The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1903-08-17
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

Continued from Page Four)
age and sacrifice TO battle for the heaven
ly gospel Of work for the needy and the
duty OF congress 10 so legislate, bv a
protective tariff and In other ways, that
everyone of our splendid bread winners
shall be furnished with employment and
fair pay. And while memory lasts God
forbid that should ever forget when
under free trade we wage earners worked
nearly 10 hours per day. II mechanics,
and from II TO Is. II mill operatives
Washerwomen, under free trade received
five cents perhour instead OF Is cents.
under protection. Common laborers re
ceived FIVE cents per hour and 81 per day
would have been considered princely
wages. First class turner's and other me-
chanics received from nine 10 ten cents
per hour. instead OF nearly three times
that amount under protection And that
was one reason why IL was looked upon as
low and humiliating TO labor unless alb
solutely obliged 10 under free trade an
idea that Is slowly but surely dssipa ted
by higher wages under our glorious pro-
tective tariff. So much for free trade
starvation wages and long working
hours.
s. Under the Mckinley protective tariff
OF % per centum we had the best all wool
clothing that this nation ever produced
the duty on shoddy being placed Jeffer-
sonian In height to keep IL from being
imported. while every needy. man. able
and willing TO work. could have a com
mon job. But. under the robber free
trade Wilson tariff Of p per centum (onlv
two per centum less) two millions OF is
poor devils were cruelty swindled out OF
our jobs and the importation OF shoddy
was 50 immense that clothing stores
were crammed with shoddy. which being
free Of duty was imported one thousand
times greater In quantity than under the
protective Mckinley tariff Why? Well.
the free trade lords and lordly free trad
ers had decided that shoddy was good
enough FOR us bread winners. and we had
TO take our free trade shoddy bitter pills
without regard to whether we liked them
or not. So much for free trade. shoddy
will take protection a generation 20 do
away with the half
Z But thank God the free trade leaders
have been forced by protection TO lose
their grip upon our throats the free trade
prairie dog no longer dares bite US with
free trade impudence. the free trade bear
no longer dares 20 give ne his old free
trade squeeze. as under the rcnber Wilson
tariff when he squeezed two millions ~
us nearly to death by Just hugging us
out OF our employment
s. Yes. we wage earners defy you. and
we den1a nd without one H. that the tariff
be so adjusted as 10 protect us IN every
American Industry, not merely ten per
centum duty. but we demand ~ or even
~ pcr centum. when by that duty We
can have from ten 10 o. per centum more
Jobs DO you hear us. ye free trade
bosses7 DO YOU hear us. ye Republican
congressman DO you hear us. We Demo
cratic congressman? We bread winners
demand protection. and we are tho ma
jorlty. Give us our God-given right 10
employment. or we'll make YOU cry out
for the rocks and mountains % fall upon
YOU ~ hide you from our righteous in.
Give us protection or stand
from under, We bread winners ere boss
peril
A LIFE LONG WAGE EARNER's AID
vOCATE.