Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1906-04-11
Labor Leaders, Protest.

generation. In effect 1t declares that,
IL no relief is granted, the American
Federation of Labor will discard its
non-polltical garb and will enter upon
the non-partisan plan of uniting the
votes of all Its members against those
politicians of all parties who have re-
fused or neglected to vote for the leg
lslation labor demands, and who have
voted for much legislation as the repeal
OF the .eight-hour bill In Panama. 1t
viii also mass all its voters for those
candidates of either PARTY who have
proved friendly.
THE plan to be followed is to question
those candidates WHOSE position on Ia,
Dor legislation has MT been disclosed
and combine the labo, vote on those
WHO pledge themselves fnv6rablS. That
will be pretty tough proposition for
many Republican candidates who rely
upon tile Manufacturers Association
for campaign funds, for the written
pledges of candidates will be published
and their usual plan of promising ev-
erything to everybody will hardly an
swer.
There was a test vote taken in the
House of Representatives OH Jan. 26,
which will be found recorded on page
1862 of the Congressional Record Of
the present session of Congress on the
question of repeating the application of
the eight-hOur law to alien labor en-
ployed on the Istllmian Canal. The
Republicans voted unanimously for the
repeal and the Democrats solidly
against the extension of the hours of
work. That vote is one of the questions
raised in the memorial of the American
Federation of Labor.
The Republican managers reported a
special rule to be adopted without de-
bate, to force this repeal of the eight
hour law as an amendment to the ur-
gent deficiency bill, and the labor side
OF this outrageous action was we'll
stated by Mr.. Underwood, of Alabama,
who said:
"You are depriying the great laboring
vote of the United States of the oppor-
tunity to come before the appropriate
committee and give their evidence rs to
why this proposition should not be
adopted, and why 1t is detrimental to
the labor conditions of this country, II
they desire to do so, and can say to
you I know they do desire to do so.
You say that this relates to
alien labor. One might be led to be-
lieve that you did not know anything
about the principles on which the con-
tentions for the eight-hour law are
founded when you state that PROPOSE
ton. Is not the alien laborer the COM
petitor of American labor as any other
American laborer? If you want to keep
up the standards of American labor,
must you not keep up the standard OF
his competitors? II you pull down the
standard of the competitor OF American
labor and open the field for his com
petitor, down must come the standard
Of American labor with 1t Of necessity"
And Mr.. John Sharpe Williams, the
Democratic leader, said:
81 said some time ago that the time
would come when one more drop would
overflow the cup of your insolence and
your triumph. This is about the drop
that will do II. You talk about being
peculiarly the party representing Amer
lean labor within the American Union.
notice you always represent it In such
manner as that the American capital
list may collect the returns, and when
ever there is chance for you to stab
American labor under the fifth rib you
stab 1t, and this Is one of the chances
you have had lately, and you are stab
bling now"
So here is a concrete case where the
Republican leaders refused to allow the
representatives Of organized labor ia
even be heard in their own behalf OH
one of the most important questions
that labor Is interested In. To fliemori.
alize Republican Congress OF Presl-
dent is only time thrown away by the
labor people For at least ten years
organized labor has been begging the
dominant party to pass an anti-lnjunc
ton bill and other legislation, but a
deaf ear has been turned to their re.
quest, although Just before an election
the House once or twice passed a bill
knowing 1t would be allowed to lapse
In the Senate.
With this record Of the Republicans
1t is no wonder that the labor leaders
| Il. - H.. \
uous action that will produce results.