Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-15
fund tend to emphasize the fact that money
is necessary In Industrial battles.

1
| Some time ago the American Federation
| Of Labor, through its president, Samuel
| Gompers, outlined a plan by which 1t Is
proposed that organized labor shall take an
| active hand In political contests-that Il.
| so far as legislative bodies are concerned.
| There are many reasons for this action. In
| the past workingmen have been voting for
| men on the tickets of the great parties.
| hoping that their sense Of right and Justice
| would be the necessary impelling force to
| induce them to keep the interests Of the
| whole people In view. and enact such legis-
lation as would give the necessary protec-
| ton to all. But they have found that this
confidence In many instances has been mis-
placed: the indiscriminate support OF men
| whose position on questions Of vital import
| was unknown frequently resulted dfsas-
trously: that many Of those elected sup
posedly to represent the whole people had
signally failed in their duty. To secure
| laws for the protection Of the great mass
| Of the people the Federation Of Labor has
called upon organized labor everywhere to
| take up the fight and use It's best endeavors
the state and national legislative bodies and
| men friendly to its interests are chosen.
| In his address on the subject President
Gompers says: Defeat labors known enc
miles, even II you have to elect those who
are not straight labor men. If we cannot
use the other man as a staff to lean upon
| for temporary purposes he may be just good
enough to use as stick to beat the enc
advances made In this direction by the
English workingmen. they not only having
| large number Of their own members in
parliament. but some OF the most distin-
guished statesmen in the empire as their
active allies.
Following this appeal. organized labor in
Memphis has taken up the matter with
keen interest and with every prospect Of
were called to order last Thursday at Labor
Temple by William OBrien Of the iron
holders union. Dan Wolf Of the typo
graphical union was made permanent chair
man. C. w. Merker Of the BARRIERS union.
vice chairman. and w. L. Holly of the car
penters and joiners' union, secretary. A
committee on platform, Of which H. p.
Hansos was chairman and Harry Buel sec
rotary, adopted a report concerning the for
lowing fourteen points:
Eight-hour workday.
Enforcement of the child-labor law and
additional legislation to perfect 1t.
Free books for the free schools.
A one-half fare on street cars for school
children and transfers to be furnished on
these.
Employment of home people on public
works to the exclusion of all others, when
all things are equal.
Enforcement Of the Chinese exclusion act.
Arbitration Of all labor questions.
Municipal ownership of all public utilities.
The weekly payday as compulsory law.
Establishment of state abstract and title
guarantee offices.
Postal savings banks.
Adjustment Of the convict contract labor
system.
Fair elections; the opening of the polls
at 8 o'clock am. and closing at pm. in
order to allow the workingman opportunity
to vote.
Assessment of all properties at their real
value.
The report was adopted with one slight
change and an advisory committee Of five
was appointed to formulate plan of &C
ton.
In an address before the convention of the
Texas State Federation of Labor jeff D.
Montgomery, legislative representative OF
the Farmers Union, said:
Numerically our union Is larger than
any other in the country, and 1t Is growing
at the rate of thousand members a day.
In Texas. where the first was organised.
total membership of 100000.
Last year we sent legislative represen-
tative to Austin. We are not in politics.
though every man in the capitol is, and
support Of 100000 members came up 1t was
pretty sure to pass. Every trades unionist
and railroad employee at Austin supported
the bills in favor Of the farmer. and our or
much good. The Farmers Union stands
ready to work with the trades unions at all
times and will support their measures
whenever the opportunity Is presented"
In its position in the ranks OF organized
labor the carpenters organization ante
dates the American Federation of Labor,
in which the late p. ]. Mcguire, for many
years its general OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES, was
one of its founders. For g. long time he
served the federation as first vice president:
Under its present name, as the United
Brotherhood Of Carpenters and Joiners Of
America. it will celebrate its fourteenth an
nual convention at Niagara Falls on Sep
TENDER 10. 1t has been generally conceded
that to the genius for organization of P. ].
Mcclure the American Federation Of Labor
indirectly owes its origin, and the carpen-
tiers are not slow in claiming the credit.
The meeting at Niagara Falls in reality
represents the silver jubilee of the organt-
cation of the carpenters into a union, sep
arate from the Knights Of Labor, in which
the other labor leaders Of today received
their first lessons in the value Of consolida-
ton and cooperation. For this reason the
convention is Of especial interest, and the
souvenirs, in the shape of badges, will be
unusually handsome.