The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-05-19

Bosto] May 14.-rhe general
meeting of the American Social
Science esp began here today.
Suffolk Cd bar, spoke on
taI s. c orgS sss't ae SD S1 c that
the labor orgA etieas have. nS%m oral
standing to de&Ience trusts. forC<heir
movement is as etinctlJ conlbina-
movement. The So movements are
alike in motive andiobject.
In the contest as It is o carried
on W these two opposing forces,
it is obviously that thtre are at least
two main desiderata: frst. that the
parties to the contest should BECOME
so nearly equal in realEand apparent
power that each may ON to respect
the other, to the end that an equilib-
rum a"pproXimatIng justice ma re-
suit. The organization Of labor is an
absolute condition precedent under
| present conditions to any SOUND social
and industrial progress. To oppose
that organization, to attempt to pre-
vent 1t by legislation, or to denounce
it in terms recently used at the manu-
facturers' association at New Orleans
is both futile and foolish.
Inc second deSlOerl1u1n Is InaI
there should be an increased respect
for law and for justice on the part of
both labor and capital. The final ap-
peal must be to Justice"
Under our law the private ownership
not only of the surface OF the land. but
of all minerals and metals beneath the
| surface. he said. the coal and :-o- sup
ply of the country would soo- = --der
monopoly control. The condition of
the ownership and control OF the an
thracite coal supply. he cOntended, vas
Just cause for revolutionary senti-
ments and activities. In the last en-
Grafton, he declared the legislation of
the country had been mainly controll-
ed by capital and in not q few of the
states the sale of legislation was q
regular business. In conclusion Mr..
Anderson said:
IF capital fails to recognize the ne
cessity of just laws. respected and
obeyed, it may Xpect little mercy at
the hands of its adversaries when they
discover their real power. If social
ism comes, the main responsibility will
rest upon the c~apitalistlc organiza-
tons"
Lewis d. Brandeis, a lawyer, and
Professor Eugene Wambaugh. of the
Harvard law school. discussed trade
union Incorporation, the former favor
ing it, and the latter saying it would
be unconstitutional, inappropriate and
dangerous"
President Eliot, of Harvard, sum-
married the question Of the incorpora-
ton Of the trades unions in the state
ment that if they wanted it there
seemed TO be no objection, and If they
did not want it there was no objec-
ton. There was. however. an objec-
ton to the imposition of a money pen
atty, and this whole talk Of incorpor-
ating trades unions was fairly attrIb-
utable to a desire to get at them ana
impose or collect damages.
1T must be noted" said Mr.. Eliot,
that the activities Of trades unions in
volve only moral responsibilities. The
positions Of the unions is virtually that
of 2, ZOO, 900 men who systematically per-
NIT moral and physical violence in the
attainment Of their ends IN the limita-
ton Of output, than which there is no
more ~corrupting or degrading infu-
ence.
"Unskilled laborers annot gain their
aims in a labor struggle without permit
ting violence, but this is a moral ques-
ton and not one of damages. To at
tempt to get IT them vindictively, by
Inducing or compelling Incorporation
and making them financially liable, is
not at all the way to settle the prob
lem"
said:
ut IS fortunate that the negroes now
have a squarely drawn issue. Two OF
the principal spokesman of the negro
hating class have stated plainly that
their purpose Is that the negro shall
not enjoy the rights guaranteed by the
federal constitution. With the issue
plainly made the negroes can trust the
Christian sentiment Of Americans to
see that the party thus declaring can
never control the government. We
shall have only ourselves to blame il
we DO not make the best of our great
opportunity
He advised negroes not to waste time
in office seeking.
Bishop Hoods utterances were
adopted as the sentiment of the ne
groes composing the conference.