Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-28
IN LABOR CIRCLES
G..ls.ssESs

| labor movement, partly through President
| Rocsevelt's message to Congress and again
| by the dismissal of prominent officers of the
| Letter Carriers Association and of the
| rural mail carriers for attempting to inhu-
| ence legislation in their favor. Discussing
| this matter, Luke Grant, labor writer.
| says:
| In his message to Congress President
| Roosevelt rather encouraged the idea of
| employees of the government becoming
| members of labor unions in their respective
| calliEgs. At the same time he is determin-
! ed that the orders issued through depart
| ment heads something over year ago to
| the effect that government employees must
| not go outside of the departments in which
| they are employed to seek legislation shall
| be adhered to-
This opens up good field for specula-
| ton to the future of the Letter Carriers
Association and the Rural Carriers Asso-
citation. According to the ideas of well-ln-
formed labor leaders, 1t means that both as
sociations will have TO eschew their former
policy of isolation and become integral
parts of the organized labor movement
through the American Federation of Labor.
.'If the letter carriers are to be debarred
from attempting to influence legislation ia
yorable to them. which the President seems
to think is essential, it follows that they
will have to seek redress in some other
way. and. according to the opinions OF Ia
bor men. the natural channel is through the
American Federation of Labor.
For several years the American Fedora
ton of Labor has been in the habit of send
ing a delegate to the conventions of the
National Letter Carriers Association, eX-
terding 1t an invitation to become affiliated.
The letter carriers. while they have con-
s;dered the matter and while many of
them individuals favored the step, have
held aloof. believing it would not be OF
great practical benefit to them. Recent
developments may have the effect of chang
ing their ideas this subject.
1.-THE letter carriers. postal clerks and
other employees of the Post Office Depart
ment of the government believe they are
entitled to better salaries. They have stood
practically STILL while other classes of la
Dor have gone forward until today labor
is better paid than it ever was before, not
withstanding the claims of the socialist
agitator that the rich growing richer
and the poor poorer. The rich may be
growing richer, but the poor are growing
richer also.
The letter carriers. being employees IF
the government and the strike being out
of the question as both absurd and inn
practicable it follows that the only way
they can secure the increased salaries they
ask for Is through legislation If they are
to be debarred from going beyong the de-
partment heads to ask for this legislation.
it also follows that they must rely on the
organized labor movement to go direct to
Congress for them"
JdIleS r StleIdl SECRETARY
treasurer of the Stone Cutters National
Union. of the oldest trade organZa-
| tons in America, has been appointed a
member of the committee on civic organi-
cations of the inaugural committee. Pres
ident Gompers of the American Fedora
ton of Labor and Mr.. McHugh the
only labor representatives appointed on the
committee.
There has been a dearth of local labor
news recently. owing to the holidays and
the preparation of plans for the reorgani-
cation of the Council of Allied Building
Trades. With the beginning of the year
1908 the local leaders will, it is said in
stitute number of needed reforms in
the District unions. which experience has
taught them will be necessary for the
proper conduct of the several bodies dur
ing the ensuing twelve months. One of
these will be the drawing more tightly of
the jurisdictional lines and the avoidance
as far as possible of threatened clashes be-
tween the Central Labor Union and the
local Structural Building Trades Alliance.
The annual convention of the Interna-
tionaI Building Laborers' Union will be
held at Minneapolis, Mimi, next month.
1t is stated that Andrew Carnegie is con-
templating the erection in New York city
of a large and palatial hall of labor, to be
presented to the workingnen's unions of
the United States.
Carriage and Wagon Makers Union will
be removed this week from New York to
40 North Clark street, Chicago. Charles
L. Baustian of the latter city was recently
elected general secretary-treasurer and
William Mcpherson, also of Chicago, gem
eral organizer.
Washington workingmen are favorably
considering the ACCESSIBILITY of following the
conciliatory and educa tional methods which
have been adopted by organized labor in
Minneapolis in order to bring about better
understanding between employers and en-
ployes. Public meetings are being held
from time to time, at which speakers from
the various industrial and commercial
bodies are given an opportunity to express
their opinions freely.
A dispatch from Milwaukee says: CAL
though the socialists were defeated easiyat
the San Francisco convention OF the Ameri
can Federation of Labor they are already
planning for active work at the PittSburg
convention next year Their first aim will be
to secure the 1906 convention for Milwau-
kee. Then they will make an effort to de-
feat Gompers for reelection. This is the
chief end of the socialists, who recognize
that Gompers is the chief obstacle to their
securing control of the organization.
THE socialists claim that, If they can
once force Gompers out of the presidency.
they can swing all the labor organizations
of the country in line for social democ-
racy, and that the election of a socialist
president will then be a possibility. This
Berger of Milwaukee on his return from the
San Francisco convention"
Berger came within a few hundred votes
of being elected to Congress at the Novem-
Der election, and is a member of the social
list democratic national executive COM
mittee.
That disastrous results may follow the
introduction of politics into labor unions
may be inferred from a letter in The Car
penter." the official organ of the United
Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners
from a correspondent at Erie, Pa. 1t is
stated that about ten years ago the Cen
| trail Labor union. composed of sixty-seven
| local unions. conceived the idea of going
| into politics. While its ticket the first
year was not elected it received sufficient
encoura cement to warrant another the
| year following. Success attended the eff
| forts but soon INSCRIPTIONS persons be-
| gan to make use of the labor union move
| ment to further their own personal politi-
| cal ambitions.
Unions. Heretofore solid began to d.
| vide If you were with the leaders you
| had a voice. if not you were a nonentity,'
| IL is stated
The printers and cigarmakers. recognize
| ing that unless the tide was stemmed the
| movement would die out. began to take
| preventive steps. Other unions followed,
| and when full control had again been pro-