The independent. [volume] (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907, 1906-01-25
Equitable Economies

Amsterdam, N. Y. Jan. III have occasion
ally noticed that people of agricultural sections
OF the country who manifest jealous interest in
the money and transportation problems, have lit
tie patience WITH and take little interest in, the
work and aims of our labor organizations, which
fight their battles in the cities
ask you, therefore, to lay before your read
ers the facts contained in the following extract
from article which appeared in the New York
American on December 30
president Paul Morton is not going to raise
his salary on New Years though he does
get only $4,000 year He also will give the
policyholders the additional profit of seven hours
day overtime from $50 clerks who are mailing
his statement boastng of his million dollar
economies. He has actually discharged twenty
five So week clerks who were so disloyal to the
policyholders that they dared protest against
working seven hours a day overtime for three
months without pay And he Is going to discharge
125 more for the same as soon as he can
get men 10 take their places This work
was commenced Wednesday night and Thursday
morning the young men were notified that
allowance would be made for overtime. AT noon
Thursday they held a meeting and addressed a
round-robn to Judge William A. Day, the comp
tloller under whose direction the work is being
done. The note a formal protest against
the injustice OF being compelled to work what
amounted to full day without pay The reply
TO the note of protest was the immediate dis
charge of the committee that delivered the
message"
ter, or worse, for the city markets for agricul-
tural products VI, instead Of the economies now
being forced upon this little army of insurance
Office employees and their families the $4,000
salary OF the new president were reapportoned
in such way that seventy thousand of it would
hereafter go to those Woodworking employees, and
the remaining ten thousand year as salary to
the president?
Ii this policy were carried out in all the other
great city industries and in the mining and
iron. steel and railroad works-where hundreds
OF thousands OF family-supporting and family
supplying workers are employed-what would be
the effect upon the market for and prices of
agricultural products?
An eighty thousand or hundred thousand dol
lar president can eat only breakfast or one
dinner no matter what his salary is but a hun
dred thousand workers under him east hundred
thousand dinners and wear a hundred thousand
suits of clothes where he can comfortably wear
but one; and the more clothing they can wear
and the more house furnishings their wages en-
able them to buy, the more agricultural products
the hundreds of thousands of employees in
the clothing and hourse furnishing industries
consume
Is it~not clearly evident that while every
TO all his eecutive or directive ability or his or
ganizing capacity enables him to earn and while
every holder OF stock, representing property or
capital actually used in such industry, is Justly
entitled to good and generously fair revenue from
his enterprise and investment, that the whole
remainder is actually earned by the army of en-
ployes, and justly belongs 20 them? It seems
just as clearly evident that it Is to the interests
of our agricultural communities to see that they
get II. JAMES hartley