The Roanoke times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1897-1977, 1897-06-15
DRIVEN TO
FOREIGN LANDS.
Americans Forced to Go to England
to Seek Employment.
THEY srARvE IN THIS COUNTRY
UNDER THE MKINLEY ADMIN
Observation-Disclosures OF Ma
TIVE MECHANICS REDUCED TO
PERJURY IN M'K1NLEY's OWN
STATE - WAGES BEING CUT
EVERYWHERE.

EVERYWHERE.
Cleveland, Ohio, juno 14-So black
and bitter is the spreading misery in
Ohio that native-born mechanics are act
ually leaving their own soil to seek for u
chance to earn bread in England This
is the most terrible and impressive thing
yet seen in the indussrial and CONNER
cial gloom which deepens every day, and
some of these poor fellows have been
driven from their little homes in this
country in which Mark Hanna has risen
to wealth and supreme political power.
Listen to this:
l strolled this morning across the
bridge that leads from the noisy centre Of
Cleveland toward Mr.. Hanna's princey
home on the shore of the great lake.
Inky clouds of smoke whirled up against
the sunlt sky. The gl,ncing murk of
the river was bereath me. / was halted
by one of the local labor leaders who in
troducea me to sturdy, deep chested
young man who carried black glazed
valise. He WAS an engineer. never saw
better face, n stronger nose and chin or
clearer eye.
''l'm Off for England" he said. 81
can't get work in Ohio. and don't want
to give up my trade or be u tramp. Walk
along with me, for can't stand here OF
I'll miss my train
We trudged across the rumbling bridge
in silence for few moments. glanced
Mt the exile out Of the tail of my eye and
saw that his eyelids were red. He had
just taken leave of his brother
cts tough" he said, "I don't know a
soul in England
why don't you Try 10 hang on here
for whileT' I suggested. ''The new
tariff bill will become law by Septem-
Der at the latest, and there may be some
improvement in conditions. 1t is mis-
take to leave your owr country for n
country densely populated. Her condi-
tions are unfavorable to poor men,"
The tariff" he said.bitterly. "What
will the tariff do for me in Septemb Der or
December or any other month? 1t viii
make clothes dearer and sugar dearer and
everything use dearer. How will be
helped by that? The fact is 1 can't get
a job in. Ohio. The shops are closing down
everywhere Or running on short time The
farmers are all ruined. 1t will be worse
next year. Wages are going down. If
can't geta job in my country must 60 to
some other country. A Democrat? No,
I'm Republican. l voted for Mckinley,
and Pm not sorry for it either. I think
he is good man. don't know what is
the matter with the country. All know
is that prosperity has not come, and is
not going to come for long time"
And so after that touching incident
took the trouble to follow it up, and
learned that Il great many engineers and
other mechanics have been leaving Cleve-
land to seek employment in England.
The local labor unions have received re-
ports on the subject. Some of the men
have asked for cards to the British labor
unions. Is There thoughtful man or
woman in the United States who can read
these facts without emotions
No one can blame the manufacturers
fer cutting down wages or closing their
shops, for most of the factories in Ohio
are being run practically without profit at
this moment. 1t is not because of any
foreign competition, but simply because
the farmers and the toiiers in towns and
cities are too poor to buy. 1t is an abso.
lutte fact that the amount of house rent
now overdue in this State alone amounts
to several millions of dollars Go where
within Cincinnati, in Columbus. in
Cleveland, in Toledo, in Dayton, in SAN
duSky, in Canton-the real estate men
all tell the same story-tbat they cannot
collect their rents-and have seen lists
of at least thousand persons who are
six, seven or eight months behind in their
payments.
AS have already shown in n previous
dispatch, the foreclosure of mortgages.
assignments and other records of failure
for the present year in Ohio aggregate
more than $50, 100000. This is the pros
perity that has come through the great
garden State of the Union in this wear of
Republican rule! Why, even the employees
of Cowell & Hubbard, the Cleveland man.
ufacturinR jewellers. who went to Can
ton with yellow hats to hear Mckinley's
promises last fall, ARE to have their wages
cut down ten per cent, and these very
men have been asked to take about for
signature petition asking for the cleo
tion of Mr.. Hanna to the Senate at the
next session of the legislature. There is
n CHASTITY humor in it all.
The Standard Oil Company, which has
just closed It's plant here and thrown n
thousand men out of employment, took
them to Canton with golden caps in those
bright days when votes were wanted
The great Cleveland rolling mills have
cut down the wages of men working by the
ton from 20 to 45 per cent. within the
past ten days. The leaders of Organized
labor--and have talked to men of All
parties-say that there are more than 15.
600 men out OF employment in Cleveland
today, not counting raw laborers. More
than one. half of the bench moulders in
Cleveland are out of work The earnings
of bench moulders now average not more
than 81 week. The American wire
works tried to get it's men to accent re-
duction in wages, and, failing in that.
work them on short time. There are three
men for every job on the docks The
large bicycle factories have almost sus.