Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1907-08-10
THE REWARDS OF LIFE
Self Betterment Is a Universe
Desire.
TO SECURE Better WAGES.
The Most important Lesson For Work
ers to Learn Is the Value of Thor
ough Oreanization-A Divided Union
Can Achieve No Permanent Success.
Everybody wants good wages.

Can Achieve No Permanent Success.
Everybody wants good wages.
For any person in or out of the
trades union movement to loudly pro
claim his belief in the desirability of
higher wages should not attract ex-
traordinary notice, for he only voices
the desire of every human being.
Though all humans may not worl;
piece work or day work. yet all work
for wages in the sense that every one
is trying to get something in return
for the energy he expends, and wheth-
or the desired return be money wages
or pleasure or honor or success, lac
matter what it is men strive for, they
are never satisfied with what they
receive, but want more.
This unrest that exists in every hu-
man being containing an ounce of
gray matter is the saving salt Of am
bition that makes progress possible to
the human race.
No one dares to say that the uni
versal desire to accomplish self better
ments is a detriment to the human
family or that the desire in individual
cases to improve ones condition is IL
any way reprehensible.
1t is therefore generally admitted
that not only does everybody want
more but also that such desire is
praiseworthy, and the effort to attain
it should be persisted in until success
full.
Union men, therefore. need not spend
any time discussing whether they want
more wages because everybody does Or
whether their desire is commendabl"
because everybody comedies it is.
1t is one thing, however. to want
more pay and to know you ought to
have. it, and it is quite another thing
to get it.
To secure improved wages and con-
ditions it is necessary that the issues
be we'll and carefully considered, well
framed and ably presented. The cOndi-
ton of the employers business, the
condition of the industry generally, the
relation of one employee to another,
competitive comparisons on the points
In dispute, the condition of the union
locally and generally, all these and
many more should be considered by
the. ablest executive board a union can
select
Even with the ablest board actuated
by the highest motives and with most
just cause it is no easy matter to raise
wages. Such board may be laboring
under some trivial instruction from
the mass that, applied to the particular
dispute, may be fatal to success or such
a board may make an innocent mis-
take of tactics with the same result.
Such a board. however, will achieve
permanent results where it does sue
coed and will not try to face members
with counterfeit successes.
We will cite two illustrations of what
we mean by counterfeit successes.
Suppose a sole leather room employs
forty hands, four of them being sole
cutters at $2.75 per day, the other thir-
ty-six receiving less than $2.75 and
down as low as 81 Assume board
desires to pose as successful leaders.
and they make a settlement for two
years, giving four men % cents per
day each, making So each, while at the
same time the other thirty-siX are tied
for two years with no hope of increase.
Such settlement as this would cost
the employer 81 more per day and is
mighty cheap wage insurance for him.
and, besides, from such a board he
would naturally obtain some other con-
cessions of value to him.
Next in order will be for the trucu-
lent board to announce vociferously
that ''the sole leather workers of Blink
vile are getting So per day" So they
are 90 per cent of them)
Suppose in another department a
than another method that might be
employed at far less wages than the
men now receive The men re
ceive comparatively good wages; but
taking advantage Of temporary condi-
tons, an advance is forced on the ex
listing method. thus fastening and Of
fering a premium for the introduction
Of the cheaper and low wage method
The first illustration is q sacrifice of
90 per cent Of the members involved,
while the latter partakes of the phi
losOphy that kills the hen that lays the
golden egg.
Both Of these illustrations show ex-
tremely bad tactics.
Too often has the decision in these
matters been carried by the man with
the loud mouth and empty head, and it
behooves the level headed, conserva-
tive members who have too long stayed
at home and whose future bread and
butter is at stake to attend the union
meetings and defend their interests
against incompetency and lunacy.
How much the lesson viii cost we
do not know, but some day union men
wilt learn that the way to secure bet
ter wages is first to become better or
ganized as better units in a better
union. They will learn that any wage
movement not built upon this founda-
ton, no matter what temporary sue
cess it MAJ achieve. is poor tactics.
They will learn that selfish division
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