The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1894-05-05
DIR. DEEMS ON THE SITUATION.

Dft. 11EEIM1S oN x11S . ~
lie Thinks the Coxey Movement Serious
and Of Far Reaching Effect
DIR. Edward w. Benis of the Chicago
University. in address yesterday to a nu.n-
Der Of ministers at the Association build
ing, looked with gravity upon the com
monweal movement, which is beginning
to assume such large proportions. The
Doctors subject was "How to Raise Wa
ges,' and in the course of his remarks he
referred to the Coxey movement Us lin
dicating u deep feeling
'!We cannot see ths outcome no said.
"but it will not end with a few hundred
or a few thousand men marching to Wash
ngton. There is Il universal impression
among the masses that labor is not shar-
ing as much as it should in the products
of labor. There is n maximum and min
imum wage. The maximum involves
the total product and the minimum is
reached when wages become so low as to
provide merely for animal subsistence
l should favor the use of public funds IN
making public improvements in times
like these, and thus furnishing work to
the unemployed. Now if we were taxed
to death SERIOUS objection could be raised
to this proposition. AS it is, however, the
rate is one-tenth Of l per cent, and in
some instances it is only o%ne-fortleth of l
per cent"
The doctor vas understood to favor
strikes up to the point of violence, regard
ing organization rs a feature OF bargain
making. In conclusion, the doctor said (:
Unless we hasten to change the prev
alent system by which franchises are
given to others to grow suddenly rich we
shall start n wave of socialism that will
sweep the country. There is something
wrong when prominent thinkers like Nor
rison 1. Swift of Boston give utterance to
. CHI views rs he expressed Yesterday in
Loston. The commonwealers who are
pushing on to Washington will probably
not secure what they ash, but they will
set the country thinking
In an interview DR.. Bemis said:
'Ono great trouble with the Coxev
movement is an assumption underlying it.,
that the governments at Washington could
resore prosperity in q wise and perman-
ent manner by the issue of several hun
dred million dollars of paper money to
be spent upon interstate State roads,
Such an imitation of prices and disturb
ance of business confidence as this would
probably bring Il return or the crisis of
last July only with greater intensity"
DR.. I. A. Hourwith, the statistician for
the Chicago University, has been spend
ing a good deal of time about the Chi
cago headquarters of Coxey's army watch
ing the eAlistments. '.These men," he
suid, ARE by far the best-dressed and
most intelligent of all the vast number of
unemployed persons 1 have yet met
They are neither ignorant nor depraved,
and all ave u purpose i'll going to Wash
ington."
Grand Master Sovereign of the Knights
Labor whom asked Yesterday what he
thought of the marching of the industrial
armies said
81 view the movement with a great deal
of interest. The armies will do one of
two things-either fall down or fight. 1t
is a peculiar movement. 1t is the first
time in history that tho working people
ave sent a petition to Congress on foot.
Tho tramp from Wall street has always
been given a good reception. l am quite
sure of one thing-that the people of this
country will not tolerate auy overt act on
the part of the officials to strain at the
vagrancy act in prosecuting these men,
Such acts will arouse the public indigna-
ton IA it has mover been aroused since the
Chicago Tribune, May l.