The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1906-12-07
MESSAGE
Continued from page II

cause they profess 10 advocate, just rs
the puWcyOrs of sensational Islander In
newspaper or magazine are the worst
enemies of all men who are engaged In
m honest effort to better what Is bad
in our social and governmental condi'
lions,
Corruption is never so rife as In COM
uuniticS where the dcmagogue ana the
ugitator bear full sway, because In
slcI communities all moral bands be
come loosencd and hysteria ana sensa'
tionaism replace the spirit Of sound
Judgment and fair dealing rs between
man and man. In sheer revolt against
the suualid anarchy thus produced men
are sure in the end TO turn toward any
leader who eau restore order, ana then
their relief nt being free from the IN
tolcIublc burdens Of class hatred, VIC
hence aud drmOgogy Is such that they
cannot for some time be aroused to In.
dignation against misdeeds by men OF
wealth. 50 that they permit new
growth Of the very abuses which were
in part responsible for the original out
break The one hope for success for
our people lies in n resOlute and fear
less but sane and cool headed advance
along the path marked out last year
by this very congress. There must he
a stern refusal To he misled into fol
lowing either that base creature who
appeals and pandors to the lowest In
stncts and passions In order to arouse
one set of Americans against their fcl'
lows or that other creature. equally
base, but no baser, who in Il spirit OF
greed or to accumulate or add to IN
already huge fortune seeks to exploit
his follow Americans with callous dis
regard to their welfare of soul ana
body. The man who debauches others
in order to obtain high office stands
Oh an evil equality Of corruption with
the man who dcbauches others for
financial profit, and when hatred Is
sown the crop which springs up can
only be evil.
The plain people who think-the me-
chanics, farmers. merchants, workers
with head or hand, the men to whom
American traditions are dear, who love
their country and try to act decently
10y their neighbors owe II to them
selves 70 remember that the most dam.
aging blow that can be given popular
government Is to elect an unworthy
and sinister agitator on platform OF
violence and hypocrisy.
Railroad Employees Hours.
call your attention to the need OF
passing the bill limiting the number Of
hours of employment Of railroad EN-
ployecs. The measure Is a very moder.
ate one and I can conceive of no seri.
olls objection To II. Indeed, so far as
IL Is in our power, 1t should be our aim
steadily to reduce the number Of hours
Of labor, with as goal the general In.
PRODUCTION of an eight hour day. There
are Industries in which II Is not pos.
sihlc that the hours Of labor should
he reduced, just as there are communi-
ties not far enough advanced for such
movement to be for their good. or, II
in the tropics, SO situated that there Is
no analogy between their needs and
ours in this matter, On the lsthmus
Of Panama, for Instance, the cOndi-
lions are in every way so different
from what they are here that an eight
hour day would NE absurd, just as 1t
l. absurd. so far rs the sthmus Is con-
Cprncd, where white labor cannot be
employed. 10 bother MS to whether the
necessary work Is done 10y alien black
men or By alien yellow men. But the
WHgeworkcrs Of the United states are
Of 50 high "A grade that alike from the
merely industrial standpoint and from
the civic standpoint II should be our
object 10 do what we can In the dlrec-
ton OF securing the general observance
Of an eight hour day.
Let me again urge that the congress
provide for thorough investigation
Of the conditions Of child labor and Of
the labor Of women IN the United
states. The horrors incident to the
employment Of young children In fac
tories or at work anywhere are blot
on our civilization.
III 'Si'lte vi dll precautions eAeiS'Scu
by employers there are unavoidable &C.
cdents and even deaths involved In
nearly every line Of business connect
ed with the mechanic arts 1t Is q
grrn social injustice to compel the EN-
p.oyoe, or rather, the family Of the
Killed or disabled victim, to bear the
entire burden Of such an inevitab Bile
sacrifice, In other words, society shirks
It's duty by laying the whole cost on
the victim, whereas the injury comes
from what may be called the legiti
mate risks of the trade. Compensation
for accidents or deaths due In any line
Of industry to the actual conditions un.
der which that industry Is carried on