The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-03-04
NFwHAvEN MORNING JOURNAL AND COURIER MONDAY MARCH

gle has been for social equality. Now and henceforth the battle is to equalize the material conditions of men, so that ! each shall have his share of the advan- tages that come to men through ma terial wealth.
 The demands of socialism have come about largely from the fact that men have so abused wealth for their own selfish pleasures they have used it, not as stewards, but without any true
 sense of the responsibilities that ought to go with it. Further the teachings of Jesus Christ have been the fountain of socialism. Christianity teaches as fundamental the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. Christ gave
 most of His time to His poor, sick, weak lbrothers. He ministered to mems bodies before He preached to their souls. He
 made the great tests of the final judg- ment of each man, whether he has or not ministered to the sick, visited the | prisoner, or did good to the poor. In
 a word Jesus came to save man. his
 world in which he lives, his society his business, his environments as well
 as the man himself This is the creed of the church. Slowly but surely many | outside of the church came to feel that
 the church had lost sight of it's great
 mission, and it ignored any real broth | erhood except of the well-to-do, re- l spectacle religious folks. It had it's
 eye so much on the other world that it | neglected it's duties to this world.
 l Organized Forms of Socialism-As a
 mere sentiment it was like an early rain or a morning dew. It began to
 organize rules of like trades into trades | unions, and the older trades union formed fifty years ago became strong and wealthy societies of skilled arti- sans. Cooperative societies were formed
 of various kinds among the poor that have grown to great proportions. A | late report shows that they had in one year sold over two hundred millions of dollars worth of things, of which over | twenty millions of profits were divided among the members, after selling to them everything at 8 regular price. ! Clubs of various kinds were formed to l give the Workingmen some other place ! than the saloon to meet his fellow workmen. Gradually they have added reading rooms, libraries and lecture rooms. Benefit societies of various kinds to help in sickness, to bury the dead, to aid a widow and helpless chill dren. Within 8 few years the socialist | leaders have organized trades unions among the lockers, miners and other
 unskllled workmen. These unions have done much to develop the men, and in the great lockers strike of three years | ago these men by their good behavior and righteous cause had the sympathy l of almost every class.
 The number of societies of educated
 and able socialists have been formed
 like the famous Fabayan society, whose speakers go to all the other organiza- l tions of worlslngmen and teach them
 the principles of socialism. These prin- ciples are only five; l. Labor Is the only source of value, and the workingman's
 labor gives him the right to all his la
 bor produces. ?, Capital is the result not of saving but of spoliation. It is something unearned, which the law un- fairly gives to the rich or strong instead
 of dividing among the laborers. 3, Gov
 ernment ought to secure for labor the
 product of industry and prevent pau perism, crises and competition. 4, Land,
 railroads, telegraphs, etc., all instru-
 ments of producing wealth should be-
 long to the state. Agriculture and manufacturing should be under the governments control 5, These objects ought to take the precedence of all
 other reforms, and the socialists must
 agltate until the ends are secured.
 Municipal Reforms-They are giving
 much attention to the reform of city
 governments, to the dwellings and
 health of the poor. The Polytechnics and Peoples palaces are outgrowths of
 the same general movement where
 there are furnished to the poor every
 privilege and advantage for their chil-
 dren and themselves, either free or at
 the lowest possible cost. Besides there
 are innumerable societies to prevent
 cruelty to children, aid for the sick, summer outings, homes of every kind, etc., etc.
 Among the socialists there are thou- sands of Christian men and church members. But because of the attitude of the clergy towards socialism these men are at work outside the church. Many of the socialists are open an tagonists of the church, and so the clergy often oppose them and their plans. Besides most of the ministers believe that God has given 1t to the church of Christ to solve these great questions, and that sooner or later these movements will all come back to the church and be developed under the name as now under the spirit of churches.
 2. The Labor Movement-Dr Vail then gave the history of what is now know specially as the labor movement since 1889, under the lead of men like Ben Tillett, John Burns and Tom Mann, who have been day workmen, some of whom are now in parliament. These men are seeking in every way to lessen the hours. to increase the pay and bet ter the condition of the common un- skilled laboring men and women. 3. The University Settlements-Th most interesting and promising work outside the church for the poor is now known as the University settlements. | Now and then an Oxford or Cambridge man of wealth and scholarship would l take a room in the poorest part of Lon | don and visit among the people and in l any possible way help them. In 1883 a I group of these men went up to London | and organized the settlement of Toyn- | bee hall named after young man who had died in the work. The building has rooms for about twenty men, and these