The Critic and record., 1891-04-08
MIR. PEFFER'S OPINIONS.
THE NEW KANSAS SENATOR TALKS
ABOUT IMMIGRATION.

lie Discusses the Subject Frauldy Ts
Thinks immigration Should he Regu
lated Mr. ". Oysters Views The
Audience q small One.
ono has to climb three long, narrow
flights Of stairway to reach Federation
Hall and then pass through dirty little
room and q narrow door.
About wohundrcd people, men, women
and children, white c0lorcd and black,
climbed those steps last night 10 listen TO
Senator PETER talk about Immigration.
The lights nickercd dimly through the
unwoshcd globes and the wind blew
through a broken pane in tie window
and stirred the long whiskers of the new
Senator from Kansas.
Mr. H. W. oyster spoke first and at
length lie said that the working people
Of the country should see TO it that
urr CONTRACT LABOR LAW.
enacted during the last Congress was
strictly enforced The labor organizations
in This citN would certainly do their duty
i'm regard 10 IL, and he was confident that
the organizations Of every section i'm the
land would do likewise. Mr. Oyster then
read a number OF statistics to prove that
whenever the American working man
had come in competition with foreign
workmen the result had been great re-
duction in wages.
The American mechanic knows exactly
what to expect then and he should take
steps To- prevent il. He will have to ac-
CCpt lust what the outsider is willing tO
work for or he will lose his employment
The speaker said that while he was not
exactly a protectionist lac thought 10
would be good idea to impose tariff
Of from S9OOto 5000 each on every foreign
laborer entering the country. Something
ought certainly be done.
But what are you going To do about
it?h was the pertinent question pat in
broken English by a black bearded man
in the audience
Senator PETER will doubtless answer
that question: said the speaker
Then the long.bcardcd six foot three
FNRMERs' ALLIANCE SENATOR
unwound himself and proceeded to an
Swcr the question to the best of his ability.
! lie did not speak at great length on aC-
count of a cold, but what he did say was
very much tu the point.
"The question Of restricting immjgra-
/ ton, said the speaker, "is one of the
| burning questions of the day, and of the
/ greatest practical interest to the working
| men of the country. We do not want 10
! restrict immigratiun--thut is the imm-
| grafton of men who come here 90 grow
/ up with the country, men who come 10
! build up and not to pull down and de-
! strOy. Tho men who landed at James
! town and Plymouth Rock were foreigners,
! and until the birth of Virginia Dare the
! first child born I'm the colonies, there was
/ really 10 true American
/ The speaker then outlined earnestly The
.t e.. 1
| the labOring classes of the country.
"Nuw, | av going to tell you of law
passed July /, 1861, that ! have never
heard referred tn by any speaker, never
saw IN any volume on Labor and never but
uuCe iu a newspaper, and then very
! briefly. H. was sgucd by Abraham Lin
colin How the hand of Honest Abe must
| have trcmblcd when he put pen to paper
TO write his signature
"The bill authorized oar people % 90
over to Europe and contrac. tu bring here
| thousands of human beings under iron
| bound contracts secured hH liens Ou Their
| homes and time for year, making them
| virtually slaves for that twelve months
"What is the cause of it all 1t come,
! and want TO impress on all of You this
| point, il comes from
TliE LOVE or NoNrN,
it is the money power, it is greed, it Is
| aNarice pure and simple.
Look for first causes in this fight, look
for the evils, and they are not hard to
find, and when you find them root them
out, root them out. Think of it, my
friends, and how few of you have any
ADEQUATE conception Of the terrible state
of affairs
Think of it? Thirty-soven thousand
rich families and l2,000,O00 poor famlie.
in America alone Get together, men
and women, God bless EN-, continued
the speaker. LET labor as a whole or
ganize and work. Call the party they
form by any name, the \ party, the j
party, or the tea party, any name but
Democratic or Republican
During the evening addresses were made
by Ralph beaumont and NJ, J.. Spohn.