Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-09-03
LOCAL LABORINC MEN
IN A MONSTER PAR ADE.

trusted his fellow l1nsnfty took lite
place OF traternal charity, and nation
/ hated nation. The Creator had HID
aen His face and the heart OF man
was empty without Him. Everyone
/ hunsered for and sought the first
cause of all. Some thought they
heard His voice in the waters of the
ocean. the roar of the wild beasts, or
the loud resounding thunder. Some
believed that they saw Him in the sun
or the element of tire. The saints
! sighed for his coming and called On
! the clouds to rain Him down. What
4 then was the condition of labor?
Let rs take up rapid glance
4 through the history of Pagan times
and we will learn Passing over the
history of the Queen cities of Athens.
Antioch, Alexandria and Carthage, let
us consider the economical and social
conditions OF Imperial Rome. There
the theory of government was that e.
erything-property and population
1 was for the state Rome reached out
and conquered and annexed vast
amounts of territory Italy, Spain,
France, Austria, Germany, Great Brit
ain, Switzerland, Greece, Africa. Asia
Minor, Egypt and other countries were
incorporated into the Roman Empire
and were placed under tribute. Rome
! became the center of the world From
/ the golden milestone of the Forum
roads, like vast network, spear out
over her immense possessions. From
i every conquered country came slaves
and the spoils of war In the city OF
Rome Wealth accumulated and mon
/ decayed.' She became city of pal
aces and OF fabulous wealth. We read
/ now a Roman emperor made a gift to
his subjects of large square of more
than 1000 feet with three colossal
buildings upon it. The first building
contained free libraries, picture and
sculpture galleries, music halls and
other provisions for mental culture.
The second building was a gymnasium
| for riding, wrestling and other athlet-
ic sports. The third building contain
ed system of baths-tepid, vapor
and swimming baths-with perfumes
an6 an army of attendants. These
/ buildings We're decorated in alabaster
and marble. The pavements were
| wrought in mosaics and the ceilings
We're frescoed. The walls were incas.
ed in ivory and were hung with mir
ros. All these things were free to ev-
cry Roman citizen. Yet amid such
| splendor there was no real freedom.
The slave lords owned the slaves, the
emperor owned the slave lords ana.
! in the last analysis, the popular within
owned the emperor.
What then was the condition of la
J lOr. nt,i.r,
and moral condition of Romal society.
According to the law of the Twelve
! Tables, a husband could sell or dis
miss his wife When a child was
born it was placed at the feet of the
father. If he lifted it up it might live
and be reared, il he spurned it, it was
exposed to die, or was put to death.
The great institution of the Roman
state was slavery, and no Roman writ
ever ran in the house of the slave
| lord. He had absolute control over
| the life and the belongings of the
slave. Seneca tells us how free labor
fell into disrepute and how the lands
of the hardy Sabines were delivered
over to "fettered feet, bound hands
and branded faces" All work-com-
mon and skilled-belonged without
price to the master. Free labor at
/ first became disgraceful, and after
some time became impossible Hence
the tillage of the soil, domestic SER
vice, and craftsmanship became exclus-
lively the work of the Roman white
slave. Industry, trade and commerce
were conducted by masters through
their slaves. All manual labor then
| was slave labor. Now look we to the
social and moral condition of the Ro-
man Slave, that is, of the working
classes, under Pagan Roman law. The
slaves received no wages. Male and
female slaves could not marry. The
sexes, at certain times, were permitted
to co-habit for the caprice or the
profit of their master. The honor,
! morality and happiness of The slaves
were the perQuisites of his lord. Adul.
terry and seduction, as between mas.
ter and slave were unknown to Ro.
man law. The infamy of slave prostitu-
ton became SO common among slave
lords that the government offered a
premium to free citizens who would
marry. Cato, 1.-The Censor, "--Cicero's
model of virtuous old man-s'saw no
difference between animals and
I slaves, save that slaves were reason.
able and docile and could be made re
/ sponsible." When his own slaves be.
came old or helpless he sold them or
drove them away. Under Roman law
paupers and manned people were load
ed into boats and taken out to sea,
There the vessels were scuttled and
sunk with their human freight. And
all this was done in the Imperial
Rome-eternal Rome-greatest of
Pagan states! And such, my brothers
and sisters, was the condition of Ia
Dor in Pagan times, and for many cen.
turtles. Working men and women,
what think you Of such life for a la
borer now? How would those cele-
brating this holiday like such con.
dition Of life for themselves? Reflect
on this. No wages, no home, no hus.
/ band or wife, and no security against
the lust of the employer or his sons.
| Was it not time for the end of the
world or the regeneration of man? St.
! Ignatius represents redemption as a
divine tragedy. The choirs of angels
plying the people of earth, came in
turn before the throne of God and Of
| fered themselves as victims of racon