The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-06-02
A STRIKE FOR VOTES.

One of the most remarkable labor strikes
on record has just been brought to close
in Belgium by the victory of the strikers.
For several years strikes have been ire
Quent in that densely populated country,
and each one has been followed by some
concessions to the prOletariat. Laws for
the improvement of wOrkingmen's dwell
ing, for the application of sanitary rules to
quarters inhabited by operatives, for the eX-
tension to wOrkmen of The system Of life
insurance in force in Germany, and for
other kindred purposes have been enacted
by the Belgian Chambers; butnOne of these
ameliorations have given satisfaction 10 the
wOrkmen. 1t has been felt that they we've
merely palliativeS, and they did not touch
The main grievance of the men, which was
that employers eXacted too much work Tor
too little money Late last year a new
strike was begun with more far-reaching
aims.
On this occasion the strikers did not ask
for higher pay, or fewer hours of work,
much less did the unions propose to inter-
fere with employers in choosing their hands;
they simply asked for universal suffrage.
In Belgium the suffrage Is very restricted.
To vote for Senators or members of the
Chamber of Deputies a citizen must pay
taxes to the amount of 40 francs, say So, an
nuaily According to our ideas, this should
not debar very large class from the suf-
frage. But large proportion of the six
million people of Belgium are so poor that
they pay 10 taxes at all; thus, at the last
election, out of LIP, $50 adult m ales, only
131, 735 were found to be qualified voters.
These latter consisted of noDemen, capital
lists, manufacturers and merchants They
made tie laws for the whole six million
people. WoTkmen, chatting under their
wrongs and the hardShips of their condition,
came TO the conclusion that they might be
redresSed by a wider distribution Of politi-
cal power. and they struck for a reform in
the Constitution in the direction of uniyer-
sal suffrage The demand was secuted by
the qualified electors. but the King. who is
one Of the most Sagacious rulers in Europe,
plainly told them that he would not be re-
sponsble for the safety of their property or
their lives unless they conceded the de-
mands Of the work men. which, in his
opinion, were perfectly reasonable. On this
they surrendered without further parley,
and the workmen are to carry their point in
a new Constitution.
To the American mind it seems common
and that no citizen should be shut out from
sen-goyerment by reason OF his poverty.
But what connection there is between uni
yersal suffrage and the rate of wages is not
so easily dIScerned. Where the supply of
wOrkmen Is in excess Of the demand for
labor il is not easy to divine how the pos
session of political rights can prevent
decline in wages. Belgium is a small
NOT Iarua MARYLAND nd
contains as many people as there are in
New IoTk-mUre than three times as many
as there are on the whole Pacific slope of
the United States. OF course under such
circumstances there must be some crowd
ing, and unless the plethora is relieved by
emigration there must be prrSonS poorly
fed. AS a matter of fact the emigration
from Belgium is nearly balanced by the inn
migration from France. Germany and Hol-
land, and the increase from births is about
one per cent annually.
In some respects Belgium is the most
backward country in Europe. Power has
got into the wrong hands, and it seems hard
to get it out Of them. The King is a man of
enlightenment, but his authority is slender.
1t is possible that an extension Of the suit
frage may lead to transfer Of power from
those who now hold it to wiser minds, and
that new plans may be devised for Cooper
alive industry which may ameliorate the
condition of the Belgian workman. But the
prospect is not bright. The march of dis
coyery and invention during the past
fifteen years has enabled one man to do the
work which formerly gave employment to
two, and in countries where the number Of
workers remains The same the combined
earning Of all of them is not much over one
half Of what it was The evil Will doubtless
remedy Itself in time. New employments
Tor labor will perhaps be discovered. There
are still many srarsely settled countries
where labor still commands food and raj
ment without extraordinary eXertiOn. Per
haps. when the masses gain power in Bel
GUM they viii bethink themselves Of the re-
lief which wholesale migration may afford.