Los Angeles herald., 1906-09-04
TO|LERS MARCH
IN PROCESSION
LABoRlNG MEN STOP WORK TO
PLAY
Lay Massive Corner Stone Of New
Labor Temple on Maple Avenue
With Sealed Records Of
Unions

Thousands Of men who literally cal
their bread in the sweat of their faces
rested from their labors yesterday and
played. IL was Labors own holiday.
II was the one day In the year when the
brawny foundation of the common
wealth masses Itself and shows its
numbers on parade.
The parade in the morning was long
and ungainly. Good management was
needed to keep all sections moving at
once, and this good management was
lacking. BY a bad blunder on the
part of whoever laid out the line OF
march, the parade cut itself in two at
Second and Broadway, and for an hour
or more the tail of the procession, con-
tanning hundreds of men, waited Inn
patiently on Second and Broad
way for chance to move. The chance
did not come until so many of them had
become tired of standing, first on
one leg and then on the other, that
they dropped out of the parade. When
the wing on South Broadway did get a
chance to march it was minus a good
many feathers.
Lay Corner Stone
The parade ended on Maple avenue,
between Fifth and Sixth streets, where
the new Labor temple is being erected.
1t was part of the days program to
lay Ine corner stone OF Ine TEMPE, anu
this was done about noon.
A float had borne the heavy stone
through the entire parade. The float
and the pedestal on which the stone lay
were draped in purple and white, the
colors of the Womens international
Label league, No. 36. The various
union label leagues acted as escort to
this float The corner stone weighs a
ton and was inscribed "Union Labor
1n ha,- no de
of local labor unions were sealed in the
stone and it was lowered into place.
Stanley B. Wilson, formerly president
of the Typographical union, was the
orator of the occasion. He paid a
glowing tribute to the toilers to whom
the temple was being erected.
coopers Make Barrels
Various trades had expended their
energies and considerable money in
fitting up appropriate floats, and some
of these were ingeniously contrved.
One float bore coopers, who in boiled"
shirts and best trousers made kegs and
barrels while the heavy wagon that
bore them bumped over the pavements.
They shaped and pounded with cherubic
expressions, except, as when frequently
happened, the bumpy old float made
one of them hammer his finger, and
then human nature stood out in chunks
all over him.
Behind the coopers came several
billiard table makers. A large billiard
table took up the greater part of this
float, and two men made Intellectual
efforts to play a game while the sway
ing of the wagon made the ivories roll
over the table like drunken sailors.
These and many other floats were
received with applause by the families
of laboring men who deeply lined the
sidewalks on the line of march.
The carpenters presented the largest
turnout. They had fully 1000 men in
line and took five minutes to pass the
reviewing stand in front of Elks' hall.
This array of strength was one of the
biggest features of the parade, and the
carpenters seemed to appreciate the
fact. as they depended solely on their
numbers to make showing and had
but few gaudy banners.
The Allied Printing Trades formed
goodly parade by themselves. In this
section were pressmen, press feeders,
engravers, book binders and every trade
known to printers. The procession was
headed by the Typographical union,
as 1t is the hoary headed father of
them all.
The Plasterers' union was awarded
the first prize for the best appearance.
1t was difficult work for the judges to
award this banner, and the plumbers
were a close second in the estimation of
the reviewers.