have improved themselves,
showing the condition of affairs among these
people in England at various periods in her in
dustrlal history, AMI affording a comparative
view OF the state CT things among them after
the labor organizations had been recognized by
the law In this country. Mr.. Oyster went on
To say. IN telling OF what organization has done
for labor, these bodies have now begun to es-
tablish funds for the henefit Of sick and super
animated labOrers, and thus they have started
IN on line that has been most successfully
followed in England for some time. Continu-
ing, he said that the workmen have learned
that the ballot Is weapon that can be used
either for or against themselves and their own
interests. and they also learning the i'm
Portant TACT that 1t can be used to better adj
vantage for than against.
SCORING MR. INGALLS,.
Mr.. Oyster could not refrain from mention
ing the Glen Echo speech Of Mr.. Ingalls, and
he read a portion Of that document amid the
sound OF kissing from the audience who did
not seem to cherish the memory Of the states
man from Kansas and who appeared to be
largely of Mr.. Oysters own way of thinking.
The speaker brought down the house, SO to
speak, when he referred to that phrase about
the Labor reformer who earned his Living by
the working of his jaw instead of the sweat Of
his brow" and alluded to Mr.. Ingalls, as one Of
the most chr onic jaw workers in the land.
Going on to Mr. Croffut's propositions, he
asserted that the labor people demand not an
equal but fair and just distribution Of the
profits o. their labor. and to his mind, he said
that meant pretty near the whole of it. At this
the floor trembled with the applause of the an
dience. He summarized his position by the
statements that disorganized labor means long
hours and short pay, while organized labor sig
mines short hour and long pays
Mr. CRoFFUr ON COMPETITIVE LABOR
Mr.. Croffut in his second speech replied to
the various points made by Mr.. Oyster, and he
got down TO the meat of the discussion VIXEN
ne stated it as his opinion that the connective
plan is the best thing that exists. .'Show me
any other and better way that can be carried
out. he said, ''snd L shall not say word" He
spoke OF the difference in the conditions Of
labor OF today and three centuries ago to show
that the lGboring man of now has not only
more wages but greater comforts and facili-
ties. He referred 10 his old friend, the dia-
gram OF zigzag lines. which. he said, has gone
through many a wordy battle with him. This,
he claimed, showed a net increase in the pur-
chasing power OF dollar from 81 in 1850 to
sl.I5 IN 1890; net increase on the individual
earnings of factory laborers from S24S a
year In 1850 to 500 in 1880. and q vast increase
IN the total wages from $500, 600, 900 in 1850
to 81 800, OOO, 900 In 80. There are fewer fac
tories today. he said, than there were in 1870,
owing to the consolidation of establishments.
The hours OF iaDorare reduced from thirteen or
fourteen to ten or eleven, and the workingnan
gets more money and can buy more with what
he gets. Mr. Croffut disclaimed anv intention
Of TRYING TO prove that the workingman of to
day gets enough, but he did want to show that
the rich are not growing richer and the poor
poorer. In $500 there were more millionaires
III the city Of New York in proportion to the
population than there arc today. Meat is dearer
today than it used TO be, he said Because in
former days the workiagman could not afford
TO buy meat and there Is just enough in the
world and not enough to go around if all eat it.
Rents are higher because they are better.
THE AUDIENCE TAXES A HAND.
At this stage of the discussion the audience
showed ouch disposition TO treat Mr. Croffut
TO a cross-srs OF questions yelled from all parts
of the hall. that he had to stop and appeal to
the chairman for silence. When this vas se-
cured he went on to argue that there are fewer
crimlna ; in the population today than there
used to oe and fewer tramps. In other days
t-anps were more plenty, but they we're called
by other names. His grandmother called them
''shaeks' and his mother called them ..cod-
gers 1t was but a case OF evolution, There
Is better health now than there used to be. bet
ter san -tation. better food, houses and more
bath rooms. Ba:h rooms. Mr.. Croffut said like
insane asylums and savings banks. are modern
Institutions. The average life has been in
creased six years in this century
Mr. Crciut PLATFORM was definitely stated
in the following proposition: When man
wants 10 work and capitalist wants to mt
down money TO enable him To work shou!d NOT
the product OF the combination be DIVIDED in
the middle and distributed equally between
them? That is the condition Of affairs in the
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