The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-02-20
THE ROOT OF THE TROUBLE.
Labor Gets 5 Per Cent of What 1t
Produces.

The St. Paul Globe of the 8th inst,
contains the following interesting
article:
"Next after the Standard oil trust
stands, in point of age, the Diamond
former in rapacity. 1t makes prices
on the Jay Gould plan of "all the
traffic will bear" The tariff helps
them to make the traffic bear by tax
of some 80 per cent on the products Of
any competitor outside this free and
blessed country. Its board of direc-
tors met the other day and figured up
the years business. Cash, plants and
water, all told, make capital of $9,-
100000. The regular quarterly divi-
dend Of q per cent on this was de-
clared. AS this left a surplus Of ST.
600, 600 profits, they decided to distrib-
among the stockholders, SO that here
after, and until the next divide, the
capi talization will be $40, 100000.
| The trust is maintaining the
american wage scale" and 'helping
American labor" hold up it's dig
nty," incidentally letting labor and
the great American public earn its 10
per cent cash and II per cent stock
dividends. 1t employs in making all
the matches this unshackled people
use seventy men, whom it pays $24, 400
| in wages, or an average Of $34S. 1t
works 601 females over fifteen years Of
age, to whom it pays in wages $l03, 442,
or an average OF $172 a year. 1t also
"works" twenty children, who re-
ceive 81, 500 in wages. or 1880 year.
1t pays in wages, in all $l29,441. 1t
uses material valued by itself at $685.
900. In wages and material it uses
annually $l,O64 ,449. 1t values the
product at s., 1898.
Taking out the wages and material
we see where the dividend comes
from. 1t leaves margin of 81 ,029 1S9
to be thus distributed. Labor gets
trife over per cent Of the value of
the product, and capital gets trifle
less than so per cent. We thus get at
the precise amount of the dignity of
labor that makes matches, the extent
of it's protection by our benign gov
ernment. and the modest recompense
Of the philanthropists who make the
matches that light our lamps and
pipes, and kindly and condescendingly
permit men aud women and children
to labor for Them
This is an illustration Of what is at
the bottom of our social troubles.
Here the labor that produces the
matches receives q little more than fire per
cent of the total ualue of the property it
produces!
While capital-a dead thing-an
artificial thing-having neither HUI
man life nor sentiments nor neceSsi-
ties-gets 80 per cent. Thus capital
is encouraged to increase it's exac-
tions. while labor is reduced to such
misery that those who perform the
work for per cent of what they
, make. hang on to their job, knowing
that if they let go others, more
,, wretched still, will step in and do the
work for per cent or per cent OF
, the product. Thus human nature is
steadily pressed downward and cruel
man-slaughtering aristocracy rises on
!. it's ruins: filled with spirit not only
inimical to Christ's doctrine of hu-
!, man brotherh but hating liberty
, and fearing equality, and plotting to
, overthrow the Republic, which was
established to maintain these things.
+ No wonder the working classes are
$ filed with a strong sense OF the'ln]us'
tice they suffer; no wonder they strike
wildly, in blind way, at their op
pressors: no wonder, finding them
!, selves dragged down by invisible
! chains, they break forth In violence
and bloodshed.
!. What is needed is strong sense ol
t fair-play and justice; and an organlza
i tion that shall, by reasonable ant
I lawful methods, help these poor
!. wretches to a bigger share OF wha
they create, and to pleasanter lives OF
t the planet. We think the People
" Party will do all this, if given power
r The goodness and greatness OF th'