The San Francisco call., 1906-09-17
C|TY'S CONDITION
IS LAID BARE.
Rev. Bradford Leavitt Says
Citizenship Is Question for
Labor, Thought, Patience
LABOR A PROBLEM

LABOR A PROBLEM
Conditions as they are in San Fran
cisco were exploited by the Rev Brad
ford Leavitt at the First Unitarian
Church yesterday. DR.. Leavitt pointed
out that grave local problems are to
be solved and that the erection of a
better city and the inculcating of bet
ter citizenship involved labor, thought
and patience.
He said in part:
A time of crisis is upon our city.
There is no need of pessimism, but
strain. For a little time after the fire the
spirit of brotherhood and cooperation
ruled among US and united US to help
build the greater and better city that
tie far away There is grave danger
that we shall lose 1t altogether. A
cheap and easy optimism is among US
which boasts OF city with million
zens or just people? How much better
of should we be if, having five times
were also multiplied by five-five times
many saloons. five times as many
gambling dens. five times as many
criminals five times as many indiffer-
cDt ClllLtIlS WHO 90 not NOI6, UNO llIutS
as many placeseekers, led by a boss
who sees to 1t that they do vote? and
does anybody suppose there will be five
times as many churches? And If mere
were does anybody think that they
would get out OF the old ruts and be
any more useful than the ones we
have?
No What this town needs today is
not mere boasting about how great
and mighty we shall become, but an
earnest effort to improve our city as
nr.f1 L. T1,-k f11A e<Nr~
needs Is not so much rehabilitation of
business as the rehabilitation of char
acter. We need not only clean streets,
but clean hearts. We have had a bap-
tiSm of fire: we now need a baptism of
the holy spirit.
CHANCE FOR NEW STREET.
We may not be worse than others,
had the chance of the century to put
mistakes behind and make new start.
But still the saloon is on every corner
still crime increases at an alarming
rate Where is the evidence of public
spirit in citizens raising rents from 25
to 500 per cent, driving the poor into
to pay exorbitant charges? Did not
the Building Trades Council pledge
that wages should not be increased?
That pledge still stands unredeemed
Francisco will not be permanently re-
built under these conditions.
1 am with the workingman in his
rightful demand for better conditions.
and when conditions become intolerable
believe it is a sin to be patient and
long suffering, but / should hate to
have them the jaw bone of an ass.
But what shall we say of the usual
methods in this city toward the en-
ployer and the fellow workman who
does not belong to his club. They are
horrible. 1t is not even civilized war
fare; 1t is murder. The methods in
this city are like the prosecuting
church OF the oiden time. Our trade
unions here would do well to keep a
little closer account of public opinion.
It would ne a good plan for them to
study mod GRAFTON. for public opinion is
OF the more recent record of unionism
here or elsewhere. This everlasting
agitation breeds 2 restless. dissatisfied,
sullep class of workers as narrow
minded as the most bigoted rengionist
who can see no good outside of his own
little sect. The employer is to under
stand that the work is done as a favor
and he viii be mighty fortunate If it
is we'll done. Pretty much all the work
in this city at the present time seems
10 be done against the grain In spite
mate in the lard for work the number
Of WorlSr'en who take real pleasure in
their work is pretty small.
CAPITAL As a TYRANT.
But everybody knows that union
leaders are but taking lessons from
the fdpltI ilStS ana exporters OF the
people and 90 blrnderingly what these
others do shrew6ly. Capital is fast
becoming the most irhuman tyrant the
world has yet known, and the time is
not far distant when citizens will rec
ognize and use their right to ask Of
every rich man. How did you get your
money! ana what are you going to
do not underrate the splendid bust
ness enterprise and courage that go
to work in the face of great difficulties
business. but in this present competi-
tive scramble for advantage and place
We are in grave danger of losing. our
high ideals, and the offense of our
commercial greed already smells to
Again while thousands of families
are being supported by the bounty of
generous friends who subscribed the
relief funds. other hundreds of women
are parading Van Ness avenue and the
shopping district arrayed in expensive
dnery such as would make the wearers
a laughing stock of any other city in
America or Europe. There is altogeth-
er too much of this display just now,
rancid with the stencil of cost and
plicity which now, if never before, is
specially becoming in US all.
Meanwhile the institutions which
would normally counteract these dan
gers are destroyed or weakened. For
a long time there will be q dearth of
libraries. good music. galleries of ART.
churches. But still our life on con-
mon levels must be fed from above
else our life in the dust Viii
become uninteresting and rudely self
ish. Man needs to oe told again and
again that he cannot live by bread
alone.
INSTITUTION INFECTED.
Unfortunately the very institution
which should cure tho Isalddy Is H.
self somewhat infected. and instead or
being a vigorous moral leader Il fas
too often sunk back to be mere de-
fender of creeds, looking back to an
cient tradition, asking as It go-s out
in the world to fac" iiF ing facts npt
what is the whole truth. but wis truth
is 1t expedient to proclai1n? TIE re-
ligion of America has b cen rnnnin. on
very. very narrow lines. ard It is high