The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-01-27
WORKERS ARE WORKING.

An encouraging feature of the fight
against the funding bill is the interest
which labor organizations are taking IN It,
| Here and there throughout the State they
are passing resolutions against the schemc
and forwarding them to Washington.
| Much more work of that kind might be
| done. For that matter, grand demon
stration by the labor bodies OF the State
would serve useful purpose.
1t is upon persons of small means and
upon those who have no resource but
their daily labor that the burdens i'm
posed by extending the railroad debt will
fall most grievously. As an extension OF
the debt must contemplate an increase OF
transportation charges 10 meet the pay
ments, and as these charges at present are
greater than the State can bear and at the
same time have margin for an extension
OF its industries, il follows that the pass
ing of a funding bill will further impov-
erish the producing classes by enforcing a
curtailment of production. 1t would not
be competent to argue that the railroad
company dare not place its charges at a
figure which would kill its traffic. 1t will
have to do so if it honestly tries to meet
the obligations of a funding BILL If the
view be taken that it will not do so, then
we must admit that it has no intention OF
discharging its obligations.
But we have already seen that any such
power, to be exercised either to swindie
the Government or cripple the State, is
Just what we cannot afford TO grant to
this imperious company. While making
pretense, IN its attack upon the Rail
road Commission's reduced scale of freight
charges. OF a necessity for maintaining
high rates in order that its means of OBJ
serving its obligation to the Government
shall not be impaired, it arbitrarily raises
rates IN the exercise of a power which its
compact with the Panama q Railway
created. In this latter case there was nc
| pretense that the increased revenue was
| desired to apply to the Government debt
The funding bill is not only measure
to eyade the payment of an honest debt
1t goes further and means the condonine
OF the swindle by which the debt wa:
created and maintained and the perpetual
ton of monopoly which will be as I'M
scrupulous and imperious in the future a:
IL has been in the past
The workers of California-farmers, arti
| u
ducers and consumers, constitute the bull
of the population-are the ones at whose
security and prosperity this shameful
measure is aimed. 1t is principally they
who should step forward now and sound
a protest that may be heard across the con
| tinent. This is not time for timidity OF
rcowardice. All expressions that are made
| should be temperate and so framed as te
command the respect and attention of the
| East. Our kinsmen there are slower and
| more conservative than we, and beside:
that they cannot fully understand the evil.
that we have borne so long or appreciate
the disheartening position in which we
should be placed by the passage of the
| funding bill. If we are radical or abusive
we shall certainly lose the Eastern sym.
pathy which belongs to a sense of justice
Let every effort be confined to an assault
on the funding bill. On that proposition
we certainly can count on the sympathy OF
the East. That Will mean victory. The
way will then be clear for an intelligent
handling OF the propositions which will
present themselves.