Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-09-05
TALK TO UNION LABOR
Ex. A!tgeId and Golden
Rule" Jones, of Toledo, Ad.
wise the Workingmen.
ILLINOIS MANEIAT COOPER UNION

Comes Out for Public Ownership Gener-
ally and the Initiative and Re ferendum
as Remedies for the Present Troubles
Jones Would Have Labor Go into Poll
tics-Some Extracts from Both Speeches
Labor Day Very Generally Observed.
New York, Sept. 5.-Labor day was
favored with a bright sun and brisk
breeze and thousands took advantage
OF the fine weather to enjoy days
outing. Business was practically
stopped. Although there was no united
parade of labor organizations there
were lesser parades all over the city.
The reason for emitting the parade was
because so many men are out of work
and the money spent on a parade can
be better used in helping out the I'M
employed and those on strikes. Hun
dreds of workingmen and others be-
longing to single tax and trade and Ia
Dor organizations in the city and vi
cinity gathered at Henry Georges grave
in Greenwood cemetery, and held
memorial exercises. The party was ac-
companied by nearly all the members
OF the George family.
Feature Was Altgeld's Speech.
The event of the day, however, was
the speech of ex-Gov. Altgeld, of Illinois,
at Cooper Union, under the auspices of
the Chicago platform Democrats. The
governor had a large and appreciative
audience and his sentiments were ap-
plauded to the echo. The governor adj
Vocated the abolition of the competitive
system and declared for public owner
ship. He said: The best interests of
society, the best interests of both rich
and poor demand that something be
done. What shall it be? Various RENE
dies have been suggested and even
tried. One is governmental regulation
by boards, which were supposed to con-
stitute a kind of impartial tribunal,
standing between the corporations and
the people and doing justice to both.
Board Regulation Failure.
But experience has shown that these
boards, upon the whole, are failures; in
most cases the corporations make, own
and control the board, and in those
cases where they cannot do this they
have been able to make, own and con-
troll some judge who came to their as
sistance and paralyzed the board. See
ing that regulation has been a failure,
our people are casting about for some
other remedy, and the next remedy in
line is governmental ownership and op-
Grafton.
Public Ownership Advocated.
1T looks as though we should be
obliged to adopt it. because the age
presents no other solution. In the brief
survey that l am making | cannot en-
ter upon a general discussion of gov
ernmental ownership. and l will only
say that the idea is not new. 1t has
been tried and found to be successful
in many parts of the globe, and, in
stead of being a radical idea it is prac-
ticed by some of the most conservative
people in the world. 1t is no longer an
experiment; it is an established fact.
And it, together with voluntary coop
Grafton in other fields, promises to be
a greater blessing to mankind than
were religious freedom and later po-
litical freedom
Other Points of the Speech.
The governor then advocated public
ownership of land, as well as water
works. gas, electric lights. street rail
way, and telegraph and telephone lines.
He advocated free silver, the initiative
and referendum. and attacked gov
eminent by injunction"