The San Francisco call., 1897-01-30
AMONG The WORK|NGM EN-
A Big Mass. s.Meeting TO Protest
Against the Sailor
Laws.
The Southwick Convict Goods Bill
Iudorsed-Tenem nt.H House
Male Cigars.

Several matters of interest were dis
cussed at the meeting of the San Francisco
Labor Council last evening. The first
was a resolution passed recently by the
Ironmolders' Union indorsing the South
wick bill, now pending before Congress.
The resolution recited that the industries 8
of California have been for years crippled
by the unjust and unfair competition with
the Eastern State prisons that have
shipped their convict goods into the Pacific
Coast markets and sold the same as free
goods, but al ruinously low prices. Many
buy these articles under the impression
that they are the product of free men.
The Southwick bill provides that all such
goods be marked or branded so that the
public may know what it is purchasing.
The resolution says:
Resolved, By Ironmolders' Union No. 164 of
San Francisco, that we earnestly request the
Congressional Committee on Labor and Capt.
tai to report favorably on said Southwick BILL
now in its possession, at an early date, that
the same may be adopted by Congress and go
into operation at once. SO that our people may
The council indorsed the resolution and
the secretary was directed to send copies
of the same to the committee named and
L
at Washington.
The delegates from the Sailors Union
stated that on next Wednesday evening
there will be mass-meetlng at Metro
politan Temple, the purpose of which is
to protest again st enactments in the mari
time laws now being made by Congress.
Ed Rosenberg stated that Senator Frye
of Maine is doing all in his power to revive
the sailor slavery of former days, when
seamen could be fogged at the direction
of brutal masters and be i'm prisoned in
American ports on the slightest excuse
and where no crime is committed. He
cited the case of the foAr Arago sailors on
this coast, who were imprisoned for nine
months simply because they declined TO
sail from northern port after having
signed articles in this port The United
States Supreme Court decided in favor of
the ship-owners, and it is likely that the
men will be imprisoned several months
longer when their cases are dis posed of in
the United States District Court. The
meeting will be addressed by Mayor
Phelan, James Barry, H. H. Hutton and
other prominent speakers, who will voice
a protest against the injustice to the sea-
farlng men.
1t was decided to hold the meeting
under the auspices of the Labor Council.
The offic r, nominated at the last meet
ing, as published in The CALL, were
elected and installed.
Michael Raphael, business agent OF the
cigar-makers' unions of New York, deliv-
cred an interesting address upon the sub
iect of tenement t-house-made cigars. He
spoke particularly of one large firm that
employs thousands of persons who live in
the vilest of surroundings and scarcely
earn SO week when the whole family la
bors. The cigars made under these con-
ditions are regarded and sold by the mil
lions on the Pacific Coast as the best. He
is making fight against the firm in ques-
tion because the firm refuses to better the
condition of its employees. The council
passed q resolution indorsing the move
ment of the blue label crusade that Mr..
Raphael represents.