The Irish standard., 1903-04-11

competition with the anthracite inter-
estS.
'Here, to my mind, have been the
great results of the work of the COM
mission, not only in the anthracite re-
gions in particular, but in some degree
all over the labor world in America.
Employer and employed have been
brought from the extremes of social
conditions near enough together to see
the common manhood binding them to-
gether; on both sides concessions have
been made; the employer has been
shown some of the hardships of the
employe, living in the squalid shack,
and the employe, in turn, has seen
some of the slave driving exactions
which wealth imposes upon it's pos
SCISSOR; the drama of life and living
was shown not only to the 55S wit
nesses called on both sides, but to the
crowded halls day after day in Scran-
ton and in Philadelphia, until the COM
mission finally went into secret session
in Washington; and there, in executive
session, the striking FACT of the investi-
CATION was the almost unanimous YER
dict Of the commissioners upon every
point finally set at rest.
''There is a marked difference be-
tween the principle and the effect of
compulsory investigation and compul-
sorry arbitration. This difference is
made plain in a remark which Samuel
Gompers once made to me when the
subject of the conversation was the
desirability of the incorporation of the
trades unions as something to make
them more nearly responsible parties
to agreements. Trades unionism,'
said he, lis just as strong and never
stronger than public opinion; and just
as soon as organized labor has lost
the backing that 1t has in the public
opinion it will fall to pieces of itself.
''Thus you see, in the first place, a
law demanding public investigation
into the merits of a labor controversy
becomes an appeal to public opinion.
Secondly, it involves the laying open
Of the details of private business to the
world, something that is not relished
by any man or any body Of men;
thirdly, it would prove costly process
to both sides to it. Whatever the find
ing of such board might be, the ap-
plication of the remedy would not be
in the hands Of the board, empowered
by any authority to act; it would be
finding addressed virtually to public
sentiment.
"We will have strikes and lockouts
and perhaps violence in the future
The fierce competitive system under
which we live, and which results in
overcapitalization and overproduction,
is responsible for many of the evils
from which we suffer Some Of our
greatest industries are capitalized at
four and five times their real value,
and every possible device is resorted
to in order to pay dividends on the
watered stock. The outcome sooner
or later is a panic which destroys
hundreds of millions of dollars and
brings wretchedness and want to mil
lions of human beings.
"Where is the reason for all this?
1t springs from our American hurry to
get rich, which is disease of a people
who lack ideals; who measure the
value of religion, culture and art by
the influence Of these things on thrift
and material prosperity. In the midst
of all this rush and noise Of business,
of expansion and success, we are
rapidly growing incapable of taking
or loving the deeper views of life.
"Our faith in education is, at bot
tom, the faith in it's powers to enable
us to get more money.
"Our preaching, leaving aside the
things that are eternally right and true
and Indispensable, concerns itself with
that which is frivolous, startling and
vulgar.
"There is, think, somewhere in the
Bible text which says that God is
angry with the nations that are rich.
If we look profoundly, there is much