The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1900-09-04

been doing nothing towards organization.
"I have stated to you what organized
labor, as l have seen it, stood for; what
it has secured for the masses; what 1t
has done for mankind. Let me what
unorganized labor has done. Your worthy
Mayor has shown you the difference in
wages. Perhaps l am not competent to sit
on the jury, but I will quote from cele-
brated statesman, who said that morgan
ICED labor stands the servile, crouching
creature of capital while the yoke is placed
about its neck; to capital who knows no
law but gain; who to attain its immedi-
ate wants, is willing to sacrifice all else.
| UnorganZed labor would reduce us to the
condition of servitude now existing in
| China.
Rev. Robert A. Woods, an Episcopal min
lister, said 1t was the duty of every laborer
to join an organization, that he should
| make 1t standard Of life to secure good
| wages; that the man who stands aloof from
a labor union is an anomoly and that the
man who refuses to join labor union is
| traitor to his fellow laborers.
| "An opinion Is abroad that organized
| labor is simply to regulate hours of work
| and wages, but there was never greater
| mistake. 1t Is not only the mission OF
labor unions to secure the greatest possible
! remuneration for work but 1t is the step
ping stone to nobler and higher object
! The true mission of trades unions is to
bring to the surface the noblest qualities
of man. No matter what mistakes organized
| labor has made in the past, no matter what
mistakes 1t is making now, no matter what
mistakes 1t makes in the future. the fact re-
| mains that all we have in the way of bet
| tering our condition Is due to intelligent or
| ganization and intelligent leadership Of
those belonging to labor unions. No mat
| ter what obstacles are in the way there
| will be steady advance all along the line
| until the goal of mans ambition is reached.
| Organized labor is bound to march on. Al
| though we may have opposition from the
| INSCRIPTIONS, organized labor will never be
| without men to respond to the call or
hearts that realize that it is darkest just
| before dawn.
| ut is a matter of sincere congratulations
| that you have in your vicinity men in high
official position who recognize the import
| ance of organized labor 1t is a great thing
| to have them speak from the same plat
| form with one who Is called a labor agita-
| tor. 1t speaks well for the Trades Coun-
Gil of Birmingham, for organized labor in
| Alabama"
John F. Lasster, president of the Build
ing Trades Unon introduced and
| made a short talk which concluded the
| speeches of the day.
| Labor Day Notes
Some of the most interesting sights of
| Labor Day were the various crowds on the
| sidewalks. Those were largely of out-of-
| town people, who came in family parties
| to see the sights. They stood and talked,
| blocking the whole sidewalks, without be-
| irg at all conscious of it. When they
walked they went to neither the right nor
the left, but in all directions, and their
city brothers had to nimbly dodge hither
and thither as they wended their way up
and down the haunts of men.
People of all sorts were to be seen on the
sidewalks and vehicles Of all sorts in the
| streets The past jostled the present. One
old fellow had driven in his OK cart, which,
knocking about the crowded streets with
big express and delivery wagons, unmind
tul of their cries for room, seemed like
the china pot floating down stream with
the iron pots. Whether this frail little
oXcart has yet met the fate of the china
pot Is yet unknown
A visitor from the country viewing the
| sights of Birmingham can always be de-
tected by his distracted and perpexed air.
There is something confusing, to one un-
accustomed to it, in the varied and COM
| pick noises of a city. The roar of tn y
| streets, the changing of bells, the busy
| throngs of people and the many interest.
| ing sights, all tend to confuse the mind of
| one used to a rural quiet.
One of these visitors, an old farmer, evil
IDENTIFY, judging by his whiskers and an
cient hat standing on Second avenue
viewing the sights and chewing tobacco. A
! young and smart city man came along
| wearing his clothes to great effect. He
| paid no attention to the farmer who, 9TH
| erwise engaged, ignored him. 1t happened
| that the flow or saliva stimulated by the
| tobacco in the farmers mouth had reached
| Its height just as the young city man got
| In the line of fire, and the result was dis
astrous to the smart clothes. The man
| glared at the farmer, who, blssfully I'M
| conscious of having done anything, did
| not notice him.
| The young man hurried into a drug
| store, bought bottle of benzine and went
| to work.
Speaking of hats, those tin hats worn
| by some of the workmen in the parade
| must have been frightfuly hot on such a
| day. They must have felt like the victims
in Rider Haggards She" The unfortu-
| mates who had offended She were COW
| cred with large metal pots heated to a
| white heat This process, which might be
called 'hot potting," was reproduced on
a small scale by these tin hats, with re
suits, it is to be hoped, not so fatal.
New York
New York. Sept. BIN view of the fact
that there general parade today of
labor in this city, and that many down.
town business houses were closed most
of the trade organizations left the city by
early trains and boats for their outings,
each having programme of its own.
Labor Day parade was held in Jersey
City under the auspices of the United
States Building Trades Council of Hud-
son County
An incident of this parade was the ac-
| ton of the Central Federated Union in re-
fusing to march past the grand stand in
front of the city hail. where the parade
was reviewed by Mayor Hoos and other
officials
The Central Federated Union is COM
posed largely of silk weavers and brewery
employees, a large number of whom are
professed socialists and opponents of both
political parties. When they were two
blocks from the grand stand the men of
the Central Federated Union fell out of
line and made a detour so as to avoid
passing the stand.