Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1906-04-10
I.nhnr Lenaers, Protest.

The memorial of the labor organiza-
tons Of the country to President Roose-
yelt Speaker Cannon and the presiding
officer of the Senate for remedial legis-
lation and relief from conditions about
which organized labor complains is one
of the greatest political events of this
generation In effect ii declares that,
if no relief is granted. the American
Federation of Labor will discard its
non-political 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
islation labor demands, and who have
voted for much legislation as the repeal
Of the eight-hour bill in Panama. 1t
will 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 la
Dor legislation has hJr been disclosed
and combine the labor vote on those
will be pretty tough proposition for
many Republican candidates who rely
upon the 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 on Jan. 20,
which will be found recorded on page
1892 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 Isthmian 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
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 well
stated by Mr.. Underwood, of Alabama,
who said:
"You are depriving the great laboring
vote of the United States of the oppor-
tunity to come before the appropriate
committee and give their evidence as to
why this proposition should not be
adopted, and why it is detrimental to
the labor conditions Of this country, If
they desire to do so, and l can say to
you l 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? If 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 it of necessity"
And Mr.. John Sharpe Williams, the
Democratic leader, said:
II 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 it, You talk about being
peculiarly the party representing Amer
lean labor within the American Union.
l notice you always represent 1t in such
a manner as that the American capital
list may collect the returns, and when
ever there is a chance for you to stab
American labor under the fifth rib you
stab it, 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 to
even be heard in their own behalf on
one of the most important questions
that labor is interested in. To memori- |
alize a Republican Congress or Presi- |
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-injunc-
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 It would be allowed to lapse |
In the Senate.
With this record of the Republicans, |
1t is no wonder that the labor leaders
have at last decided upon more siren |
uous action that will produce results.
Curbfng the Trusts.
The Supreme Court in its late trust |
decisions has virtually settled the trust |
question, if the administration has the |
pluck to go to the root of the evil as
far as it can go, but to make clean
job of exposing and controlling the !,