The evening times., 1898-11-17
SAY THAT LABOR IS
NOT REPRESENTED
Bitter Arraignment of the IN
dustrial Commission.
ALLEGED TO BE PARTISAN
The President Appointed Nine Re.
pab!icaHs. Three From Ohio.
Working People Lose Confidence.
Congress Mns InSestiaGfe-

According to opinions expressed by
many people, and il is asserted that they
are indorsed by lawyers WAC have ex-
amined the matter President Mckinley
has not adhered TO the spirit of an act
OF Congress which became law during
the latest session of that body. Ii is even
said that his action in Ignoring the ac-
eepted intent and meaning of the act may
be the occasion of dissension in the ensu-
ing session.
The cause of the trouble is the act ere
ating the Industrial Commission. which
is now meeting in this city. The act
clearly states that the Commission shall
b. non-partisan and shall fairly repre-
sent the different Industries and employ
ments." These men were to be selected
! from all parties and from the various
sections of the country, according to the
act. and herein has the President violat-
ed the law.
His appointments have been all Repub-
/ iicans. nine Of them. and notwithstand-
| ing the fact that the act 1zs construct
| ed SO that labor might have representa-
! ton, only one man on the whole Com
mission represents wage workers. and
/ this man is lieutenant of Mark Hanna.
Another complaint is that the West is not
! represented. Not one of the Mckinley
appointees comes from State west OF
| the Mississippi. and, while the Commis-
sioners were TO be widely scattered, the
/ President has appointed no less than
| three from one State, Ohio.
The nine apPOintees are as follows: S.
| y. ID. North, Massachusetts, protective
/ tariff expert: M. ID. Ratchford, Ohio.
president Mine Workers and Hanna
agent; \. J. Harris, Ohio, ex-leutenant
governor of Ohio; J. L. Kennedy, Ohio
4 correspondent and politician; e. a.
Smythe South Carolina. cotton mill own
er; j. NJ Farquhar. New York, eX-Repub-
lican congressman; T. ". Phillips Penn
/ syIyania, oil producer; A S. Harris,
I North Carolina, mine owner; Eugene
COnger, Michigan, politician.
4 These appointees with five congress-
men and five senators. are supposed to
| represent the wage workers of the cOun-
4 try, but the wage workers cannot see
it in this light, and they are appealing
I 10 their representatives to have matters
changed SO that they may have some
/ representation on their own commission.
The cause Of the drafting of the bill
| for the Commission originally was the
! fact that no wage workers are ever elect
cd To Congress. therefore, the working
class was entirely without representation
by their -skvR people. The bill was to
give labor a representative commission
which would consider and recommend
legislation to meet the problems present
ed by labor. agriculture and capital. each
! of these three being equally represented.
After the bill had passed the House by a
unanimous vote. Senator Aldrich amend
ed it to give capital or the employing
class, majority vote and to have capital
4 represented by five congressman and five
/ senators.
These were to be appointed by the
Speaker and Vice President while labor $
representation was to consist of nine
/ members. who were TO be appointed by
4 the President.
The bin was agreed to in this form and
in spite of the protests Of railroads and
other corporations it also passed the
Senate by a unanimous vote. This was
the only labor bill which was agreed
upon and had the support of every labor
union in the country
Ii is low claimed that the corporations
seeing the danger of such commission
If truly representative, fortified their inter.
ests by seeing that the commission was
| packed and that none but men having
Hanna's o. h. were appointed Thus, il
| is claimed. has the President deprived
labor of representation by violating the
| letter and spirit of the act.
A precedent was set for the President
by the Vice President and Speaker Reed
| who appointed their share of the COM
mission very impartially. But when the
President was given opportunity to APP
| point the nine labor representatives he
so far forgot himself as to make these
| all Republicans and to give labor only
one representative, Ratchford. and he a
I safe Hanna man. Not one of the other
/ eight has any interest whatever with
labor and seven of them represent the
| employing class.
The plan of the labor men and of many
of the congressman and senators is to
force the President to vacate at least one
|, half the positions in the commission
filed by partisan Republicans and mem
bers of the employing class and give labor
a ratio Of representation according tC
the provisions of the act.
Many of the Western congressman and
senators are indignant that the Wes1
should be ignored by Mckinley and state
that they will vote against the confirma
tion Of every one of his appointees. The
law has been clearly violated by tbs
President and the friends of the commits
sion bill think that a very little com
, plant viii quickly cause him to recon
slider his act and clear himself in thu
eyes of the laboring people of the coun
try.