Hutchinson gazette., 1898-10-06

| lhohSo ~ bHp ihppl hSlu VI hOINllo
race, once slave, stlll operates potent.
ally against organized effort, legiRlA-
tive and social justice 10 tho wago-
earuer. Mono disputes that the south,
with difficulty, respects labor, because
labor Is the condition Of those who
formerly were slaves,
Realizing the great danger threaten.
Ing the wage-earner'a standard Of life
and hence endangering FREQ institu-
tlons, congress crystalzed into law tho
demand Of organized labor and It's sym-
puthics, TO prohibit Chinese immigrA-
tion into the United stateA
II is true too, TO u lessor degree, but
IN like manner, that the entire antag-
onism OF labor TO the competition Of
convlcts with free and honest mon, Ia
less n matter OF material and direct In
jury than Of sure instructive feeling
that wage.earners must be degraded
and weakened by being brought into
close rivalry with criminals, The fund.
Rmental principle In both cases Is that
everything possible should bo done to
keep tho dignity, worth nnd manhood
OF the men who live by manual work
before all classes In tho United States.
II this promise DO true, how vital
then Is the Importance OF saving Amer,
lean labor from the evil influence Of
close and open competition Of millions
OF semi. i.barbaric laborers In the Philip
pine Islands2 The Chinese mills there,
built with European capital, and Allied
with operatives hired for few cents
day, are monuments OF infamy, Are
there not numerous object lessons In
our own country on the possibility OF
American management Of Philippine
lRbor2
Ia II not difficult TO arouse the peo-
pie Of our own country to tho condi,
tion OF our own wage-earnersp Do we
not know tho obstacles which havo
stood in the way to secure reasonable
limitation In the hours OF labor for tho
women and children workers OF the
south, because Of former slavery therep
How hard tho taslt OF arousing the
sentiment OF the people OF our country
TO secure legislative and social relief
for our fellow toilers of tho southern
states is scarcely known outside Of tho
southern ranks OF those who have de-
voted their lives TO the upbuilding OF
the manhood OF our wage.enrners OF
country, How, then will 1t be possible
to protest against any labor conditions,
however hard, which may prevail on
the other side of the world among
people Of q different race, and low In
the scale of civilization2 1t 10 highly
improbable, scarcely possible.
1t may DO urged that the Thirteenth
amendment TO the constitution OF the
United States declares that mo slavery
nor involuntary seryltude, except as q
punishment for crime, whereof tho
party shall havo been duly convicted,
shall exist within the United States,
or in any place subject to their juris'
diction." / am free 10 say that until
quite recently we should have been
Justified in maintaining that this con-
stitutional guarantee would have saved
us from any degree Of slavery, or a
condition OF labor partaklng Of slav'
cry"
But the supreme court Of the United
States, in decision rendered January
%, 1907, held that tho specific per-
formance OF q contract TO labor Is not
inherently against either the consatu'
tion or public policy. commend ia
the attention of our people not only
the decision to which ! refer, but the
dissenting opinion Of Justice Harlan,
pointing out the grave dangers which
threaten the workers. even OF our own
country,
Should the Philippines be annexed,
and the labor conditions Of Hawaii re-
main unchanged, we can expect our
courts to interpret the laws OF the
United States to mean differently when
applied to our workers than when ap'
piled to the workers Of Hawaii and
Philippines? With tho decision to
which have already referred as ba'
sis, practically justifying involuntary
servitude, though at present to lin
tied extent, Is there not sufficient dam
gel ahead to warrant us in entering an
emphatic protest against the possibili-
ty of allying to ourselves conditions
which may strike at the very vitals OF
free institutions? l contend that no
country can become truly great, no re-
public can be long maintained, which
has its foundation in debased order, or
is threatened with u degraded man
hood
Weylerism signifies the butchery and
starving to death Of the enemies Of