The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-09-04

our institutions that we afford capital a
day in court, but do not recognize or ex-
tend the same privilege to labor. By thus
denying labor remedy, by denying it
the privilege of having its grievances in
-vestigated and adjudicated upon in an
orderly and reasonab BILE way, we invite
force and drive the citizens to violence.
Can we blame labor if it resorts to force
the only weapon that it has? 1t may be
unWise for 1t to do so, but it is its only
recourse, and l, for one, have it not in
my heart to blame the laboring man for
the strike, cruel and barbarous as it may
be. so long as that is his only remedy.
The first duty that the state owes So
e;ety is peace and order To that the
claims and interests of the individual
must yield. 1t does not permit him to
be the judge Of his own right, or to
it did, law and order and society would
be at an end. This, the first rule of or
gained society, governs the relations be-
tween man and man, corporation and
corporation. Why should it not apply be-
tween the corporation and its employees?
But it is argued: The corporation has the
right to manage its own business AS it
sees fit. To this I answer: Yes, but the
law does not permit corporation to use
its property, or to SO carry on it's business
as to injure the citizen in person or prop
erty or to imperil the peace and we'll
being of society.
Long years ago the state found it neees-
saFy TO enact laws against a man suffer
Ing his property to become a nuisance
children in factories We have required
the adoption and maintenance of devices
for the saving Of life and limb. We have
limited the hours of employment for
women. We have step by step established
the principle that while man has the
absolute use and disposal of what is
his own, he nevertheless must so use
his own property and so conduct his own
affairs as not to unnecessarily injure his
fellow or imperil society.
MENACE TO COMMUNITY.
To permit a corporation to gather to-
gether thousands of employees with their
families to become fixed and settled in
the community as members of it, and
then to arbitrarily throw them cut Of EN-
ployment, Or to reduce their wages be-
low relatively reasonable compensa-
to the community as would be the es-
Enlistment Of dynamite factory in the
Ryan block, and much greater than to
permit the operation of a machine I'M
protected. or the employment of children,
or the maintenance of nuisance In the
community. It would be a greater nui-
sance and a greater menace to society
than any of the nuisances to be found
recognized as such IN the law books.
The conviction is of necessity forcing
itself more ana more upon the minds Of
dustrial undertakings or in carrying on
quasi public works, as street car or rail-
road transportation, is chargeable with
a trust that it shall be SO used and con-
o1S AOI " l4HpSIl1 IiA0 peace anu
good order of society. Hence it follows
that labor employed in great industrial
establishments, as well as upon the pub
lie undertakings referred to- has rights
that the law and society are bound to re-
spect, and the sooner we act accordingly,
the better for the welfare Of society
1t Is fundamental principle of law and
ethics as old as the records Of the race
that no man has the right to be Judge in
his own case. If difference arises be-
tween employers of the character sug-