The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-11-09
PROSECUTED PECK.
FREE TRADERS WILD WITH RAGE 81
CAUSE HE TOLD THE TRUTH.

Had He Suppressed His Report II
Would Now He One of the Elect
Democratic "Investl gators Only Hell
Along the Cause OF Protection. -.
Labor Commissioner Peck has bee
under hot fire from the free trad,
Democracy since the appearance of hi
annual report showing that production
and wages in New York state largel,
I increased during the first wear undo!
the Mckinley tariff. Hitherto this gen
tleman's reports and there have been
eight others-have been received witt
great respect by Mugwumps and Dem
Iocrats. There is no earthly reason why
this one should lie assailed, except that
found In the rage of baffied conspirators
who see their fabric of falsehood top.
pied over by a little blast of truth
waited against 1t by an honest Dem
ocratic official.
Let it not be forgotten that Commits
sioner Peck is d Democrat. He had
heard his party leaders and party organs
''whooping it up" about falling wages.
STRIKES and lockduts, caused by the new
tariff, and he be eved them. Desirou
OF promoting the interests of his party
he undertook little campaign work OF
his own account. II these calamities
have come upon us as a consequence Of
this Mckinley law, he reasoned, VIII,
would it not maRe powerful campaign
document to gather statistics of thes,
wage reductions. these strikes and lock.
outs? Then the Republicans cannot de.
ny them, and the iniquities of the Re.
publican tariff will be proved before all
men. Surely it will help to elect Grover
Cleveland, who stands as the avowed
enemy of that rbbber system. Besides
Mr.. Cleveland is deserving of this much
from me, for did he not appoint me to
this very Office which now hold2
Thus argued Mr.. Peck, and he forth.
with proceeded tb investigate the ques.
ton of wages in New York state.
As he says himself, the first partial re-
turns which came in seemed to bear out
the assertions of the Democratic editors
and orators, and he was accordingly
jubilant for the moment. His 10y
changed to surprise and disappointment,
however, when subsequent returns told
a different story. The final results
showed that the alleged general fall in
wages was humbug, the reputed in
crease in strikes and lockouts a pure
"fake." .... ..-...".|
1t is right here that his party associ-
ates begin to find fault with Commits
sioner Peck. If he lacked the ordinary
penetration to dee that the talk about
falling wages and discontented labor
had no further basis than the fertile
imagination and callous consciences of
Democratic partisans, and that it was
intended purely for political effect, he
might at least, they argued, have held
back his report and allowed the Demo
cratic conspiracy of falsehood to con
tinue to its fruition-the election OF
Grover Cleveland.
But Mr.. Peck was too honorable a
man, too honest an official, to lend him
selfto such plot. He had facts gath
cred expressly for the information Of
the people which had a powerful bear
ing on the issues of the pending cam.
paign. These facts he determined the
people should have, and he gave them
out. For this he has been branded as
traitor and exposed to public scorn III J
the Mugwump pillory.
The national Democratic committee
has been SO disturbed by Mr.. Peck's re-
port that they have appointed q special
subcommittee composed Of unreasonably
partisan individ uals to investigate it.
They had him arrested on an apparently
trumped up charge and have instituted
other legal proceedings against him.
But at last accounts they had made nj
Roadway in casting doubt upon the cor
rectness of his figures or the authenticit,
OF the information upon which they
were based. However, Mr.. Peck snaps his |
finger at them and invites them to d. |
their worst. He asserts that he has thou |
sands upon Thousands Of individual cases
Of increased wages, each supported by al
affidavit, ready for his interrogators ii
they want them. Altogether this in
vestigation of Mr.. Peck's figures prom
ses to do about rs much further goot
for the cause of protection as the origi-
nal investigation has already done.
II Australians Could Only Vote.