Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1901-12-11
THE LABOR
QUESTION
President Roosevelt Expresses Him
self Regarding the American
Wage.Worker.
RIGHTS SHOULD BE PROTECTED
| Rule of Brotherhood is indispensable
to Success in Our Nation
al Life.
RIGHTS SHOULD BE PROTECTED

demand Int HlbHtHs ~"
vice from it's employees; and in return
il should be a good employer. II pos
| sible legislation should be passed, In
| connection with the interstate com
merce law. which will render effect
i've the efforts of different states to
do away with the competition OF con-
yict contract labor in the open labor
market. SO far as practicable under
the conditions of government work
provision should be made to render
the enforcement of the e~ight-hour law
easy and certain. In all industries
| carried on directly or indirectly for
the United States government WON
| Ell and children should be protected
| from excessive hours of labor, from
night work. and from work under un'
| sanitary conditions. The government
sbouId proyide in its contracts that
all work should be done under "fair
| conditions, and in addition to setting
a high standard should uphold 1t by
proper inspection, extending II neces-
sarv to the sub-contractors. The
government should forDlu all night
work for women and children, as well
as excessive overtime. For the DIS
trict of Columbia a good factory law
should be made to turn the inhabited
alleys, the existence Of which is a re-
proach to our capital city, into minor
streets. where the inhabitants can
live under conditions favorable to
health and morals.
American wage-workers work with
their heads as well as their hands.
Moreover, thcy take a keen pride In
what they are doing: so that. indie.
pendent of the reward, they wish to
turn out a perfect job. This is the
great secret OF our success in cOmpc
tition with the labor of foreign coun
tries.
The most vital problem with which
this country, and for that matter the
whole civilized world, has to deal, is
the problem which has for one side
the bctterment of social conditions.
moral aud physical, in large cities and
| for another side the effort to deal with
that tanglc of fa~rrcaching questions
which We group together when W,
speak Of labor The chief factor
10 the success OF each man-wagc.
worker. farmer and capitalist alike
must eyer be- the sum total of his OWL
individual qualities and ABILITIES. Sec.
md to this comes only the power ol
acting In combination or association
with others. Very great good has
been and will be accomplished by as
sOciatiOns or unions of wage-workcrs
when managed with Iorethought. and
when they combine insistence upon
their own rights with l%aw-abiding re-.
srect for the rights of others. The
display of these qualities in such bod.
les Is a duty to the nation no less
than to the associations themselves.
Finally, there must also in MANY
cases be action by the government in
order to safeguard the rights and in.
tcrests of all. Under u constitu
ton there is much more o for
such action by the state and the mu.
nicipality than by the nation. But ON
points such as those touched on above
the national government can act.
When all is said and done. the rule
OF brotherhood remains as the indis.
pensablr prerequisite 10 success I'm the
kind ot national NE for which va
strive, Each man must work for him
self, aud unless PEE so works no out
side HELM can avail him. but each mar
must remember also that he IL indeed
his brothers keeper. and that Will,
no mar who refuses to walk can Il,
carried with advantage to himself OF
anyone else, yet that each al times
stumbles or halts, that each at times
needs to have the helping hand out
stretched to him, To be permanent
" effective, aid must always take IN,
FORM oil helping a man to help him.
sell' n that we can all best hell
ourselves by Joining together in the
work that is of common interest tc
all.