The San Francisco call., 1896-09-30
THE LESSON OF
4 LABOR MAP
Where Toll Is Free and
Where It Is Veritable
Bondage.
China, Japan and India Among
the Lands, of Cruel, Ill
Paid Drudgery.
AMERICA MAY PROTECT MEN
On This Continent, by Right Use of
the Ballot. the Worker May
Maintain Freedom.

Q No argument that can be made no Grafton
that can be delivered, can set so plainly
before the American workingman the dan
ger that threatens as the accompanying
map sets it forth. In what a small part of
the earth is labor well regarded and well
paid!' In what a vast proportion of the
earth slabor still unorganlzed, poorly paid
and without consideration in the affairs
o of government In only few of the
many countries of the world have the
people discovered themselves, learned
their own power and been accorded the
right to walk erect in the dignity of con-
scious manhood. In this America leads
the world, has led the world and must
continue to lead the world if the working
world is to be led out of bondage to
hereditary wealth, hereditary aristocracy
and hereditary right to rule those who work
for others to enjoy. In America alone are
there no classes, no social barriers which
doom the children of toll to lowly stations
In life, and in America alone are all men
accorded equality OF opportunity to work
out their own careers as am bition and
capacity may equip them. In all the rest
OF the world the children of toll are more
or less debarred from Advancement by
law, by custom, by hereditary entailment
ofwealth or by power of royalty. Look at
the black border line which, in the above
map, surrounds the United States, with it's
liberty ofindividul enterprise, its freedom
from the tyranny of royalty and its we'll
paid labor, and then remember that that
black border line on the map represents
no Chinese wall which required
years in building and which it would
take years to tear away, but only an
imaginary line, line declared by law
which any Congress can repeal, any ad-
% verse ma ajority brush away. Look at that
line. look at the vast surrounding world
OF low wages, pauper wages and ceaseless
labor of millions practically without
wagessall striving to break tns barrier
down-and then ask yourself If American
labor is not in jeopardy, if the warning
here given to American workingmen be
in fact an alarmist scare raised for politi-
cal purposes or a solemn and candid
declaration of an impending peril.
o 1t will be noticed that in the above map
c the oceans are foreshortened, narrowed
down until the earth's surface is no
oolonger three fourths water and one-fourth
land, but the oceans are not reduced to a
narrower limit on the map than steam
navigation has reduced them, practicaliv
oln the commerce of the world. San Fran
d: cisco is seventeen to nineteen DAYS from
Yokohama. twenty-five to tWenty-eight
days from Hongkong, forty to forey-fi
! days from Calcutta, twenty-four days from
Sydney, and it costs no more to ship ton
of freight from either of these places to
San Francisco than from San Francisco
by rail to Ere esno or Bakersfield. ton of
flour is carried from San Francisco to
Hongkong for So in gold, less rate than
is charged for hauling a ton of wheat
from Tulare 10 Port Costa, and the average
merchandise rate between San Francisco
and Yokohama or Hongkong is $40 per
..o ton or per each forty cuoic feet of space
occupied in the ship. On bolt of muslin,
silk dress pattern or pair of shoes such
freight rate would scarcely figure into,
the retail cost OF the article. 1t would
amount to no more than the drayage from
wharf to store, and all water rates be-
tween the above points and New York
are not greater than to San Francisco
having been quoted as low as 40 shillings
per ton. With sailing vessels a much
lower rate than above quoted can be Sc
cured, and for all practical purposes these
Asiastic points are as near TO San Fran
cisco as are New york, PhiladeIphia or
Boston. Therefore we must not rest in
in any fancied security from com petition
with Asiatic cheap labor that is based on
distance and cost of transportation.
Steam navigation has well-nigh annihi-
lated distance and reduced cost of freight
to 2 mere bagateIle in the selling price of
any article of apparel or household utility.
SIX hundred million workersl That
iso'the mum Der of tireless toilers Asia
c has to offer TO the industrial world,
the United States it is estimated that
there are now fifteen millions OF people
c who work for wages. To keep these en-
ployed and contented taxes-oyertaxes-
tine best statesmansnip of our time; but
what is this handful to the teemlng
masses 7of Japan, China, Indo- China,
India, Siberia and the Malaysian penin-
sula and the archipelago, who have not1
yet discovered themselves or learned that
there Is anything in this world to be de-
sired beyond full stomach and a warmly
clad body Not only are the men of these
. countries tiretess workers. but the women
also and the little children must work or
starve, and lowly indeed is their standard
OF living. 1t is the duty of our better
western civilization to lift out OF the mire
OF ignorance and superstition, OF ceaseless
toll and pitiless deprivation, this vast
hulkirg horde of depressed humanity,
teaching 1t self-respect the power of or
ganization and the rights of men; but it is
no part OF the duty of western civilization
TO permit itself to be dragged down to the
sodden level OF an oriental scale of civili-
zation, standard of living and of wages.
Howoto lift the one up and not drag the
other down is to be the supreme prob
lem of all the coming age, if not
the supreme problem of all the
ages. To cry a warning to American
workingmen of the impending danger
is not to perform the function of an alarm
ist for political effect, but is to confer
needful service at an opportune time. The
only way to ward off the danger of de-
grading American labor through Asiatic
competition is to face it at the outset
Averting the eyes from it will not frighten
japan has 10000, 600 people. 1t has am
bition. The fires of nationalism burn
fiercely in every japanese breast and race
pride CLOVIS as fercely as the fires of ma
tionalism burn. Japan has an area con-
siderably in excess of that of Great Britain,
a more equable climate, abundant water
power, great mineral wealth and good
steam coal that can be delivered TO con-
sumers for less than 81 per ton. While
not fertile in invention the Japanese peo
pie excel in imitation, and as deft weavers
and spinners have been developed in
Japan in ten years as were developed in
Manchester, England, in three. sener-
atoms. Japan has no international patent
laws with other nations, and when she
finds machine that suits her she buys
- To- AWHA