The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1903-11-05

Catholic Priest Says They Are Combining
Against the Common People.

priest of Hartford City. and the par
ishes of Montpelier and DunkiIk, is
not only a worthy spiritual adviser
but an important factor IN the tenn
poral affairs Of his people. Their sue
cesses and failures are his. II they
fail he devises ways and means to
start them anew. II they succeed. he
is the first to whisper. "Go on"
The Rev. Father Die is the per-
sonification of a strenuous life. His
labor is not wholly that of the study
and sanctuary. He gets out among
the people and hustles to help them
attain success He has been both pro-
moter Of strikes and strike adjustment.
He has been corporation capitalist
and at the same time deep sympa.
thizer with laborers who were fighting
for cause they thought was right.
81 have been on both sides OF the
capital and labor fence" he explains.
"I have been at the head of manu-
featuring concerns that have suffered
from strikes. / have also stood in line
with the men when they were strik-
ing. So l ought to be able to see how
the lines are drawn between labor and
money"
"Union men are getting too much
pay. Unskilled labor should have
better chance. 1 know from
experience that the men who earn the
most money have the least to show for
their earnings. Their large wages
makes fools of them, and they squan-
der what they earn, believing that a
rainy day will not come to one who
earns so much. Many are the high
waged glassblowers that l have had to
aid financially after they had squan-
dered all. My theory is this-bring
down the high wages OF skilled labor
and give the common laboring man
more for his hire. 1t will bring about
greater equality among working peo-
pie.
If will be criticised for saying that
am opposed to labor unions. I am
not. only want fair play. Union
labor came before organized capital.
We never heard of trusts until the
great labor trust was formed by Pow
derby, Gompers, Debs and others.
Capital organized to protect itself.
Nov union labor and union capital
are working for a common end. They
are getting together through the good
Offices of the smooth capitalist with
his bride for the walking delegate.
The great masses must suffer. There
will never be a clash between capital
and labor on one side and the great
common people on the other. Labor
has made capital pay the price. Now
capital is making the people pay. /
don t like to speak OF panics. but you
mark. my prediction-one will come il
capital and labor are not to be separat-
ed and the common people do not get
a chance to live without paying ex-
orbitant prices for the necessaries of
life."
Father Die expresses his views on
the problems pertaining to capital.
labor and the masses in every sermon
he breaches. He recently preached
the same doctrine to a bricklayer who
was making some repairs on his home.
The bricklayer refused to make re-
pairs without having hed-carrier.
"Ill carry the hod," declared the
priest And be did. He then told the
bricklayer that capital, labor and the
masses were to meet in bitter conflict
And it was all because such men as
the bricklayer refused to work with
out some man of inferior rank to at
tend.-Indianapolis Star.