St. Johns review. (Saint Johns, Or.) 1904-current, 1908-09-04

ry place in which to work to make
these things. These all belong to
another class, who by owning them. in
fact, own him. He cannot offer
labor for sale, because his labor does
not exist. He cannot sell a thing
that has no existence. When his
labor comes into real objective ex-
istence, II is incorporated with ma
terials that are the property OF the
class that rules him. He cannot sell
what he don't possess. There Is on
ly one thing he can sell, namely, his
mental and physical or muscular pow
er to do things, to make things. He
can sell this for definite time to
an employer Just exactly as a livery
stable keeper sells horses power
to trot. to his customers for 80 much
per hour. Now, this power Of his to do
things is his capacity to perform wor
Now, It's value Ia determined exactly
like the value OF every other commod
ity, that In, by the labor time. SO.
cially necessary for Its production
Now the labor time socially necessa-
ry for the productionof labor power
liz the labor time socially necessary
to produce the food clothing and shel.
ter necessary to enable the laborer
to come on the labor market day M.
ter day able physically to work and
also to enable him to beget and rear
children who will take his place as
wage slaves when he shall have been
buried by the county or some sick or
death benefit fund.
In the example we used above we
assumed that the laborer worked
three hours day to produce n val.
ue equal 10 the value OF his labor
power. The price OF this value the
value produced by his paid labor we
call wages. This price Ia often re.
ducod by the competition OF "scabs"
and other victims OF capitalist ex.
ploitation below the real value OF
labor power. but we have not time to
20 into that here. 30 we will assume
that the laborer gets In wages the
fuil value OF his labor power.
Well. then. II he produces In three
Or four houisa value equal TO the
value OF his labor power or wages.
Why doesn't he stop work then. and
AXE his coat and hat and 20 home
md devote hte rest OF the day to
study reading. games. amusoments
md recreation? lie don't because he
ant. lie has to agree voluntarily
" course) to any conditions that they
Ind the lash ofthe competition OF the
Capital 8 Reserve Army.
IL Marx called Il. Is ever ready TO
all upon his naked back.
Why is he so helpless7 Because he
md his class> have been robbed OF
he land and the tools and all the
means OF sustenance and production.
nd have nothing left but that empty
'auble. legal liberty. liberty to ac-
ept wages 50 small that they barely
nablo thom TO live like beasts, or
r liberty 10 starve TO death and
q buried In unmarked graves by the /,
ublie authorities.
The wage system necessarily I'm
lies this surplus labor or unpaid la.
or. So long as there are wages work
lgmen. you will never get the full
roduct OF your labor. Let no re.
primer beguiie you into struggle
'hich simply aims TO secure a modi- 6
cation OF the wage system. Nothing
hort OF the annihilation Of the wage
ystemwill give you justice and give
on the full product OF your labor.
But while wages necessarily imply
irplus labor. the reverse is not true,
ou can have surplus labor without {
ages. Surplus labor Ia not an inyen
on OF modern capitalists. Since >
ankind emerged from the state Of 5
rimitiye communism. typified by the d
arden OF Eden In the Hebraic myth.
lere have been three great SYSTEMS =
economic organizations: l. Slay'
y; 2. Serfdom' 3. The wage syi c
m. II is interesting TO note the !.
ipaid labor under these three sys' .
ms. el
Under the rst.slavery. all labor !.
'pears as unpaid labor. This is on =
a false appearance. however. Dur
ga part OF the day the slave only
produces the value Of his mainten. y
ice or keep" During that part of
Q day he works for himself just
truly as the modern slave works
r himself part OF the day. But
e property relations concealed th' 81
Id labor.
Under the second system. serf- "
m. or feudal system. the paid la VI
r and unpaid labor are absolutely d.
parate and distinct. SO that not ~
en- the most gifted orthodox polite - .,
economist can confuse them. -
Under the third system. wage slav' 9,
:. the unpaid labor apparently falls \,
zero. There Is none. You volun- ts
lily enter into bargain agreeing
II your days work Is worth SO
ch and you receive the full price
'eed upon. but again this Is only
false appearance. AS We saw by
analysis part OF the wage-slave fol
: is devoted to paid labor and tic
I to unpaid. Here wages or the OF
ney relations conceals the unpaid su
or and disguises under the mask ar,