Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-04-10
Favors Commissaries.

To the State Herald
Awaiting myself of your liberal offer of
free and unlimited space for the dis
cussion of the merchandise check sys-
tenn" as practiced by some of the corpo-
rations operating commissaries in this
district, l will first endeavor to point out
few of the fallacies in the position as
sumed by your paper in its editorial of
Sunday last. Whether your erroneous
statements are from ignorance of the
sytem or demagogy it matters not, only
so far as your own conscience is con-
cerned. They nevertheless will have
tendency to prejudice the uniformed
public, and it is but right that they be
corrected.
You start out with about the only well
founded declaration in the editorial,
which is that the corporations have
perfect right" to conduct stores for the
sale of merchandise but as you proceed
you destroy that gracious privilege by
undertaking to dictate to them how
they shall conduct their business; prop
os,tion, l dare say, you would not for
moment suffer were 1t rendered by them
to the corporation having in hand the
management of the State Herald. The
impra cticability of weekly pay roll is
evidenced by the following: Take. for
instance, the Tennessee Coal, Iron and
Railroad company, the largest corpora
ton in our community; 1t requires at
least one week, with the full office force
working all day and until late in the
night to make up the pay roll; then 1t
takes another day to put the roll up in
convenient and safe condition to be de-
livered to the employees, and it necessi-
tates another half day to make the dis
tribution to the men; thus it will be seen
al a glance how physically impractical
BILE Is a weekly pay roll, when 1t takes
at least nine days to prepare for it, Now,
let US look at 1t from a standpoint of
justice and equity to both the employer
and the employe. AS above stated, 1t
requires at least half day to make de-
livery of the wages to the men, thus
causing a suspension of work for two
whole days in each month under week.
ly pay system This loss falls alike upon
the employe and the employer and Is In
addition to the extra expense required
In preparing these weekly pay rolls.
Does it seem just to demand of the
corporations that they change the es-
tablished and convenient method of~con-
Quoting their business and in addition to
that ask each and every workingman to
contribute of his substance just half
days labor each week towards satisfy
ing selfish idea dominant among the
retail trade" of Birmingham? Thus
you will see Mr.. Editor, that you mod
estly ask that these hard working people
forfeit 10 per cent, or nearly so, of their
earnings as well as demand that the
corpora ton or operator curtail their pro-
duction at least to the same extent, and
all this for the sole benefit of the retail
merchant" of Birmingham, when it is
really questionable whether he would be
benefited at all. Does this seem right
and just?
A correspondent in the Evening News,
signing himself Justice" puts it mildly
when he says On correcting the wild
statement of PRO Bono Publico" that 80
per cent of the wage earnings are abb
sorbed by the commissary) that the
amount spent with them Is not over 40
per cent of the total earnings. when really
the fact is the amount so spent will not
exceed 25 per cent, and the goods pur-
chased with the rs per cent are in the
main cheaper and of as standard brands
or make as can be had from any retail
merchant in Birmingham. No, Mr.. Edi-4
tor instead of asking the employer and
employee to make sacrifices and pay trib-
ute to the retail trade" why should not
the retail trade" make few and extend
thirty days credit to the poor, down.
trodden and abused wage earners of this
district?
The fact is. the men do not want a
weekly, or even a semi-weekly pay day;
it has been tried by the company above
referred to. and all agreed that 1t did
not give satisfaction. But did they de-
sire It, their remedy would be in unanf-
mously demanding 1t. This is the way to
get it If they want It, and not through
demagogue politicians or an unfair press.
The last two sentences in the editorial.
viz: 1.-THE weak are appealing for pro-
lection, and they should not be allowed
to longer appeal in vain" "srhe people
have the power to rule. and they should
do it." sound more appropriate for Gu
ban patriots appeal to his suffering and
bleeding countrymen than a plain, COM
nonsense editorial in these "piping times
of peace and plenty in the great county
of Jefferson.
why use such false and unfounded
means to catch, o few deluded votes
votes, at that, for financial policy that
is cioaked under all this hUrrah about
weekly and semi-monthly pay rolls that
would be more ruinous to our fair coun-
try than II every laboring man In this dis