The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-09-19
THE K ELM CLUB.
The President Talks of Schurz, Labor
Strikes and Competition.

Major Biff remarked that Carl Schurz
had come back at Secretary Gage with a
rejoinder and was trying TO put him in a
hole by quoting something he said last
June about the impossibility of Col. Bryan
bringing on a panic by paying out silver
If a Republican Congress does its duty by
amending the law on the subject before
Mr.. Bryan is inaugurated next March.
"Yes,' said the president, Il saw the re-
joinder, and it was the poorest piece Of
rejoinder that Carl Schurz ever attempted
to palm off as an argument. We have had
this subject up in the club before. and l
want to dispose of it now, once for all. 1
am pledged. as we all are, to support Col.
Bryan for President, and L don't want Carl
Schurz or any other high-priced political
specialist to make a monkey OF our candi-
date, by confessing that he is wrong on the
only issue in the campaign that amounts
to a hill of beans, and telling the Repub-
hcans how they can prevent him injuring
the business and every other interest OF
the country, If he becomes President. L do
not know how the rest of you feel about
il, but IL 1 was a republican member OF
Congress after Col. Bryan is elected, l
would give him all the rope he wanted on
the silver question. / would consider that
the verdict of the people at the polls had
been that we want silver monometallism,
and not a gold standard. IT would be a
base betrayal of the confidence of the peo-
pie for Congress to put any impeachment in
Col. Bryan's way that would prevent him
from enforcing the fundamental idea OF
the platform on which he was elected, on
the subject of bimetallism. AS a Repub-
lIcan / would say, If the people have been
foolish enough to elect a man President
who believes that money is simply a
creature of law, let them take the full
consequences. and If it smashes every bust
mass n a N IN Tho nrrnr II will not ynfo RI
amend the law. l would say as a Repub-
lican, experience Is a dear school, but fools
will learn at no other.
Before this campaign is over we will
have another question up that Will call
for careful consideration at the hands of
this club. l refer to the miners strike that
is now on. IT will be necessary for every
demagogue In the party to load up with
argument on the subject of capital and
labor, and show how and why they clash,
and who is responsible for the conflict that
is ever wagiDg between capital on one
side and labor on the other. It will be
easy enough for our free trade orators
to show that the Republican party is to
blame for Ii ALL"
How about the strikes during Cleve-
lands Administrations" inquired Captain
Skidmonk.
''Oh. they will be able to show that they
were brought about by thirty years of
Republican misrule before that time
well. who is responsible for strikes In
Great Britain and other foreign countries ?''
asker Peter !. Lumm,x.
"That will be easy enough to answer. We
have orators who can tell all about 1t. They
will charge that the Republican party.
through Mark Hanna and Charley Hernly,
has a secret alliance with capital all over
the world for the purpose OF depressing
labor. In this country they use a high
protective tariff to Cypress with, and in
England they weld a collar of iron upon
the neck of labor with free trade The ALI.
ance is organized TO catch them a-going
and a-coming. / have some views Of my
own, on this question:, which 7 nave ex-
pressed to this club before, and which will
bear repeating. There is no greater con-
fict between labor and capital now thar
there has ever been. Labor has. and al
ways will insist on fair wages. while the
employer has, and always will object to
paying more than he thinks he ought to
pay. 1t is the same kline of a conflict that
we observe going on between the buyer
The seller wants the best price he can get
and the buyer wants 10 pay as little as
possible for what he buys. / have studied
this question some, and l have come to the
conclusion that the conflict which affects
labor more than any other thing is a con
fict that is eternally waging in which labor
is not a party at all. / mean the conflict
between capitalists themselves, commonly
called competition. If capital can't make q
profit, 1t can't pay wages. The greater the
competition 1t has when invested In an in,
1 1qeffy means sne sm noM waf tne PTof pro,t SINAI al
wages. / am speaking of the aggregation
of capital invested In productive industrie.
in a country OF course. there are some in.
dustries like the Standard Oil. or the New
York ice trust, whose profits bear no rela.
ton to the wages paid to their employees
but these are exceptional cases. Colone
Bryan wrote a book in six short month.
and made a profit OF a hundred thousand
dollars, but that is no reason why III
should have paid his canvassers. who per
formed the labor of selling the book. seven
| teen dollars a day for their time.
II have said that competition between
| capitalists influences wages. and / wan
TO say 10 Peter ]. Lummix and other wag,
earners In this club that competition is an
element in this question not wholly con
fined TO capitalists. IT plays an importan
part among laborers in all lines OF employ
ment. So important that the unions hav,
sought TO limit the number OF persons whs
should learn their trades. so as 20 max.
| competition as light as possible. But thi
Is not a political question, and mo b,
settled by this club. If any one wishes Il
practice on a labor speech. he can have tn,
] rest OF my time this evening. and / viii g
home TO bed" w. g. H.