The labor world., 1899-12-16

I
and zinc district, by which the mine
are closed and the workers. thrown ou
of employment, Now the. reports from
there tell us that Joplin has man5
hold-ups." When the camp had worl
| for all there was little or no crime
now that men are forced into idleness
are forced to CONT crime. But then &
sensible system that would do away
with strikes and lockouts would pro-
duce revolution! And there are some
so foolish that they blame> the mer
and interests that produce conditions
that always create crime! @'
| We are now assured that the money
that came West to handle the crops
is all finding it's way back to New York
and. that it will be there by the first
Of the year. The crops are all there
too. Just: where the West and South
come in is not so plain. The East will
have the money and the crops: too
The East revels in the wealth produced
by the North and South.
+':. IL = ~
( The last legislature of Ohio passed a
special act authorizing the City OF De-
fiance to vote on public ownership; of
the electric light plant. The city voted
overwhelmingly in favor Of it and when
the city council ignored it and award
ed the: contract to a private corpora
tion.I But of course the council was
not .'inauenced'' in it's. action by the
corporation. Thus !. does representa-
tives represent the people. Free and
self governing people! Great is the
American voting king. .!rs...., !,
Ez4 4 4 4 ~:
(: +. So easy a thing is wealth to make
that with modern appliances, under
right, conditions, 400 pounds of wheat
in the sack is the product of an hours
labor of one person; $50 pounds OF rice
in an hour; one bushel Of tomatoes In
an hour; ten pounds Of common leaf
tobacco in an hour; three and q half
pounds Of Spanish seed leaf tobacco
in an hour; one landslide blow, cast
iron, oak beams and handles, in four
hours; best pair Of mems shoes in
three hours; 50 feet of 9-inch sand and
cement sewer pipe in one hour; best
broom in Is minutes; best body Brus-
sells carpet, one yard in Is minutes,
a fine buggy is four days; and so On.
for the entire list sof things that we
work for These are figures the United
states government furnishes 81 in u the
thirteenth annual report Of the labor
commissioner, as the time cost of pro-
= ~ nr%fo Hhoco Sfo ota.
ments that cannot be disputed. =
&t4 "a, II. :. as *% 4
It is stated, whether true or not, that
there is three times as much whisky
sold In this country that there is rev.
enue paid ortthat is imported. BY this
system the public is swindled out Of
more than half the revenue and thou
sands Of men become thieves and poi
soners Of their fellow men because the
conditions are favorable to the adulter-
alton. You, know this you joke over;
it, it lis common: talk, and yet your
moral sense is so depraVed by the sys-.
TEN Of private gain, that you have lost
sight Of the fact that you are a party
to the crimes by your support Of the
system.
rs y r
The, Tacoma Ledger is authority for
the statement that the Northern Pac-
iflc has just purchased the Post-Intel-
ligencers. of Seattle, Wash., paying
$325,0O0 for it. The same mail brings
me a copy. Of the last paper in which
it! takes fall with Debs. You see the
railroads have to control the %Dress in
order to control the people, for the peo-!
pie are the creatures of their reading,
like children and when you see the
daily press take a stand on any public
question it is simply the railroad and
other corporation and trust owners
telling the people what they should be-:
Heve-What it is in the interest of the
trusts to- have the people believe. And
that is how you get your education on
public affairs and why you hold your
political views. You are right, you are.
,..+" -, = y,
There is no doubt England has mat
ters arranged for the half hundred
American warships in Asiatic waters
to protect her Chinese possessions
Kansas City Daily Times, Oct. 80.
From whom has she got such an ar
rangement? When did the American
people give their. consent to turn the
American navy over to help British
capitalists steal the territory Of other
nations? Have we an autocracy that
does things without consulting the peo-
pie? Well, so mote it be, for in the
near future this country will find itself
in wars that will cost her billions of
treasury and myriads Of men. If the
people care SO little about their public
affairs that they will permit few to
do as they will, they must pay the
penalty-and they will, pay, never fear.
-
Ex-senator Reagan, of Texas, gave
it as his opinion before the United
States senate commission, that public
ownership of railroads would destroy
the republic. He is the man whom the
foolish people of Texas elevated to
their highest position. and who faith
fully served the railroads>while they
skinned the cotton planters and every
body else. He rides on passes, is there
fore opposed to public ownership which
would make him pay his fare like other
people. Yes, there is hardly q doubt
that public ownership of railroads
would destroy the country. To have
the people own something instead of