Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1902-09-10
I'd WOOL INTERESTS OF THE GREAT JUDITH COUNTRY,

combination OF men TO do some unlaw-
full thing, or to do some lawful thing
by unlawful means. Perhaps IL may
be news to great many of you to
know that no further back than the
early part of the last century. under
the English common law, any body
of men that combined. no matter how
peaceably. for the purpose OF raising
their wages or shortening their hours
of labor, or in any way bettering
their condition, were indictable for
conspiracy, and this was felony.
In threequarters OF a century Eng
disappearing peoples have passed
completely beyond that idea Of JUS
tice. Even in England, the home
of the common law, and where per
haps II has been affected less by
statute than with us, such a condition
of affairs no longer exists. The def
milton remains. but the application is
different, and that marks, let me tell
you, gentlemen. very important
step. The day has passed when any
body of men can be prosecuted be-.
cause of an organization or combina.
tion for the purpose of bettering their
condition. There are other things in
which there has been an advance and
In which there will be greater. Twill
mention one more of them, which
think especially interesting to the la
boring men who may be here. and
that Is the subject of employers liza
bility. Now, in the days before the
factory system, in the days before
we had the immense steel mills and
factories Of all kinds. the common
law exonerated the employer for liza
bility for the injury TO an employe.
who was hurt in any way through his
own negligence or through the neg
llgencc of a fellow employe, and that
was reasonable enough. Certainly a
mans own negligence will always ex-
onerate his employer from liability.
but the conditions have changed so
much that / think the law should
change and will change: and II is a
piece of legislation which is needed
in Montana, as well as In most other
states Of the union, although some
have il. In the olden days the en-
ployer and employee worked side by
side in the little shop. on the farm.
at the forge, in the mill; the employee
worked with the employer and with
a few fellow employees; everything
was simple; there were no remote
causes which might bring upon q mar
who was himself not guilty OF negli-
gence any accident or injury, but in
the present day il is different. An
employee In cotton factory, for in
stance, may be injured without fault
of his own by an act OF drunken neg
ligence OF an engineer a thousand
feet away; the brakeman on a rail
way train, the engineer, the conduct.
or, may perhaps meet accident or
death through the fault OF the switch
men or some other employee, whose
act he could not foresee and for which
he Is in no way responsible. 1t seems
to me reasonable that laboring men
should organize and act In union to
accomplish legislation which would
remove this anomalous state of af.
fairs. II was a state OF affairs that
was proper probably even fifty years
ago, possibly even less. but at the
present time the employers liability
is not sufficient; it does not sufficient.
ly protect the employee who is himself
guilty OF no negligence; and 1t is only
when the co-employee is considered
to be in some way the vice-principal
of the employer that the injured OPP
orator or factory hand, or train man,
may obtain suitable damages for any
injury that may happen to him. That
is one of the points wherein | believe
there should be an improvement. Al
though there has been improvement.
more is necessary.
And another point; In the early
part of the century a vast amount Of
labor was done in England as well
as In the continental countries by
child labor. II seems almost incred.
ible to us at this time that children
OF tender years. under twelve. under
ten, were compelled to labor ten,
twelve and fourteen hours daily In
the fields and factories and coal mines
Of England, and yet history. and re
cent history at that. assures us that
such is the fact. That Is a condition
of affairs which one can hardly imag
inc to himself. and yet we know II
existed; 1t has existed In this coun
try; nay. more, il exists at the pres
ent day in the United States of Amer
lea. The poet has said that mans
inhumanity to man makes countless
thousands mourn" but what shall w
say of mans inhumanity to children
This is a question that believe
strikes home 10 the heart of ever,
American who has the welfare of hii
country at heart. In our land govern