The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-02-03
IT HAS GONE ASTRAY
LABOR PEOPLE ALLEGE THAT OF
THE STATE LABOR
BUREAU.
THE TALL PINE NARRATES
WHAT is EXPECTED TO BE ESTAB-
LEsHED 3Y SIR. POWERS
ANTAGONISTS.
HAS a GENEALOGICAL TREE.
Said the Commissioner Employed
State Heip TO Fix Up Il Family
Record.

The Powers labor bureau inVeStiga-
ton was begun last night in the rail-
road committee room of the senate. 1t
was decided to have the meetings open
instead of executive.
W. w. Erwin appeared as attorney
for the labor organizations and l.. G.
Powers appeared in person.
Senator Young was unable to be
present, but the other members, SEN
ators Dunn, Ringdal, Larson and Pet
erson, were there.
Mr.. Erwin stated that the labor or
CARNATIONS would make the following
claims:
First-That tax statistics collected had been
suppressed when they were found not to con-
form to the ideas which they were intended
to uphold.
Second-That Henry Eckman, while in the
employ OF the state, was permitted to work
two weeks for the Republican state central
committee, drawing his pay from the state,
nevertheless.
Third-That several months were spent in
the collection and tabulation of -four Stats
tics, which have never been published, and
the expense of gathering which is an abso-
lutte loss to the state.
Fourth-That employees of the state were
employed by Mr.. Powers to prepare gene
illogical tree of his family.
Fifth-That Mr.. Powers took Ekman, Val
esch, Mayo and Hammond tc Rainy Lake
region to inspect private claims, and that
their salary went on just the same
Sixth-That Messrs. Powers and Mayo spent
two months at Leech lake, beginning about
Aug. 20. 1895, and that their salary was un-
interrupted
Seventh-That for two months last summer
Mr.. Powers permitted his assistant Walter
Hammond, to devote his time almost
tirely to the organization of gold and other
political clubs. and that he was during that
time not attending to his official duties.
With each claim were presented the
names of witnesses whom it was de-
sired to have present, in most cases
former employees of the department.
G. c. Collins then read a long state
ment Of the charges made by the labor
organizations, Of which the following
is an abstract:
The labor bureau was created at the request
of organized labor in Minnesota We feel
that it has distinctly departed from the in
tent of its creators, and that, now man
aged 1t violates both the spirit and letter
of the law prescribing its duties. The sum
OF $l2 200 is appropriated annually to enable
the labor bureau to carry out the provisions
of the law creating it.
The law provides that it shall be the duty
Of the labor commissioner to collect and pre-
sent to the legislature biennial reports on or
before the 1st Gay in January, presenting sta
tistical details relating to all departments
of labor in the state, namely:
Cooperation, strikes and other labor diff
hculties, trades unions and other labor Organi-
cations, their effect on labor and capital and
such other matters relating to the commercial
industrial, social, educational, moral and
sanitary conditions of the laboring classes
and the permanent prosperity of the respec-
tive industries of the state. The legislature
does not ask for a report of political condi-
tons. This report the Purchasing Power
Of Cold violates every provision of the state
law governing the collection and presentation
of labor statistics. The statilicS Of which it
is composed are not gathered in the state.
There is not word in regard to co-ooera-
ton, not line on strikes, not page devoted
to trades unions, not chapter on their eff
fects on labor and capital. There is abso-
lutely no space devoted to the commercial
Industrial, social educational, moral
itary conditions of the laDoring classes.
There is no notice taken of the prosperity Of
the respective industries Of the state.
Let us assume that, instead of taking the
reports from the national bureau of agricul-
ture, Mr.. Powers had taken the published
records of the national bureau of labor sta
tistics and filed a volume with rearrange-
ments, tabulations and deductions drawn
from that material. Does your honorable
committee suppose for one instant that the
labor people the taxpayers of the state
would permit him to evade the plain duty of
collecting original labor statistics in the state
and instead palm off a book of secondhand
statistics, for which $24. 400 of the states
money would be spent? We make this illus
tration to show you that we would still con-
slider such a report in violation of the law
even had labor topics been the subject of the
statistical rehagh; but evidently Mr. Powers
did not desire that even in the remotest
sense it should have any relation to labor
Purchasing Power of Cold shows that it
has an agricultural and not a labor basis
Here the titles of several chapters
Corn, oats, wheat; wheat corn and oats in
combination; barley, rye, buckwheat, potatoes,
live stock.
On the ~basis Of the facts taken from the
report, we suggest that the department be
re-christened an agricultural department.
The labor people should not be saddled with
such a production. If this report is to stand
unqestioned, let the farmers of the state
have the credit and the glory of it's remark
able performances. We mention this point be-
cause the representatives of the rural dis
tricts Of the state much opposed to
the institution of the labor bureau. Now that
1t in turn completely ignores the labor con-
ditions Of the state and devOtes itself to
secondhand statistics of agriculture, we
think the farming interests of the state
ought to note the fact, if they have not al
ready done SO.
- In addition. the Purchasing Power of
Cold is a political document. 1t discusses
the one question which was the issue at
the recent election. The document itself
shows this. From pages II to Is and on q and
Be- are continual references to both the gold
and silver questions as political questions
For instance, ON page a. 1t says:
Have these recent price changes been
caused wholly or in part, or wholly by