Times-promoter., 1908-10-23

III. Is Well-knOWn TACT that at the
last meeting of the Democratic nation
al committee special fund of $4,000
was appropriated and set apart for the
express purpose of Furnishing any per-
son or corporation which endeavors to
'coerce employees to vote for Mr.. Taft
Special counsel will be retained and
vigorous prosecution will follow.
Judge Wade said to-day: I'VE
might as well settle the question dur
ing this campaign whether under the
law an employer may club his en-
ployes into voting as he directs.
Threats of reduction in wages or prom
Use OF higher wages as indueement to
vote for Taft is bribery plain and sim
pie.
We are not afraid of the effect of
such tactics in this election because
the American laboring man cannot be
bribed nor scared into submission to
the will OF his master in a matter as
sacred as the ballot, but think it is
the duty OF this committee to protect
the American workingman from such
methods. The employer has no legal
right to insult his employees by such
notice as the following:
The reduction of ten per cent in
wages last winter was to have been re-
stored when business conditions would
warrant IT. While We are busy at pres
.ent. We feel that it's continuation will de-
pend upon the result of the presidential
election and that If Mr.. Taft is elected
q general Improvement In all lines of
business will result. On November 2Sth,
we Will, therefore, restore the old rating
TO all employees whose wages were, re-
duced ten per cent. last winter, provided
Mr. Taft Is elected president.
tsigned) S. S. EVELAND,
President.
This Is attempted bribery and pun
1shable as such. We are satisfied that
such offenses will be few.
I'VE will give due publicity to every
effort to coerce labor The people of
the country want to know what kind
OF men are managing the manufacture
ing and railway companies who pros
per upon the patronage of Democrats
and Republicans alike. 1t may be that
Democrats will continue their busi-
ness relations with people who stoop
to bribe or coerce employees to vote
against Mr.. Bryan, and then again
they may not | kind of like the tone
of the following letter sent out by
prominent travelling man in Iowa:
Dear Sir: AS the travelling salesman
of -, my house does considerable ship
ping in Iowa. Your freight agent has
been anxious to receive these shipments.
Our house wishes to ship its product over
the shortest line and the best rate obtain-
able. / understand from your employees,
that you are attempting to. coerce them
to vote for Judge Taft, but yet you are
willing to accept Shipments from those
who are supporting Mr. Bryan.
If this is the policy of your road to
acoerce your employees, it is well that the
public may know it, that they can give
their business to that road which permits
its employees to vote as their judgment
dictates.
Sincerely yours.
II do not give the names, because
the writer received immediate assur-
.ance that no such effort would be
made, and in politics we should be
careful not to do injustice to anyone.
But we will see that we get the name
of every guilty employer, and will see
that he gets full publicity both before
election and after election.
THE slip in the pay envelope few
days before election advising how to
vote won't so this year as it did in
1896"