The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-12-31
ON TRADES UNIONIsM
w. u. MAHON ADDRESSES A LARGE
AUDIENCE At TURNER HALL.
"A Commercial Age In which Every
Man Seeks 10 Advance His
Own interest"

large and apprccia,ive audience greet.
ed Mr.. w. D. Mahon, president OF the
Amalgamated Association OF Street Rail-
way Men. at Turner hall last night
IL was the third appearance of Mr.. Ma
hon before a Houston audience and the
widespread reports OF his eloquence at
tracted large crowd.
In prefacing his remarks. Mr.. Malun re-
turned thanks TO the trades unionists and
citizens OF Houston for the many courte..
sizes and kind treatment accorded him on
this and former visits to the city, and add
ed that it would be his pleasure to address
those present ON the subject of trades
unionsm and it's objects.
Trades unionism." said be. lis buai-
ness organization. There Is nothiqe Wis
ionary or imaginary In 1t. 1t is purely a
business organization, born of necessity
and product of the present economic con-
ditions. 1t is not the worI of any indi-
| yidual. but IL is the outcome vi certain
| conditions existing in this. the CONNER
ciai age Of the world. For the past seven
| tyiive years we have been passing through
| what is known as the commercial age.
The human family has passed down the
| rocky road OF time through various stages.
various phases and various ages, untll
now we find ourselves in the commercial
age. We nud ourselves in an age where
the uppermost question Ia every mau's
| mind Is, How can | advance my own in
dividual interests That l. the watchWord
OF the human family today and the para
mount question in every mans mind,
whether he be in business or a wage
worker
The question then, comee to us as
wage workers: How can we advance our
individual interests After due study and
thought we have reached the conclusion
that we can hest serve our own interests
through the trades unions and the organ
ization OF labor.
Il come not before you to claim that
! trades uLiouism is the remedy for every
i'll that besets the human family. but / do
| claim that 1t Is an organization that is OF
benefit to the human family, and an or
eanzauOn In which the wage worker pools
his interest for the purpose Of advancing
himself aud his fellowman.
Some people want 10 remove the trades
urion movement, but II they do they must
first remove the trusts and combinations
OF capital that make It necessary.
OF Philadelphia sent a committee 10 the
manager of the company to demand shorter
hours and living conditions. He said 10
them This Is a business organization
hat | represent, II Is organized TO do
business in this city and under the laws
OF the city and State We are not hui
name society nor ore we phi,anthropists.
We look upon labor as commodity upon
the market and VIC purpose to buy IL whore
we can get 1t the cheapest. My friends.
I at Is the sentiment of the railway man
aeer and il Ia the sentiment OF the whole
business world today. Flow do you as
wage workers propose TO meet 1t? DO YOU
| intend 10 meet 1t as individuals? You can
easily imagine how much you would
| amount to as individuals. No. my friends.
| we Will meet 1t Just as does the business
| man. We Will organize the wage workers
and go to the railway manager and say to
| him as he has said to us. We are not a
humane society. but we are organized for
business That is tho aim and object OF
| trades unionism
| Who are the men that compose labor
| organizations9 They are the men who
| build the palaces of this land and live in
| novels They are the men and women who
weave the finest OF silks and fabrics aud
vet go clothed in rags and tatters They
| are the people who produce oil of the ne
cessitles and lIxuries of life and go hun.
CRY themselves.
What do we find surrounding us toda,
MS peopleY We find powerfully organ.
| ized meat trust. n wheat trust that corners
| the bread of the laud and gigantic oil
trust. We also find coal trust tibet sets
the price upon every Mound of coal used
IN the country, that said TO us in The en-
IRENE north last winter, You must pay
more for your coal than YOU ever paid III
the history of this country. and then
turned right around ana said to the miners.
| You must work for lower wages than ever
| before
These, my friends. are the conditions
that have brought forth tho organization
| OF wage workers and given birth to the
| trades union movement"
| During his speech Mr. Mahon related A
number of humorous anecdotes. as we'll as
| some very pathetic experiences which he
has had In his travels through Che mining
| regions and different industrial sections
| OF the country. His address was frequent
u interrupted by applause. and when he
had concluded there was a grand rush for
| tue stage by large numSer who Wished
| 70 greet him personally and shake him by
| the hand,