Omaha daily bee., 1894-12-18


chased for 2 cents. where II had cost or 9
cents under private ownership The city had
spent SIS, 600, 900 to construct water works
now worth 500 900, 900. The annual expendi-
ture was $4,000 900; the revenue was $780,
000 leaving a net profit of $500 600 part Of
which went to pay the interest on the invest
ment and the remainder was applied to
cheaper the cost Of the article to the people.
The price OF gas to consumers had been re-
duced from 81 TO so cents per 900 feet. The
gas was of better quality and more men were
employed in its production and at better
wages than under the former system. The
sentiment In favor of municipalization had
grown so strong that 200 authorities owned
their own gas and water works and not one
Of them had ever gone back to the private
monopoly system.
EVILS OF CONTRACT SYSTEM.
The speaker then directed his attention to
the contract system the direct cause of
many of the evils in municipal affairs.
/ Union hours and union wages had been
| forced upon the contractors in the city Of
London When there was a dispute over
what wages a contractor should pay to a
particular branch of labor the municipal
authorities wrote to the secretary Of the
union for a copy Of the schedule adopted by
the union for that class Of labor. This was
much better than to allow the workmen to
be the victims of the contractors and both
| Of them to be arrayed through competition
| friends.
Under the former system the contractors
selected the busiest seas in which to do
| their work. Accordingly, the men were
compelled to work ever time a part of the
year while they were left idle during the
rest When the first b of work was done
| by rect employment of labor the lwest
| bid was $4,000. The city did the work.
| paid better wages than the contractor would
have done, put in better material and did
a better job, and the entire cost was only
| f5,43S. Under the direct employment sys-
tenn policy followed that was directly
| the reverse of that laid down by the con-
tractors. Public work was done at the mes
when there was the least private employment
and the vcTkingmen had work nearly all
| The year They had found that the only way
| to kill n sweating was to kill the sweater
and the only way in which t. get rid of the
evils Of the contract system was to give the
contractors the sack. The contractors formed
| ring to down the new policy, but it was
| demonstrated that it was benefit t. the
| community, blow at the basis of municipal
| corruption and the best possible solution
| Of the pr blem cf the unemployed 1t had
| continued in free and the cost of public
works was from to 80 per cent less than
| under the contract system. There was no
| over time, n scandals and there were more
| men employed at batter wages.
| Mr. Burns urged the Omaha trades unions
to supplement their efforts by activity in
| this direction. In this city there were three
| times as many men employed in the summer
as there were in the winter. with direct
| employment of labor on public works the
| attitudes of public work could b. adjusted to
| the depressions Of private employment.
SHOULD VOTE AS WORKMEN.
Il want to say as frankly as l can to the
| American workman Mr. Burns, that
| II organized labor does its duty at the next
| election it will say that political partisanshlp
shall not vaccinate their municipal life with
the corrupt virus of jobbery and fraud. Your
| sewers will be built, your streets swept and
| your cities beautifed, and you will have at
| your back not only the trades unions. but
evsry respectable citizen who wants municipal
affairs administered by honest men in the
| interests of decent and an honest COM
munity. | was somewhat surprised at the
action Of the convention when it declared
| against the unions taking a part in poll
| tics. / do not wish to try to
dictate what you should do, but l want to say
| that as trades unions grow so does the neces-
| sity for and the justification of political ac-
| ion In England, L 200 workingmen have
| part in legislation either as councillors or "a
magistrates. There are fifteen workingmen
| in Parliament. The effect has not been to
| disrupt unionism. In the past two years we
have secured by parliamentary means, deter
mined on by the labor unions beforehand
eight hours work for 100, 900, government
| workmen. Formerly when work was dull and
| 1000 men were employed 10000 of them were
| kept dl Worh While lne rest were .lal1 OH.
! Now all of them are kept at work for five
| days In the week.. How many 'blacksmths,
| carpenters, and engineers have you in the
United States senate? When, will you follow
the policy of England and have fifteen repre-
| sentatves OF labor interests in your congress {?
You can do it when you purge your municipal
| life and awaken to the possibilities which lie
| before you as organized workmen.cs
| 1t has been urged that YOU are still
a new country and that you cannot be ex-
| In uyhn hntv Inn
But here you have had possibilities and op-
portunities that we did not have in Eng
land We did not have the, rights which
your constitution guarantees to you until
| forty-eght years after your constitution was
| adopted. But you do have these trusts and
| monopolies that bride and corrupt munich
| palty after municipality. You have a sort
| OF log rolling that, If we had 1t in England,
| IN spite OF all our faults, would cause us
| to rise up and lynch some of our town
councillors from the court house steps"
LINCOLN'S PROPHECY FULFILLED
AT this point the speaker read the cele-
brated prophecy Of Abraham Lincoln, in
| which he outlined the struggle between cap
tal and labor, which, in his vision, was the
| greatest menace to the prosperity Of his
| country, and he added that he would rather
| have Lincoln the side of John Burns
| than dozen millionalres. The prophecy of
| Lincoln had come TO pass The happiness
| Jay Goulds, and the Astors left this country
| after having sucked its wealth to seek the
| favor of the arstocracy of the continent.
| Here he quoted the concet of George Bar
ringion, the celebrated pickpocket, who when
| he left this country saw the Astors also TAX
| ing the ship apl dryly remarked:
True patriots we, let it be understood,
| We leave our country for our country's good"
| To save the republic from these conditions
| the speaker urged his hearers not to tear up
| railroads and wreak destruction by dynamite,
| but to municipalize monopoly after monopoly
until they were all In the hands of the people.
| Organized labor must take stand in bshalf
| cf the people and demand political and social
| equality through the municipalizaton of the
monopolies. In this work of saving the
country from the hands OF a few men who
were trying to throttle 1t, they would have
| the sympathy Of every labor leader and trades
union in the old country. They must hang
| together or they would hang separately. 1t
was a choice whether men or monopolies
should rule, and II the American worklngman
would be equal to their opportunities they
| would rise to higher patriotism aud self
| sacrifice than they did in the war of thirty
| years ago, He appealed to the trades unions
| OF America to be the first to raise the white
| standard OF political purity and social equal
| ity. the dimnution Of wealth and the ele-
| vation OF the people.
| PLANS WITHIN REACH.