The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-09-02
The DIGNITY OF LABOR.


The DIGNITY OF LABOR.
Yesterday the nation took a holiday IN
o-dnr 10 nav a. tribute TO the value ana
dignity OF labor we are working peo-
al. we believe IN work We believe IN
,,o,.K as a civ1ne injunction NC believe
g.. work as means of building up our
waste places and increasing our wealth..
~. believe in work as means OF grace
when our first parents fell and We're
driven from the Garden of Eden the Lord
God declared that man should earn his
hrend by tho sweat Of his brow. This was
nm Injunction to labor, and strange
enough, It has been called a curse IN
no,nt OF FAC: the injunction was given in
,,erov md not In anger The privilege Of
1asar,ng is one OF the greatest blessings
that n wise and good God has bestowed
upon humanity. Il is through work that
character as well as cities is caiit up.
On the contrary idleness is dcmoraiiz-
ing. It Is the idle who fall into mischief.
and this without regard to station in lie
Among the greatest and most disgusting
sinners IN this country to-day are the
idle rich who spend their time in pleas
ure-seelsing, who make pleasure the one
oocupauon OF their useless lives, who use
their wealth for their own selfish indulg-
once and who are forever looking out for
some new pleasure that money Will buy
BIT these do not represent TO American
people. u'ney are tho laughing stock Of
the milton and attract attention only be-
cause they are amusing. The representa-
tive American citizen is the American
workingman, whether he toll IN the field
or IN the shon. or in the store. or in the
counting room: whether he work in the
ranks or among captains of industry VINO
direct the forces. he may be farmer,
he may be a mechanic. he may be
salesman Of a clerk, he may be an ensi-
naer or o. conductor, he may be bank
president. or a railroad president or the
president of a great corporation. In any
event he is a laborer and he is contf1hut-
ing towards the wealth and character of
the nation.
There was a time when this country
uas hoDifne wilderness and peopled
only by n savage tribe who lived
by the hunt 1t is now OF the
greatest and wealthiest nations on
the globe. wnat has wrought the
change? Labor. The energies of our
men of ton nave been converted into
fsetories and railroads and buildings and
improved lands and all that goes to maxi"
IN what we can property. Capital, it is
true. plays a part in development, and In
this day a necessary part, but the real
capital of this country is III labor without
which money would be as so much dross.
l'he American people attach special i'm
portancc to labor and esteem it highly
and give the tailoring man a position in
society that he does not occupy in any
other hand. we do not look down upon
The workingman. We look up TO him,
we respect MN. we respect his
rights. and society more and more
demands that he shall receive fair
compression for his work. We do
not regard the workingman as a beast OF
burden, hut as part and parcel of our
social fabric. as part Of the very back
bone of the nation. Our society recog-
nizes that he has right TO his share OF
the comforts and luNul.ies of life, to his
share of the wealth that his labor
creates. and while there is necessarily a
contest between employer and employe
1t is perfectly plain to those who make
comparisons that the laborinS man in
this country has been steadily impror-
ing his condition and is far better off
TO-DAY than ever before III our his
tory. Proht-sharing is making steady
gains all the time.
One reason for this is that the Ameri-
can workingman is all the time I'M
proving his capacity to produce. We
are applying education TO the workshop
as well as to- the professions; we are
training our young men &c work intel
lightly, to work with the head as we'll
as with the nand, and the more of this
training they nave the greater VIII be
their OUTPUT from time 10 time, and the
greater their output the greater their
remuneration. 1t is plain to Intelligent
observers that the laboring men of this
country. the captains OF industry and
the mon IN the ranks, are coming more
and more into closer relationship, not
to say into partnership relations. CO.
operation is the slogan of this indus
trial campaign. and While the process
may be slow and attended with difficult
ties now and then and here and there,
the problem is gradually working it
self out and the solution VIII come by
and by.
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