The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-09-06

GV6rSYeSuD
piazza In 'front.' Of . number OF stores ana
saloons, and combined with the Gags 70 give the
scene an air Of gaisty
A1cTURE By A LABOR LEADER.
John Lamb Tells OF workmen's Hopes
and Dangers.
IA the afternoon large crowd went out to
Maoison street PARK 70 participate in the picnic,
Fully 1000 consregated in tho ball grounds 70
,ssssn 70 an address By John Lamb on "The
Itooiem OF the Ages." At least half a many
Hore people stopped outside amusing them.
serves around the pavilion and Laurel shade or
on .ne watar. A temporary platform was
erected In front OF the grand stand and on this
were seated. in addition to President J, l. Muir.
pny OF the Western Central Labor Union and
the speaker Of the day. J. C. Heymer and |.
s"enoerman, members Of the committee on ar.
rangementa. President Murphy introduced Mr..
Lamb, who taen made Q very able and sloo usut
speech. He said:
IL 10 related OF Socrates that when the Oracle
declared there was man wiser than ne. he
sought interviews with all the leaaiug men of
Athens In order that he might compare his idess
WIN tneirs End find ont wherein they differed.
LOT, IN these differences, he argued, must lie his
superior knowledge If any he had After talk.
Ing with all of them he discovered that the main
point OF difference between him and them was
that sney conceived themselves To have mas.
tsred the whole truth of things, while he was
stili IN doubt upon many points. He therefore
concluded that IL he was wiser than they in
hhn an u was In having fuller knowledge OF
rIhe man who approaches question that has
panied the wisest heads for thirty centuries
should do so with some degree of modesty Had
the labor question been capable of solution by
any short cue IL would have been solved hun.
dreds oil year. ago, for the desire of planning
ana executing measures for the betterment OF
the condition of mankind has existed during
the Wnoie period OF authentic history. Il has
Deen the dream OF the moralist and the song OF
the poet To accomplish il, men in all ages
have borne persecution aud exile and not few
have willingly surrendered up their lives.
4. Inere does not appear 20 have arisen under
conception OF the brotherhood of man, and il
was not until after the humble GaliIeean had
been crucifed for declaring it, that the world
began to grasp the idea of the essential EQUALITY
OF man az q necessary inference from that great
fact of brotherhood.
It may truly be said, therefore. that Christian
an equal plano before God. aud, therefore. be.
fore man.
The master lost much of his fictitious super.
fority by the recognition OF soul in the slave OF
equal sscredness and importance with his own.
And the immortal part OF all men being raised to
position OF the first consequences. the material
spondingiy declined in the scale of mans esti-
nation.
But. has the abolition of chattel slavery given
men liberty in the fullest and best sense Of the
word? Not by any means. The mere fact that
a man has u right TO sell the powers Of his body
or brain 70 the highest bidder does not make
him as free rs De ought to la Whyf Because
God has given the earth TO the children of men,
not to one man nor a thousand men, nor even a
million men, but to the children OF men in gen.
eral, and he who IL deprived OF his proper aud
natural share cf this common bounty OF Provi.
dence has not his full rights, whether he is per.
mitted 20 sell his physical or mental powers 70
the highest bidder or not
II the tax which give You today differs from
the regulation Labor day speech, 1t IL because
came here. not to stir your blood, not to nfisme
prejudice, but to appeal to your better nature.
to convince your reason. I will not talk,
therefore, upon the special questions that have
been raised or plans that have been proposed for
the solution OF the labor problem but ] will
rather speak o! matters which antedste and I'M
deriie all your special plans for redemption, and
upon which. despite all plans. the success or
failure OF popular movements must depend.
In the last analysis there are but two things
necessary To good government-intelltgence and
honesty In the people This is 10 truism that
has grown stale by repetition, but 1t must,
nevertheless, be recognized as the all-including
axiom OF economics.
In country whore the right to vote is prac-
ticaly universal. It Is certainly the fault of the
people If We have not good government II Ger
tain political death followed the commission OF
political wrong, fragrant dishonesty In politics
In every country that 10 ruled, or presumed to
be ruled, by popular will. We find that peculiar
product, the demagogue-the man who adj
vances himself by appeals to passion, prejudice
and pride; who inflames one class against
another for the purpose OF taking advantage OF
both
this stripe. On the contrary, believe that a
vast majority of them are sincere believers in
the theories they set forth; but We know that
there are some demagogues amongst them-men
who are working Tor mere personal ends, aud
who are just INSCRIPTIONS In fDtiictipg
wrong on Others rs the most selfish capitalist in
existence. Give such men authority and they
will
"Pour tho sweet milk Of concord into he'll,
Uproar the universal peace,
Confound all unity on earth"
Now assert that the great weakness OF the
labor movement, and of popular movements in
general, in ths incapacity OF the membership To
discriminate between the class OF men tuss
described aud tie other class. who are sincere
in their motives, il NOT always wise In their
methods. The lower to- distinguish between
what ought to be done and what can re done is
the first essential Of craftsmanship, and this Is
faculty which, regret to say. few agttators
possesa In all their plans they oversstimaie
the posi- bilitles OF human nature. Neither do
they study closely enough the working defects
of their abstract propositions There were Is
many fine theories a3oat previous TO the French
revolution as there are today. Men Thought as
intensely and yearned as strongly Tor social
Justice as they do now, but the revolution
came and in the whirlwind OF actual affairs. IN
the clash of man with man. and interest with
Interest, the fne theories of social reconstruc-
ton were dashed to pieces like eggsheils on q
rock and the ASPIRATIONS o. great aud noble
souls went down In q torrent oil blood anu do
II.
witnessed before since How mueh WISER
how much better are We today than the people
OF France were 100 years ago1
II IL related thai tie celebrated treuchman
ntcerot once called upon Catherine IL, OF Rus
ala Who gracously gave him three days OF her
time for the purpose of hearing him present his
theories of social regeneration. When Dtderot
had finished Catherine said TO him: 81 UNDER
stand. Monsieur Di1eros, ali you have told me
with reference 10 reforming society, aud, before
YOU came hora, was not unfamiliar with your
theories But, with all due respect TO your IN
tallieeuce, | am constrained 70 state that your
IDEAS wouid make very good books, hut very bad
business: and II tall you-wh You write on
paper which opposes no obstacle 10 your pen /,
but | write on the skins OF men, which are sen
sttiye To a very different degree, she was
right piderot's plans were merely set tofth,
h,ss Catherine's hsi 10 be executed, and II
DIdsrot had ever been permitted TO try his hand
All the execution of his plans he would have
learned something about them that he never
Knew before -
Dtderos called his theories ''the absolutely
ami Internationally true, and 80 they were n
the abs tract They were true As ethics. true as
Logic true as aspirations; but false. worthless
aud nopsenstcal as plans OF practical action
with ruen n their present stage OF develop
ment
lieveruraent Is no, Tree agent, bat . point.
40 10 SPEAK held IN = shifting eQuiii hrium be-
tween cuntenting torccs capital gives Is Q
nush and IL goes one way; labor gives II pun.
and ~ goes the cthtr way. capital hoiGs ina
/ uhsrent sud xeau aired advantages that pertain
"a wealth Against these labor asserts tie
sanetions Of human brotheE hood, api declares
| the rights Of life 10 Do above the rignts Oh
properly. Both are aetuatsd partly hy priacip.s
and parity by interest Each oversorKs aay
~ tar IT'S side gt the