The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1907-01-09
DELEGATE PlTTMAN ON THE
PRINTING PR0POSlTiUN

S.saaR@B8aHs RsBB8Aa@Ge9essy {
u want TO say, first that I am not
member of the committee on con
vention printing. aud am. therefore,
not as familiar with this subject as
would be IL I was a member OF that
committee. But have given this
matter some little attention. at least
enough to see that il has been footed
up by some one-his itemlzed state
ment, md I don't find any fifteen or
| twenty thousand dollars. Now. Mr.
President, The Leader Co, is doing
our first printing Il grew out Of the
resolution that was introduced by Mr..
Hanraty, and that was. according to
my recollection, adopted by this con
stitutional convention. that all con-
vontion printing should bear the
union label Now that was an limo
cent little resolution. and It was one
that every man endorsed. l think.
believe that every man here has plac-
cd himself on record at some time in
favor OF union labor AS for my own
| personal position on that question |
will say shat ! am in favor of the
organization of labor, aud the organi
cation OF small interest throughout
the country, for their own protection,
! though | realize that organized labor
is arbitrary, and so is organized capi-
! tai / recognize the fact that at times
| the shipping interests OF our country
have been tied up by the course of
/ organized labor. Only within the last
thirty DAYS there has been q tremend-
| Gus roar throughout this country from
/ every shipper, from the grain dealers,
! and the coal dealers, and the whole
/ sale men, and the iObhings interests
/ of every class and OF every kind
| there have been innumerable kicks
registered by sha farmers of this
! country because they could not Snd
| markets for their grain and markets
1 for their farm products, and those
| have an been directed against the rail
j roads of the country. 1 am not their
/ apolOgist ! am not their defender,
| but | have been in a position TO assist
/ in ferretting out this matter down to
! the foundation, and we found il first
! began at Galveston; that ard the sur
/ sounding section of the country be-
1 came blocked and there was no room
for cars; every hit of trackage In that
| city was absolutely crowded with
l loaded cars ships were lying in the
harbor empty waiting to take the pro-
ducts OK the country from those cars
/ and no man dared to take them and
| deposit them on the ships. Why2 BE
cause the shipping interests of that
city, and nearly the whole of our
| country, was blocked by a longshore-
4 faaf,Tu frVfpp aud t.p chfpnaa. ,Ior.a1 IN,
! employ what was known as scab labor
TO remove one particle of a car and
| place it in ship; no railroad com
pany dared 90 permit it.: no steam
] ship company dared to permit it,
they never even dared to suggest it.
| What was the result? Galveston be-
| ing blocked and crowded, Houston be-
came blocked and crowded. and from
/ there Fort Worth and Dallas. and
| from there Chickasha and III Reno
became blocked and crowded, and
Enid and Caldwell. until the sidings
and trackage in every one of those
] different towns became blocked and
/ crowded with cars Now that is one
| of the results OF union labor, and yet
| ! want to say TO you that under the
present stress, and / might say the
! strenuosity of life IN which we are
| living, il becomes absolutely neces-
sary for labor TO organize ~ it's own
| protection. Now. the Typographical
! Union of this country have as much
right to thpir label as any manufac-
| tnrer of this country has a right to
his label. They are class or organ
lied labor. and this convention. moi
| leaving the matter open to bid--on
| the first day of this conversion. re-
solved that the printing OF this con
| vention should bear tho union label
stamp, the Typographical union label,
| II you please. Now our hands were
| tied. There was but one concern in
| the city that was operated by the Ty-
| biographical union. or in which union
labor was employed, and that was the
| only shop TO which we might go for
IconfentiBh printing under this rule
| That concern, relying upon--not an
order that should be isued--not con-
tract that should be made by this
body. but relying upon a law that was
already In existence and for which we
are not responsible, relying upon this
body to stand by the provision In the
enabling act providing that the ex-
/ R~HeN " ANia ROoN SNOhlQ pc az lne
same rate as provided for the legis-
lature, and knowing the legal rate
established BY that legislature, un-
dertook TO DO this printing, and has
done It up to date, and has done it
faithfully. Absolutely no graft; no
man can make such an argument.
And now with regard to Mr. Baker.
not being familiar with graft and
with regard TO Mr. Baker saving that
this Is a gigantic graft, | want TO say
10 YOU il viii be iate in the day that !
viii say that graft which the gov
ernment of my country by direct law
enacts and passes. may present
the Laws If do, / shall undertake 10
repeat IL, but ! say 90 yoll, Mr.. Presi,
dent and gentlemen of this conven-
ton, II there is graft in this, we are
not the parent of III This constitute
onal convention has not made Il, Il
has been made by the legislatures
here Wien you and had nothing To
do With IL, and il is the same basis