The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1909-08-05
COMBINE OF MINERS UNIONS
--YALE'S SHORT-DAY RE
PORT-WOMEN IN TANNER
les.

PORT-wOMEN IN TANNER
les.
The action of the Western Fed
Grafton of Miners, in Denver last
week, in extending an invitation
to all miners organizations to
join in a conference on the prop
osition OF combining all the
unions, will result in merging all
the miners associations on the
North American continent and
creating the greatest labor organi-
cation in the world.
In face of the bitterest opposi-
|tion that ever has confronted a
labor union in America. being
marked for determination in a
seven-year war by the Mine OPP
orators association, backed by the
smelters' trust and Standard Oil
influences re Manufacturers as
ISOLATION, - zens' alliance, Pin
kerton detective agency and a
small army of strike breakers,
gun men, politicians, ETC., the
Western Federation of Miners
doubled its membership during
the past three years. is completely
out of debt. and has changed its
tactics from the defensive to the
offensive, and will conduct an ag-
gressive campaign Of organization
against the smelters trust.
Furthermore, the dream OF
years will soon be realized. when
fully 100000 men will be federal
ed in the mining industry and be
almost all powerful in the produc'
ton of coal and minerals.
This latest industrial develor
ment is still another demonstra
ton of the fact that "the bloc
of the martyrs is the seed of II
church." that labor unions thriv,
under oppression. 1t will be re
called that i predicted the forme
ton of this labor combination 81
| months ago, and I venture the as
sertion now that when the con
and metalliferous miners are solid
ly united, as they will be. the iror
and steel workers will be organ
lied, despite all the United State.
Steel corporation may attempt tC
prevent it. The trust cannot OPP
|erate without fuel and ore.
A remarkable Endorsement OF
the eight-hour work day come
tfrom an unexpected source-con
tservative old Yale. Prof. Irving
Fisher made a most careful inves
litigation of the subject, reported
to national conservation commits
sion, and now the government
printing office at Washington is
publishing the document.
Prof. Fisher declares that the
Ipresent working day is striking
example of the failure to conserve
national vitality. "In order to
keep labor power unimpaired, he
says, 1.-The working day should be
physiological. e., it should be
such as would enable the average
individual to completely recuper-
ate over night. Otherwise, in
stead of a simple daily cycle,
there is progressive deteriora-
ton. A reduction in the length
of the work day would be chief
means of improving the vitality of
workmen, as we'll as the worth
of life to them"
Prof. Fisher shows that the de-
crease in the length of the work
day has not diminished the total
output, and he presents a strong
array of facts gained from expe-
riments in this country and Eu-
rope to substantiate this asser-
tion.
The Wisconsin state bureau of
labor stole march on the United
States department of labor and
commerce. The department is UNI
dertaking an exhaustive investi-
cation of the problem of woman
labor. The Wisconsin bureau
'tmuckraked" the Milwaukee tan
neries and has just issued an in-l
teresting pamphlet on the subject.
Miss Irene Osgood studied the
conditions of several hundred
women and girls and found that
the noise of the machines, the
smell of the hides, the long-hourI
the too free intermingling of thel
sexes are demoralizing. She con-
cludes that unless conditions are
strain at the ironing tables, and
radically changed I'VE win con-
tinue to see women, worn out by
the Work of their youth, unable
to do their part in making happy
and successful homes"