The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1908-05-21
FREEDOM !!
Mans Rights Must Be Superior
to Property Rights Other
wise Such Trinity of
TERMS AS LIFE, LIBERTY
And the Pursuit of Happiness is a
Meaningless tumble of Words in
Our Organic Law-Must Have
Right to Refuse to Support Un-
fair Men or Products,

fair Men or Products,
The American workman is, per
haps, the most law-abiding citizen
in the world. He has been led to
believe that the laws are interpreted
and administered to all classes of
the. community alike. In fact,
that they are his protection against:
the oppression of the rich and
the powerful in this country. Yet
he now learns 20 years after the
enactment of the Sherman anti
trust law, that it applies to labor;
yet, at the same time, the vicious
monopolies and trusts are growing,
multiplying and devasting the
land.
What is there left for us now to
dot Well, our movement had been
successful hitherto in education
and humanizing our employers.
Many of them are now aware that
labor is human power and can
not be purchased the same as
bales of cotton or tons of pig iron
or salt pork; that good many
other considerations enter into the
transactions of purchasing the
labor power of their workmen.
The ablest lawyers of this county
are evidently not aware of this.
We will have to educate them also
We will also have to convince
them that while the institution of
the supreme court is result of
particular enactment and can
therefore be changed, modified, or
even abolished by the same method,
the trade union movement on the
other hand is the product of the
social needs of every industrial
community. That while there are
many communities who have never
yet felt the need OF such an in
stitution as the supreme court
there is no civilized country where
the working people have not felt
the need OF organized action along
trade union lines as a means of
improving position. And as long
as this country retains its demo-
cratic form of government the
workers will create any movement
which they feel they are in need
OF supreme court or no supreme
court.
Our lawmakers have at times,
after considerable urging on the
part those who elect them, and
when they were in an unusually
sympathetic mood, tried to legis-
late in the interest of man, forget
ting for the time being their own
material interests. These lapses
of memory have occurred very
seldom. Apparently it is just as
well, for the recent actions of their
superiors, the supreme court,
would indicate that any laws pass
ed for the benefits of struggling
humanity would be waste of
time.
On the other hand decisions like
these should teach the people of
this country the much needed
lesson that it is equally as danger
Gus to leave the Interpretation of
the laws of the land to an ire
sponsible body of lawyers, how
ever able they may be, as it is the
framing of the very laws them
selves.
Evidently the work which the
Posts and the Parrys have under
taken to "educate' the public as
to the nature of the activities of
the the trade unions of this country
has succeeded, at least with the
judges of the supreme court of the
United States. The Van Cleaves
| may rest on their laurels.
1t is indeed an i'll wind that
blows no good, and this .unprece-
dent APPLICATION of a law intended
for other purposes will serve to
more thoroughly awaken the
workers to sense of their own
power and responsibility.
| Organized labor must abide by
the decision of the highest court in
the land, whether that decision be
just or otherwise, but organized
labor need lose no sleep over it.
for the recent decisions and in
functions of the courts have done
much to cement the ranks of union
labor and make them more de-
termined to fight shoulder to
shoulder in the noble cause they