, 1892-05-18
HAS NO USE FOR IT.
The Democratic Party Nota Friend
Of Labor.

The Reason Why-Nha mat a Practical
Printer Has to Say OF the Back
ward Party-An American Work
mens' Home--An English Home.
A practical printer who has sor many
years been recognized as a leader Of
thought in the reform movement, and
who has been an ardent trade unionist all
his life, and an active Knight of Labor ever
since that order was first instituted by
Uriah S. Stephens in Pennsylvania more
than twenty years ago, was recently heard
to say that he had no use for the demo-
cratic party, North or South. A demo-
cratic fellow-workman asked him to give
his reasons fol. such a statement, which he
did in the following language:
81 am opposed to the democratic party
for the reason that it is not now and never
has been friendly to the interests of labor.
In states where that party is in absolute
control today the wages paid to mechanics
and laborers are barely sufficient to sustain
life. Intelligent, liberty-lovingawhit labor
can not live on the miserable pittanee ac-
corded the colored labor in the old slave
states of the South. The democratic party
is controlled by men who do not believe
that labor is entitled to any cOnsidera-
tiOn in the commercial affairs of life.
When General McDuffie, of South Caro-
lima. declared in message to the
legislature of his state that "the laboring
population, bleached or unbleached, was
dangerous element to the body polite" he
expressed the opinion of the great ma
jority of his followers to this day. There
can be no affinity between the party which
would degrade American labor, Europe
and the American Workingmen have
learned to enjoy good wages and fair treat
ment under a system of protection to
American labor, both bleached and un-
bleached. While the democratic party was
seeking to bring the free white labor of the
North down to level with the black slave
labor Of the South, the republican party
was born, and from its very inception it
has been the champion of the laborer. 1t
was Lincoln who declared that in the con
test between capital and labor the latter de-
served by far the highest consideration
And in all his official life Abraham Lin
coin never departed from this principles.
With this to guide them, his followers in
the republican party have gradually but
steadily advanced the interests Of the pro-
ducers, until the laborer of the
United States is today the best
paid most comfortably situated la
bor in the civilized world. And I have
confidence that the American people will
continue to repose confidence in the party
of Lincoln. Onceonly have been led astray,
and thenit was by fraud. But the prom
ised exposure of corruption did not materi-
aIize, and the people restored the repub-
licans again, to power The masses nave
learned that an ounce of protective fact is
worth tons of free trade theory, and the
oily tongues of the enemies Of labor will
not prove seductive enough this time. The
picture of an average American workman's
home, in contrast with the best that can be
shown among the toilers of Europe, is
enough to convince Intelligent mechanics
and laborers that it would be suicidal to
permit the democratic party to obtain con-
troll of the industrial system in the United
cratic party an oppositloon to all that labor labor
holds dear, but believe that to permit
that party to control this government for
period Of ten years would be equivalent to
turning back the hands of industry on the
dial of progress for half century. They
have never performed one single act to
commend their party to thoughtful, intelll-
gent workingmen.