Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1899-07-28

A short time ago Mr.. Samuel Com
pers, president of the American Fed,
GRAFTON of Labor. delivered an address
before representatives of the organ
lied charities of New England. He
discussed the question of organized
labor and charity, whether organized
or unorganized, its influence upon
workers, and it's practical results. From
his address. which was long, take the
following striking paragraphs:
You, who have had large expert
ence in the giving of charity to the
people of Boston, will know from your
own experience that seldom, If ever,
do you find wage Garner, who holds
a clear card of membership in the
union of his trade, asking you for
charity. The difference in the wages
union worker is often made up in
charity; and it is one of the argu-
ments that employers often apply to
the non-union workmen, that they can
tion which would be emphatically re-
scented by union worker, To say that
an industry does not admit or will
not allow the payment of a living wage
is libel upon the human race. If
this table is of any value to man, if
coat is Of use to man, it is worth
while the paying of a living wage in
its production. Employers nibble in
this attempt to undermine each other.
They nibble at it in reduction of
wages here, and an attempt to reduce
them there, the same, for instance, as
we saw about year ago with the Ark
wright club of Massachusetts. We saw
the New England manufacturers re-
duce wages in the cotton, the textile
industry, in order to meet the southern
INDUSTRIES and Immediately after that,
we found the textile manufacturers In
the south reducing wages to meet the
c,ft In the east; and the result was
that this nibbling process has gone on
at both ends. 1 know that during the
panic Of the winter of 1893, when the
industrial crisis came upon us, hap
pened to be in Chicago. All the
churches and charity organizations
had united for the purpose Of alleviat-
ing the misery of the people. 1t is
fact, that at that time, had 1t not been
not only for the charities, but for the
free lunch counters in the city of { l.
cago, there would have been those who
would have starved. This statement
make is upon the authority of ran
who never in his life drank a glass of
liquor, man of eminent responsibility
in the city of Chicago. During that
entire time, charity organi2ationists
were unable to record the fact that
one man with a union card in his
pocket made application for charity. l
imagine that after all, we want to do
that which is right, that which will
bring about the best results. know
that il the charity organizations and
the charity workers were to give up
their work at once, the disarrange-
ment of affairs of those who have come
to look upon your charity as part Of
their necessity, and are depending up
on 1t, they would suffer; but 1t is my
deliberate judgment that the time
would not ba far distant when We
would have less charity, but we would
have more justice. Men who once az
cept charity, unless their conditions
very materially change, are likely to
become accustomed to depend upon
that charity, and make no great effort
to work out of the rut More! More
today, and more tomorrow; and then
we shall want more and more. Con-
tinual struggle and protest until we
have our due. Then the work of char
lty in which SO many of us have been
engaged will cease. Then 1 think you |
will find your eleemosynary occupa-
lions will be gone, and you will have
10 look for some other line where your
and good nature can be