The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-01-10


plenty of Iaborers until within the past
three years and the capitalists have had
the whip hand. They could fix the wages,
and / don't remember that they voluntarily
raised them. Within the past three years.
however, there have been two jobs for
every man The Iaborer has taken advan-
tage OF the situation and increased his pay
and i don't blame him.
BUT will he not have 10 come down now
that the times have changed?'
Yes, In many places.
will he not strike?
II don't think so without there is some
other reason than the reduction owing to
the hard times"
HANNA AS A UNION MAN.
eff you were a working man, senator,
would you belong to a union?"
Yes, L would but 1 would do all that
could TO bring about a closer relation be-
tween my union and my employer. The
sooner the laborng man and the employer
come together the bitter for both laborer
and employer"
THAT is what the Civic Federation is try
ing to do, is it not?"
THAT is what the Civic Federation is do
ing" replied Senator Hanna. I'VE have
settled great many aIG labor disputes and and
leaders of the union and the representa-
tives of employers together. Both are be-
ginning 10 understand the other. The labor
and the employers meore ready to recognize
labor organizations. Strikes in most cases
come from MISUNDERSTANDING, and some of
the most serious ones from trifiing dis
agreements The employers and the work.
ingman stand face TO face, each with a chip
OH his shoulder. The employer feels deter
mined not to make advance toward a
settlement, and the workingman is too
proud To do il.
HAS the Civic Federation any special
rules of action in such matters?'
golden Tnnllpd
Senator Hanna. I'VE do not believe in
sympathetic strikes, nor in the boycott,
nor in the restriction of production TO en-
nance values"
How about the man outside the union,
senator? What are his rights?"
He has the right to work and to exer-
Constitution of the United States, and he
should be protected in those rights"
But. senator said |. IF labor and capt.
tai are TO combine, will not the public be
ground between the upper and neither mill
stones of high wages and high prices?"
THE public" said Senator Hanna. What
up of capitalists and laborers. With the
exception of a very few every man in the
United States is an employer or an. en-
ploye. We are all workingmen Some of
us work with our brains and the others
with our hands, and the employers, as
rule, work the hardest"
MODEST SENATOR.
AT this point l turned the conversation to
personal matters and in answer TO my
questions Senator Hanna gave me much in
teresting information about himself both
as a laboring man and capitalist He re-
ferred to certain rules of his business life
which have undoubtedly contributed to his
great success, and gave me other matter
which would be OF value to young men
of the United States. This however, on
account of the innate mOdesty of the sena-
tor-eXtraordinary in a public mani am
forbidden to use
In closing l would call attention to Sena-
tor Hanna's peculiar position. He is the
earnest friend of both capital and labor and
is doing what he can to bring the two to-
gether. Indeed, he might be called
great national peacemaker and he is such
from the standpoint of his honest convic-
tons. He recently said that he would
rather have the credit of ending such
States, and that if he could make successful
the plans of the federation by resigning
his seat in the Senate he would be glad TO
do so.
Nevertheless. Senator Hanna has more
than ten thousand men at work in the va
rious Institutions in which he is interested,
and their pay roll is said to be about three
million dollars year, or in round numbers
ten thousand dollars day. You will see
from this that he has a pocketboOk interest
in the questions which he here discusses
and that his word should have weight
FRANK q. CARPENTER.
copyright 1904
Next week will appear talk with Sam
uel Gompers, head OF the American Fedora
fiOn Of Labor