The herald., 1894-11-12
EMPLOYER AND EMPLOYEE.
uow the w. q. +. U. Can Assist tn
WorlinU

uow the w. q. t. U. Can Assist tn a
Working People.
BosToN, Nov. 1.-THE following letter
from Mrs. Josephine Shaw Lowell to
Miss Frances Willard will be read at
the national W. G. T. U. convention
which assemblies at Cleveland Novsm-
ber 10Th.
My DEAR MIss WILLARD:-You ask me
to advise the Women's Christian TEN.
psrance union how they con best help
the working people. and / am very glad
to give you my views of the matter, for
l believe they can make themselves ae
strong q power foe good in this direction
as they have in their own special field,
but to accomplish this must themselves
desire justice in the relations between
the employers and employees, and must
create q public opinion which will de.
mand it.
In this country, with rare exceptions,
justice is seldom found in these rela-
tions. At some times and in come
places it ie the labor organizations
which are dictatorial. while the employ
ers cringe and relinquish all their rights
to maintain peace, but more frequently
the employers are arbitrary and tyranni-
cal, asserting loudly that they in.end to
manage their own business as they may
choose, and will not be interiered with
by their workingmen.
Here is the weak point-thore will
never be justice between the employe
ana the employees, consequently there
Will never be peace uatil the en-
ployers recognize the claim OF the
employees to voice in the
settlement OF questions relating to max
ing the hours and conditions OF labor.
1t can scarcely be expected that Ameri-
can citizens who hHvs been born aud
bred with the inetincts OF free
men will submit tamey to q system
which places their welfare entirely in
the hands of others. This suggestion,
that the employees have right to a
voice in what is called their employers
business Will be new to many and will
at fret seem to be unreasonable, but the
mors 1t lie considered the more just it
will show itself to be and 1t will be finally
acknowledged to be true.
For the last 20 or 80 years, in many
large industries in England, oil ques.
tions OF wages, hours and conditions of
work have been settled without strike
or lockout bv u ,int boards OF coneulta-
tion" or arbitration boarde," OF which
the associations of employers and en-
ployees have been represented by dele
gates duly chosen and empowered to
legislate for their constituents, and
on these boards the employers
and employees have always had
ON equal representation. In our
country also, and in Belgium, boards
are known aud have met with equal
success. but the practice of justice with
us has been neither 30 long nor 80
widely extended as in England, and
strangely enough, employers hsre, in
stead OF instinctively recognizing that
this is the only solution OF the Difficult
ties OF the labor question, assume tone
Of arbitrary ownership and proclaim
their rights to issue orGers which must
be obeyed.
| believe it is by the study of this
phase OF the labor question and the ad.
vocacy of consultation as mans OF
preventing disputes, and arbitration as
a means OF settling them. that the men,
bers of the w. G. T. U. can best help the
working people. Respectfully yours,
JOSEPHINE SHAW LOWELL.