Milford chronicle., 1904-09-09
THE PENDING STRIKES.
They Are of No Use rs Democratic
Campaign Material.

Campaign Material.
After groping about blindly for some
thing to take the place Of the dead IL
to ] free silver issue OF 1896 and 1900
the Democrats have apparently seized
upon the unrest Of labor as indicated in
numerous strikes in various parts of the
country as a condition which can be
charged to the Republican party. This
is merely another Illustration of the ira
ditional faulty Of Democratic issue hun
te-S to monkey with a live wire, when
they are looking for something to win
votes.
Strikes, like the poor we have with
US always. But unlike the poor they are
not proofs Of hard times and misfortune.
More often strikes are the signs and at
tendants of prosperous times. In hard
times wage eaners have nothing to
strike for, except against sharing in the
losses which wait on unremuneratiye
industry. In good times. such as we
have been experiencing under Republi-
I can rule during the past eight years
| strikes indicate the natural ambition of
labor to secure an increased share in
| the profits Of their remunerative indus
/ try.
Under Cleveland from 1898 to 1896,
strikes signifed the protest of labor
against declining wages.
Under Mckinley and Roosevelt, from
| 1897 to 1904. strikes have marked the
strides by which labor has raised its
wages to a point never before known in
the history of the industrial world.
No official statistics Of strikes have
been compiled later than for 1900, but
the figures for the sixteen years to and
including that year show the follow
ing loss Of wages to employees during
two Republican and two Democratic
administrations:
Wages lost
to employees
by strikes.
1855 to 1855 cleveland. )........S 4s.5aSas4
1913 10 1896 tClerelandl Il,2266l1
Total years Democratic
administration .Sl19. S2O60l
1859 TO 1892 (Harrisonl. ........S 1855, 151
1897 to 1900 (McKinley)........ 61,005, 723
Total s years Republican
administration 800. .S11O, ,S64, ,ST4 |
Thus it will be seen that employees lost
nearly S9,0O0,00O less striking for an in
creased share of the prosperity under
Harrison and Mckinley than they did |
striking against a reduced share Of the |
dwindlinG profits under Cleveland
But more to the point are the figures |
which show the proportion of strikes |
succeeding in the respective periods as
follows:
Per cent |
Of strikes |
1sS5 to 1883 (Cleveland). ............. 50.43
1898 to 1896 (Cleyelandl. dl............. 53.25
Eight Democratic years. 81 81
lSs9 to 1892 QIarrsonl. nl............... 44.34
1877 TO 1900 CMcKinley) ).............. 03.44
Eight Republican years......... 58.s4
The banner year for strikes was 1894
which involved a loss of S37, 1882 to
employees in wages.
1t has been estimated that the strikes
Of 1903 lessened the purchasing power
Of the American people by fully $1,000
OOO,OOO; and vet, so universal was the
increase in pay of wage earners that
the savings deposits Of the country were
by the enormous sum of S24O.-
I95.l55 in one year. This affords
striking contrast to the memorable year
Of Democratic adversely, 1894, when
S3LlS9,677 more savings were with
Drawn than were deposited.
There is a vast difference between the
significance of strikes in years of adver-
'ity and years Of prosperity. According
70 the annual report Of the American
Federation Of Labor the 1904 strikes of
he organizations affiliated with that
)ody in 1908 resulted in benefits TO no
ess than 1881, or Il per cent of the
l49'Sl0 members involved. In 1894 the
lioportion Of successful strikes was only
,T.35.
Clearly the present prevalence of spor-
ldic strikes will not serve the Demo
rats as a campaign issue, except as a
,OOmpraug