The Washington times., 1895-03-01
SOLVING SOCIAL PROBLEMS
Prof. Adler Poists Out How Moral
Ideas May BE a Help.
Workingmen's Finer sensibilities Should Be
stimulated-Wag Must Not Be
Lowered to the Starving Point.

The last lecture by Prof Felix Adler, of
New York, in the series Offered by the School
of Applied Ethics was delivered yesterday
afternoon at the Columbian University, the
subject being Moral ideas as an aid in the
solution of the Iator question:
| Prof. Adler said that there are many
things that could be done by the municipal
ity toward alleviating the condition of the
poor without going intosociaIism.
For instance, the public library is great
benefit to the workingman There is also
the public museum and the public art gal
lery. These are legitimate means of benefit
ing the poorer classes There should be
capacious town halls where the poor men
may meet.
AT present the only clubhouse for the poor
workinSman is the grog shop. If these are
closed public meeting houses should be pro-
vided. The city OF Manchester has several
| town halls where the citizens meet. There
ought to be several such halls i'll every city.
Wages should not Ee allowed to fall to the
starving point. The skilled laborer is able
to take care or himself. The problem is to
save uns6lled labor from degradation.
Public opinion alone can accomplish this.
In the match girls strike and i'll the lockers
Stllht Ills lItN iottOi VI puDiIt OplH-
ion first asserted itself. In the lockers
strike over S 900 COO poured into the
! treasury of the strikers, and public opinion,
asserted through the church and the state,
helped them 10 q successful termination OF
the strike. The difficulty is that such men
| as Cardinal Manning and Lord Rosebery are
scarce, and public opinion, although ii is
mighty organ, must be directed.
Boards of arbitration will subserve the
purpose of an organ, through which public
/ opinion can exert its power This public
umustflow into The channels of afbitfa-
tion to enforce its decisions. The method
Of arbitration is to decide each case on it's
own merits. not To decide it in accordance
with previous decfs ions Arbitration
must be flexible to be efficient
The professional classes form the bal
ance wheel between labor and capital
There should be more contact between
the educated classes and the workingman.
great obstacle to progress arises from
fallacies held by the workingmen One
OF these fallacies is that the manual worker
is the soul producer of wealth. Another
disturbing notion is that the law is pretext
of the rich. In many cases it is, but the dan
ger is that this is used as an excuse for meet
ing injustice with injustice. Again the
workingman fails TO realize that general
demands are futile. Rather should they be
embodied in something practical proposed
W TX NohS Io NOiAtIt INC idlot dittt
practicable ideas of the workiDgmen and
10 assist them in the right way is the prov
vince OF the educated class.
There are three things needed by the work
ingmen, self-reverence, reverence for his
superior, and reverence for his interiors.
Not only among workingmen. but among
all classes these organizations are needed.
At the conclusion of the lecture a rising
vote of thanks was given Prof Adler, and
a hearty round OF applause followed A
large number went on the platform to
thank him for his lectures, and TO express
the deep interest which he had aroused
in the subject of social reform.