Evening journal., 1907-03-08
Living Wares.

I the population of this vast nation do not
rise up in their sovereign right, take the
! loosely administered laws in their own
hands. and visit the we'll merited pun
ishment on the thieving set that they de-
serve.
It is little wonder that "a reformer once
said: THE line ''The land of the free, and
the home Of the brave should be revised
so as to read thus
1.-The land Of the industrial slave and
the home Of the jackass.'"
Eighty millions of people accepting as
wages a mere pittance, regulated by as
daring a band of brlgands as ever lowered
the morals Of any nation IS the picture
we have before us to-day. And why?
is It because the country Is peopled with
poltroons-submerged serfs--wlho have not
the courage to demand their rights. or is
il because the people well know that the
iron hand OF disguised tyranny" is so
strongly entrenched that 1t can actually
defy the government?
1t may be either or perhaps neither
but whatever the mode Of reasoning or
lack Of reasoning-'that leads the working
people Of this nation TO the straits they
are now in, we must marvel at the case
with which it Is done.
How can those who toll look on such
pictures as the following with composureg
Mrs. John Jacob Astor purchased a
jaokass-as a toy for her grandson. and
the price she Is said 10 have paid for 1t
was twelve thousand dollars:
Mrs. Bradley Martins grandson, while
playing with an urehln in park in Paris,
became so taken up with the little lad
that his grandmother attempted to buy
the boy from his mother so that her
grandson must not know sorrow. Per-
haps she did not consider It a sorrow for
the poor mother TO part with her child;
Dogs are purchased at fabulous prices
by the rich while the worlxmans child
must be content with rag baby;
Thousands OF dollars are squandered on
dinners, TO suit the whims Of f-dresscd
butterflies and their escorts. and. as IL
TO furnish a climax, a wealthy lady who
died recently, bequcathed that her pet
dog should be inferred in a grave be-
side her in a suitable burial casxe.."
eve presume that she meant casket
suitable to the one in which she was bur
ied)
No, It cannot be that the workmen Of
the nation realize the immenslty OF those
gross folles. but perhaps we are sleeping
on the crest Of a smouldering volcano.
II tho workmen Of tho nation once realize
all that it means-when they do-what
theni Possibly thcy may kick the money
changers out OF the temple quickly, but
it is possible that they might have re-
course 20 q moro powerful weapon than
n number nine boot who lknows7 And
perhaps 7 might add nobody seems t.
care.
In the race Of extravaganza ndulged IN
by the extreme rich. whose create pleas
ure seems to be "Get married to-day and
Divorced to-morrow"-trade wives, as il
were. we hear much concerning the
wages the workmen should receive, and
st is my chief aim to dwell on that sub
iect
The twelfth census furnishes some rar,
bits OF information. and among them car
be found the following gem:
III the total wealth produced in thl.
nation during the year 1899 were to b,
divided equally between all those who as
sisted I'm the production OF IL, each work
er old and young. weak or strong. wis,
or ignorant, would get $500 per houi
throughout the entire year. What mag
nihcent sum-"
The writer does not believe in an equa
division OF the nations wealth. but mere
iy spreads the fact in a general way 8.
that tho immensely Of the wealth ere
ated by labor could be seen at a glance
Sixteen dollars per hour, Just think O.
iti Sixteen dollars per hour for every
worker in the land whether he or shl
labored by brain or Drawn Doubtless tn,
lahorer who swelters beneath the broilini
rays Of a summer sun, or faces the bite
winds Of winter while digging a ditcl
really earns as much, and ought to b.
recompensed as fully as tho president o
bank. Possibly he should receive more
"Fie on such an argument as that. "say.
some doluded person." The brain-wori o.
a bank president IS more arduous thai
the physical labor performed by a toner
But we can pardon the assertion sine
not one bank president could be foun,
who would willingly trade positions Will
ditch digger even though he were per
mitted 20 retain the salary OF the banl
president. The reason is obvious-hi
labor OF he performs any is lighter thai
that Of the manual laborer and this D
testified to by the long life Of bank pres,
dents (when they don't commit sulcid
through rascality), in comparison to tn
average life OF the iaborer.
II It would be an injustice TO djvid
equally. and give $1,000 per hour TO each
Il is yet possible to show how a lahore
should receive at lelst from ten to twent!
collars per day. Here is an instance:
While walking up Market street on,
cold day recently. 1 observed some lab
orers cleaning brick in the ruins OF
burned building, I stepped inside am
made some inquiries from the men en-
ployed there. Ono laborer to whom
spoke informed me that he received SIS
per day This man was seated by
pile OF brick and mortar and dlHgentl!
laborcd cleaning the brick. I returne,
that evening and inquired again, and
learned that the man had cleaned owe
one thousand brick Note the wages tn
man received and what he had ought q
have received. one dollar and fifty cent
was what he got while fifteen dollar
Is what he should have gotten. since tn
kind Of brick he was cleaning quoted a
$500 per thousand that day. Ever,
brick the laborer cleaned netted the en-
ployer one and one-half cents and TIN
should have been the wages Of the IA
bcrer. why don't the laborer get IN
fifteen dollars per day since he Is pro
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