The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1893-06-12
ADDRESS ON LIVE LABOR TOPICS
BY Capt. John 0'Brien, Gen
eral Labor Organizer.
Ne Touches Upon the Eight-H0ur
Law and Kindred Subjects.
A weli-Tempered Discussion OF the
Principles Contended for by Labor
tDK men--Review OF the Pro-
gross Made.

striking address last night at Labor
hall, under the auspices of the Los An.
neles Council Of Labor.
Mr.. g. W. Retzer, president OF the
organization, made a brief address, in
Producing Captain OBrien in few we'll
chosen words.
The first step toward reform, said
Captain lO'Brien, 10 agitation, and the
second 10 organization. The second,
however, Is tha most important, be-
cause without it no good results would
follow from mere agitatation. Take our
civil war, for instance, which was
aQitated for q long while on both
sides, when it broke out, however, it
WAS the organization OF the north that
won the victory. II ie OF the agitation
and more perfect organization of the
labor movement thatI would speak to-
night. The labor movement meane
more honorable manhood, lovelier
women and happier children. 1t has
been deecribed as an effort to place
labor and capital on an equality, and 1T
aims at fair and equitable divlelon OF
labor. This can only be done by n per-
fecC and complete organization. At the
lHet convention Of federated trades a
resolution wes adopted to uee its best
endeavors to make campaign OF organ
ization throughout the land. We are
banded together in etrivinR to promote
equality between capital and labor, and
like the promoters Of the French revo-
linton, we aim to make all men equal.
A nation will not be governed politically
unless its people govern 1t themselves,
and the same applies to capital and
labor.
We are informed that the needed
reformation must he begun among the
ranks OF labor. We need agitators like
O'Conhell and Wendell Phillips and or
ganizers like Psrdell.
The labor movement is one OF peace,
and while it requires revolution to
bring about q political one, the labor
movement 10 o gradual, yet unceasing,
one.
The firHt instance in the emancipation
OF labor took place in England. take
England In preference to any other
country because the restrictions of labor
are not 30 severe in that country az in
Russia nor 30 mild az in Germany. At
the battle of Orecy, In 1916, the English
yoemkn placed himself on an equality
with the iron mailed knight and demon
strated by his actions and conduct that
there was no difference between common
and gentle blood.
At the commencement Of the ravages
OF the black death there were 1000. 600
people in London, and when the plague
eubsided this number had been reduced
to 1000, 900.
This fact first brought contest be-
tween capital and labor, because there
were then two employerH for each man.
The fact that men would only work for
certain employers produced such q con-
dition OF things that law was passed
by parliament, compelling laborers to
work for whoever wished to employ
them and fixing the wages at the figure
of,six years previous.
In 1860 John Ball, frequently called
the mad iriar OF Kent, first preached to
the English the natural rights and
equality of man. And the arguments
and discussions which the levelling doc
trines OF John Ball promulgated pro-
duced the doggeral query which reads:
"when Adam delved
And Eve spun
Who then was
The gentleman"
The greatest OF all ancient guilds OF
organizations OF labor we're the maBons.
They maintained the largest rate OF wages
and advocated the s hour aystem. |
wish to cay, just here, that l am in
sympathy with you in that movement
and heartily wish that your efforts will
be successful You should have hours
for sleep, s hours for work, and hours
for recreation. Whatever dear victories
the wofkingmnn has won in his effort tc
reduce his struggles, there always fol
lows an encroachment on the ground &C
bravely won and capital takes and holde
the smallest space, If only 1t Ia space
won back.
The successors OF Edward VI, the
Tudore and the Stuarts were unfriendly
to labor and placed oppressive restric
tions upon il. The discovery OF Americf
ana the vast areas of land which thu
new world threw open TO discovery anC
settlement, together with the invention
of printing, greatly served to tighten thl
burdens OF the lsbofing man, anC
which, II not restoring his lost liberty
placed before his eyes the ways anc
means by which 1t could be procured.
One OF the greatest friends among thu
famous men who then spraug into ex
istence was Sir Thomas Moore, wit
strongly advocated compulsory work
free education, good homes for thu
laboring man and free religious belief
in fact nearly all the benefits which w
now enjoy. No law in England at tina
time ever declared that the serf wa
freed az did the emancipation OF Abra
ham Lincoln. The great charter wa
not drawn in the interest of the laborin
man, 1t was drawn in the interest of th
barons, but it helped the leborer b
abolishing unreasonable imprisonment
and sustaining man of his rights.
During the past year in this county
new era has dRwned in the labor queI
ton. The old trades unions were yer
strong, some of them having been in e1
istance for more than 40 yeRrs. BIT
they began to see that it wac not sgits
ton alone which would help them,
was organization and en orgsnizatiu
which included in its ranks all laborin
men, whether skilled or unskillet
They have invited all other classes
laborera to join them and they inten
making a solid body which will ensb
them to settle all difficulties by arbitr
ton and to whom violence will not |
known. There are now in the Unite
States 100000 men in the trade
unions as against 10000 in EnglaI
and 1000 600 in Germany.
To get the results OF labor il is niece
Hary to employ large amount OF cap
tai. We have large assemblies OF mt
Miles Nerve and Liver Pills
Act on new prineiple-regulatin the liyt
stomach and bowels through the nerves.