BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1904-12-27
EDITORIAL.


last Friday night was one of the most
important which has been as yet con-
vened in connection with the solution
of the ever present problems relative
to our present economic condition.
The main object of this meeting was
to learn Just what had been accomplis-
he'd by the Porto Rican repreSentati-
yes at the workingmen's convention
held in San Francisco, California. The
import af1ce of the work done by these
delegates cannot be overestimated and
it was of course necessary that the
workingman of Porto Rico should re-
ceiye an account of the stewardship of
these men from themselves as they had
been sent to the convention not for
themselves but to represent their fe-
Rican labor oganization the fullest re-
cognition possible. at the same time en-
deavoring to impress upon the conven-
tion the condition of affairs in Porto
Rico and to show that the greatest
amount of want and suffering was
necessary Immediately in the form of
legislation by the Congress of the Uni
led States, 1t Yves their duty in be-
half of Porto Rico to endeavor to Sc
cure from the United Workiugmen of
America promise 10 work as an Or
ganization to secure for Porto Rico
what is justly and legally hers, in
order that poverty and want may be
driven from the doors of so many of
the idle workingmen who cannot Sc
cure employment because of the con-
dition of the coffee market. Sc. ]
Not only did the assembly accept
and approve the actions of their COM
rades while in San Francisco, but
they adopted resolutions protesting
against the present inactivity in those
government circles which should
always be in the van, laboring for the
welfare and advancement of the peo-
ple They protested vehemently
against the lack of work for our labor
ing classes and the corresponding
lack of subsistence And BY so doing
they have added nightly to the
energetic campaign which the BOLE
TIN has sustained for so long for their
welfare and in their behalf
We make this reference solely be-
cause we wish 70 demonstrate that
when in the course of the meeting the
press of Porto Rican was referred to
in such a manner as to indicate that it
had not complied fully with its duty
in looking otter the jnterets of the
country the error was most evident,
for the Boletin has been fighting for a
year or more using every effort to
bring abeut the recognition TO which
our island is so justly entitled, and in
doing this we were maintaining the
cause of our labOring classes to
greater extent than the cause of any
other particular class, since our people
depend almost VIII lily on the coffee
crop of our island, and it is for this
: that we have fought SO hard and con-
Sistently.
There have been times when the
Porto Rican press, IN the midst of the
greatest abandon. which the general
public totally indifferent, has taken
up, considered. and fought for all
OF the questions which affect Our
working classes when our press has de-
Tended all legitimate Interests without
being subsidized by the payment of
money and without asking that they
be remunerated by certain number
of subscribers in consideration of the
work which they Were about to un-
dertake, as been done at different til
mes and in different places. And in
the Meeting held Fridy night Mr..
lglesias made refernece to the Porto
Rican Press in a manner which we
cannot ana will not permit. Referen-
ces which Mr.. Iglesias was entirely
without foundation for making, and
which are wholly undeserved and
unjust.
We feel that we know and appre-
ciate the problems which we have
before us, and we are sure that we
know just how to meet them and to
overcome them either singly or C i
1ectively. We know that Mr.. Gompers,
the president of the Americon Fede-
ration of Labor was the first of the
Americans to tell fully frankly, and
freely just what condition he found
things in when he visited Porto Rico;
that it was his report which first ope-
ned the eyes of the public in the Uni
ted States.
We recognize the fact that the Or
ganization of which he is the leader