Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1900-09-06
LABOR AND THE TRUSTS.
LARGE COMBINES DO NOT TRY
TO LOWER WAGES.

Closer Together Every Day - steady
Employment. More Pay and Shorter
Hours the Iiule-Labor Movement.
Down with the trusts" is one of the
slogans of the Democratic party this
year. and it's agents will endeavor to
capture the laboring mans vote be-
cause they say that trusts lower the
wages of the workers.
But what is the truth? Not one single
instance can be cited where large in
dustrial institution, employing hun
dreds of thousands of people, has at
tempted to reduce their wages. Neither
can it be shown that single one of
the hundred national and international
trade and labor unions OF the country
is fighting the large combinations. In
stead Of fighting them, they are getting
closer together every day. The grow
ing tendency between labor and cap
ital has been toward annual confer
ences to determine wage scales, hours
of work and conditions of employme ;.
The tendentv is to employ arbitrat on
and concilia.ion in the settlement of
differences. This method has long
been i'll vogue between the railways
and their employees, with the steel
rail makers, with the wire-nail makers,
with tin plate manufacturers, with the
steel beam producers, with the Anal
gamated Association of Iron, Steel and
Tin Workers. with the newspaper
publishers, with the employing book
and job printers, and with the Inter-
national Typographical Union. The
more that labor and capital concen-
trate their interests individually, so
much the more are they endeavoring
to concentrate their interests collect
lively. Large and small labor unions
instead of fighting industrial combina-
ton, find it to their interest to join
hand in hand with them. There is
no better combination in the United
States to-day than the American
Federation of Labor.
Speaking for the vast army of wage
caIners employed in the iron, steel and
tin industry, Theodore Schaffer, Pres
ident of the Amalgamated Association
of Iron. Steel and Tin Workers, before
the Federal Industrial Commission, has
declared that the effect of trusts has
been beneficial to them. "As general
rule" he said, he believed that the
members of his organization would
prefer to deal with combinations and
large corporations rather than with
smaller independent mills" His expe-
rience was that they always received
fair treatment in negotiating with
these combinations, and he was certain
they did not prevent competition"
Democratic politicians point with
pride" to the fact that there have
been more labor disturbances and
strikes in the past year or so than
in the four years of Democratic admin
istration. Why all these strikes, then?
The average wage worker never
thinks of going on a strike on a falling
market. and certainly not on falling
market under Democratic rule. When
business is stagnant and factories are
silent, and the land is full of unem-
ployed labor, the voice of the agitator
is lost in the general murmur of dis
tress and there are no strikes, because
there is little employment.
Every labor organization in the
past two years reports steady employ.
ment for its full membership, increased
pay, shorter working hours and Il gen.
eral improvement in all its conditions.
At the eve of President McI<inley's re-
election the whole world is engaged
in paying tribute to the wonderful pro-
ductivity of our farms and factories,
telling n marvellous tale of American
prosperity, proving conclusively the
general distribution of the flood of
wealth being poured into this favored
land.
1t is scarcely four years since labor
in the United States was crying out
for work at any price. Its pockets
We're empty and its children went
hungry TO bed.
These events are significant. because.
by their unprecedented intensity, they
have called public attention as never
before to what is known as 'the labor
movement" The problem of the rela
tons between employer and employed
is not of easy or quick solution. The
promises of this country. inaugurated
by the protective policy OF the Re.
publican party when 1t came into
power in 1896, We're for restoration
of prosperity. This we have had.
and now il is to he hoped that good
sense and prudence will, through the
votes of the people. direct its contin-
uance.
What the Republicans Did.