The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1899-08-24

como Of such an institution II II were
rightly carried on and nightly devel-
oped.
"Dut," says some one. haven't these
Institutions sometimes been failure?'
Yes. Every great movement has been .
failure at some time. Application Of
the steam power failure, electro-teleg-
raphy failure, railroading failure,
but now the chief successes of the
world.
"But," says some one, ''why talk Of
surplus being put by laborers into CO.
operative associations, when the vast
multitude Of toilers in this country are
struggling for their daily bread and
have no surplus?" Ireply: Put into
my hand the money spent by the Ia
boring classes of America for rum and
tobacco. and l will establish cooperative
associations in all parts Of the land.
some of them mightier than any finan-
sial institutions of the country. We
spend in this country over 500, ,ooO.ooS
svery year for tobacco. We spend over
81, 500. 100000 directly or indirectly for
rum. The laboring classes spend their
share of this money. Now, suppose the
laboring man who has been expending
his money In those directions should
just add up how much he has expended
during these past years and then sup
pose that that money was put into q 90
operative association and then suppose
he should have all his friends in tou,
who had made the same kind Of expend-
iture. do the same thing, and that
should be added up and put into CO
operative association. And then take
oil that money expended for overdrsss
and overstyle and overliving on the part
of toiling people in order that they may
appear rs we'll as persons who have
more ineome-gather that all up, and
you could have cooperative associations
all over this land.
am not saying anything now about
trades unions. You want to know what
I think of trades unions. think they
are most beneficial in some directions,
and they have q specific object and In
this day, when there are vast monopo-
lies-a Thousand monopolies concen-
trating the wealth Of the people into
the possession Of o few men, unless
the laboring men Of this country and oil
countries band together they will go
under. There is lawful use Of trade
union, but then there 10 an unlawful
uss of trade union. II II means sym
pathy in time Of sickness, II II means
finding work for people when they are
out Of work. II Il means the improve
ment of the financial, the moral or the
Deligious condition Of the laboring
classes. that 10 all right. Do not artists
band together in an art union7 Do not
singers band together In Handel and
Haydn societies? Do not Newspaper
men band together In press elubs3 Do
not ministers Of religion band together
In conferences and associations? There
10 not in all the land city where clergy
men do not come. together. many Of
them once . week, to talk over Affairs.
For these reasons you should not blame
labor guilds. When they are doing
their legitimate work, they are most
admirable, but when they come around
With drum and hfe and flag and drive
people OF from their toll, from thsir
scaffoldings. from their factories, then
they are nihilistic. then they are com.
munistic, then they are barbaric, then
they are . curse. II . man wants to
stop work, let him stop work, but he
cannot stop me from work.
But now suppose that all the laboring
classes banded together for benefcient
purposes In cooperative association un-
der whatever name they put their
means together. Suppose they take the
money that they waste In rum and to-
baceo and use II for the elevation of
their families, for the education Of their
children, for their moral. intellectual
and religious improvement, what diff
fersnt state Of things we would have
in this country and they would have
In Great Britain!
Do you not realize the fact that men
work better without stimulant? You
say. "Will you deny the laboring men
this help which they get from strong
drink, borne down as they are with
many anxieties and exhausting work ?"
would deny them nothing that is good
for them. would deny them strong
drink, II I had the power, because II 1,
damaging to them. My father said: "l
became temperance man in early life
because I found that in the harvest
field. while was naturally weaker than
the other men. could hold out longer
than any Of them. They took stimu.
liant and took none."
l know . gentleman very well who
has over 1000 hands in his employ. ]
said to him some years ago when there
was great trouble in the labor market:
"How are you getting on with you,
men?" "Oh," he said. II have nc
trouble" "Why." said. "haye not you
had any strikes?" "Oh, no." he said
II never had any trouble" "what plan
do you pursue?" He said: II will tel
you. All my men know every year Jus,
how matters stand. Every little while
call them together and saw: Now