Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1905-09-05
ORIGIN OF LABOR
DAY CELEBRATION
Interesting Story Of the Founder
Whose Name Has Become
Famous.
Principles Involved That Trumphed
Over Many Difficulties and 6raved
the Test Of Worth and Time. Holi.
day Firmly Fixed in Nations calen-
dar.

The recurrence of labor's annual
holiday this year found the organized
workingmen and workingwomen Of
America stronger in numbers than
ever before. When 1t is considered
that the trades union movement on
this side OF the Atlantic has extended
over only about century its progress
is trny amazing. The earliest known
trade union composed OF jburneymen
was the New York Society OF Journey
men Shipwrights, which was legally
incorporated in 1903. In the same city
three years later unions of tailOrs and
carpenters were formed and In 1919
union Of hatters was organized.
Thus the history Of the trades un.
ion movement goes back century.
but the inception of Labor Day is Of
. much more recent date. And among
the many hundreds of thousands Of
workmen who. on the first Monday Of
September each year. ). parade the
streets in labor's cause 1t Is safe to
assume that Of all that vast thrOng
not one In 10000 can name him who
is, by right. Father" OF Labor Day
Robert Price. once well-known
resident Of Homecoming. Nd. is the
man to whom all honor Of Labor Day
is due And yet his name is well-nig1
forgotten IN labor circles. his very
whereabouts being uncertain. He wal
last heard of in Kansas. an old mar
of seventy or more.
But a quarter OF century agt
Price was sturdy miner, bringing
forth by the sweat Of his brow and tn,
Drawn Of his strong arms the treas
ures Of Mother Earth At that tim,
the Knights Of Labor was approach
ing the zenith Of IT. power, which con
tinued to increase until 1886 when tn,
American Federation Of Labor gaine,
the ascepdency. One of the stronges
workers for the Knights Of Labor Il
his own district was Price. Early an
late he labored for the cause, and whel
in 1881. local assembly S4S met t
choose q delegate to the general as
sembly of tie Knights Of Labor 1t wa
hut natural that the choice shoul
fall upon Price.
lie GtuNtUlIOu was HSIa III A>NW VI
city. The Typographical members 9
tre order rave a street parade an
TIE convention temporarily adjourne
10 witness it. Stirred by the sight {
the marching horde. fired by the el
thusiasm of the participants and glor!
Inc n the idea that the marchers war
members of the order to which he ha
given so much of his time. Price g,
tered the convention hall. The col
vention meeting was filled with n
life and spice Of the pageant just wi
messed and many remarks were mao
on the occasion. At moment whe
there was a momentary hush in II
babel of voices about him. Price aros
Tall. well formed and in the flus
of naanhood he stood erect. He lea
ed far over the balcony in which
was seated and caught the eye
Nasterworkman Powderly. For m
ment his voice was hardly hea
above the din of sounds. Gradual
the noise about him became less al
soon his full round tones were hea
in the sarthest recesses of the gre
hall AT the conclusion Of his q
dress, which was filled with rhetoric
bursts of oratory, he stopped for
moment, and with q voice choked wi