The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-07-07
Carnegie and his worRmen.

The Homestead troubles and the
Carnegies have been the themes for
sometime past for tho Democratic
papers to dilate upon and in an at
tempt to make partisan capital
against protection they dlstort every
thing connected with them and mis-
represent the real facts in the case.
The troubles have assumed very
serious aspect no matter what the
cause, and they should be Immediately
stopped II not by civil power. by the
strong military arm of the State. Who
Is to blame In this matter is one OF the
things somewhat difficult to deter
mine. One thing, however, is very
sure, and that is, although the riot
may be called labor troubles, the trou-
BILE in this instance is not that brought
on by destitution and suffering, want
and hunger, as many riots are, but the
cause is a real disagreement between
capital and labor.
The Carnegies have made their mil
lions In wealth by their ingenuity,
their push, their vim and superior
management. That such immense
wealth should be the consequence OF
few years operations in iron making
or any other following is to be egret-
ted in one sense, but it is difficult to
see how such matters can be prevent.
cd. Such men will always forge ahead
and accumulate wealth and power.
Yet after all, the question is have the
Carnegies got their immense wealth
by Expressing the poor? Have they
really impoverished those in their en-
ployf Have they not paid labor as
well and better than others engaged
In the same business2 In this view
their great wealth ls rot to be taken
Into consideration.
Rather is 1t not benefit to those
whom they empi oy2 The greater the
wealth the more they increased their
business, and the more men were Civ.
en- employment, But we Hre not TAX
ing the side OF concentrated wealth,
though wealth is necessary to carry
on great undertakings. The sympa-
thy Of the masses is with labor and
against the Carnegies, though the lat
ter may have the right on their side
We are someNha in tho dark In re-
gard to the wages paid by the Carne.
gies, but one thing is certain, they
we're no starvation wages, and if W.
ore rightly informed, those who goi
the larger wages were the ones to lead
in the strike.
+ How much puddlers can meke day
at $3.50 and IS ton we do not know
but we are informed that as high al
e95 and $40 week is often made by
the head pudder.
The difficulty Mt the Carnegie work.
seems to be the sliding scale of wagei
agreed upon by the employers ant
employees. II we are rightly in
formed the time of contract of TIL
sliding scale in operation for SOM
years expired by the first of July. Tn
Carnegies were not satisfied with tn
scale, as circumstances had arisel
which made it disadvantageous Z
them. There had been improvement
in machinery and prices OF iron hat
fallen without any fall in tho wages c
tie puddlers.
The sliding scale it is said Away
slid up without limit when the prize
of iron went up, but when the prize
of iron came down, wages only cam
down to s25 ton limit. Sometime
iron was sold as low as SIS ton, bu
the sliding scale only came down [
the s25 limit. This was claimed
The Carnegles to be unjust but the.
stood it until the contract expired
and then they proposed making S23
ton the down slide limit, which propt
sition was rejected by the puddleI
and hence the strike. but there may
other causes for the trouble, OF whic
We know nothing.
OF course tho free-trade papers wi
try and make all out OF the troubl
they can for their party. Every da
they ring the changes of Carnegie al
protection and try to make it appe;
that the Mckinley tariff is the eHus
aussiai.Iases' try to show that protection do
not protect after all, only the man
facturer Intelligent labor will not
deceived by such misrepresentation
The wages In the Carnegie mills n
1tas,iv Inn mar rant hiyhnr thF,n II