The herald., 1894-07-06
NEW RvILS MUST HAVE NEW RENE
UIRS.


Outside OF the very elemental princir
pies of law, which are obvious, the ap-
plicAtion of those principles to every
relation of individuals to each other, to
their rights in all their manifold aspects,
and to their duties to society, the process
OF growth of the system of civilized codes
that define, expound and limit the rights
and duties of men to each other and to
the state, has been slow and gradual.
Laws are evolved out OF the needs of the
human family, and whenever an emer-
gency has arisen in practical experience
showing the necessity of new applica-
tion of the principle of right, out OF that
necessity have grown such laws as the
nature OF the emergency demanded.
When it was found that mere abstract
law did not reach Ill toe questions OF
contention between man and man,
equity was devised in order to give due
effect and scope to the correction OF
wrongs which it was found could not be
reached through the mere cold spplica
tion OF the rigid principles of law.
We are now confronted with condi-
ton which our laws, as at present con-
strued and applied, cannot or do not
reach. Great corporations and trusts
have grown up in our midst. Whilst
they are the result of our advance in
wealth and marvellous progress in in
vention, they concentrate within them
selves q power that can and does inflict
wrongs upon individuals for which they
have no remedy in the courts "a the
laws are at present constituted and pre-
scriptively administered. By virtue OF
the power OF these trusts, they dictste
to labor what it shall receive, and raise
or lower wages Of their own motion,
without the concurrence of the laborer.
The only option left the employee is to
take what compensation is decreed or
quit work.
In seeking around for a remedy for
this evil the laborer has only found a
halting and inadequate one in organiza-
tion, leading to strikes and boycotts.
The law gives him no relief, for the law,
as now practically administered, was
founded and formulated before the pres
ent conditions between capital and labor
had assumed their actnal relations to-
ward each other. But strikes and boy
colts are but lame and impotent cures
for the evils they are invoked to remedy.
Besides their inadeQuacy, they are pro-
ductive OF conditions from which third
and innocent party has invariably to
suffer. The public is ground beneath
the upper and neither millstones of capi-
tai and labor. This fact is more eytens-
lively and acutely illustrated in the ex-
listing contention between the railroad
companies OF the United States and
their employees than it ever was be-
fore.
Within the past few years these fights
between capital and labor have bee in
cessant. No sooner is one controversy
settled than another arises, and thus
the public are kept in constant hot water
with tine interminable strife which ia
going on in some part of the country all
the time. We cannot go along this way
forever. There muet be an end, and
3 that before long, or our country will be
thrown into state of anarchy. Con-
fict and disturbance between the
masses and the classes muat ultimately
lead to revolution and then comes the
deluge.
No intelligent man or right-minded
II - II, al.
worst comes before remedying the great
evil which is hurrying US ON to the
abyss. Labor has rights. That is uni
versally conceded; 90 has capital. But
unfortunately labor has, under existing
conditions, but very imperfect means OF
enforcing its rights when capital in its
greed attacks them. 1t has the right to
organize; it has the right to quit work
Organization, however, but rarely
eomplishes its purpose. The right
quit work in most instances amounts
about the same thing as the right Il
commit suicide. 1t flea fir ON the evile
We have 'to others that We know
not Of"
II there is now no law to secure the
laborer in reasonable recompense for
his work, he should make one. 1t is
the boast Of Jurisprudence that there
must be remedy for every wrong, but
here is wrong without remedy. And
t1is wrong lies at the bottom Of all our
troubles. We must find the remedy
The sanction for the remedial law which
must be formulated comes from the
very highest source. When the divine
word said ''The laborer is worthy OF his
hire" the fundamental principle justi-
tying the enaction OF such laws as will
iajsc. life and vitality into this unQues-