Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1909-09-07
LABOR DAY.
Unions Enjoy Holiday Some Features
Eliminated This Year.

with the Central Labor union turned
Out and spent the day at ease.
| In past years it was customary for
the unions TO meet on n. Sixth street
and march around town, winding up
at the court house square, and later
holding picnic. These two features
were eliminated this year. The
unions assembled at the court house
grounds after the dinner hour, where
addresses and music took up the time
until nearly four o'clock. There was
large assemblage, all the business
places and factories in town being
closed and nearly everyone taking a
half holiday.
Alex Archie, a foreman for the
Marathon Granite Co. and member
of the stonecutters' union, was one of
the speakers and Mayor John +.
Lamont the other Both made excel
lent addresses, as was manifested by
the frequent applause.
Mr.. Archie, though he has been a
| laboring man all his life, has devoted
/ a great deal of his time to reading and
has made study of economic condi-
tions. While he has always worked
for everything which would benefit
labor and give it its just share of what
labor agitator. He gave a studied
address, full of logic and recognized
truths, admitted so by even those
opposed to organized labor.
His talk was principally on labor
unions, the causes which led up to
organization of masses of working
men, until today, there is hardly a
trade of any Importance in this
| country which is not represented in
the great labor bodies, principally the
| American Federation of Labor He
told-of what these unions have ac-
| complished for the toilers, and of the
better conditions they are bringing
about, with the hope that in the
final analysis it will found that they
have fully attained what they set
out to do-to give every man who
tolls with his hands just compensa-
ton for his work, moderate number
| of hours of labor, and better living
coalitions. When that time comes,
If it does come, the words quoted in
the Communist Manifesto, taken
from writer on economics, will no
longer be wholly true. The quota
ton referred to is that the proletarian
(the producer) is allowed just enough
to live and propagate his race and no
more.
Mr.. Archie is not fire eater and
his address is highly spoken of by
those who had the pleasure of listen
ing to it. Mr.. Lamont's address was
very able one, and the PILOT pub
fishes as much of it as space will
allow, viz:
"America has but few notable holt
days. We mark the\ opening of the
year with feStivity and in the second
month remember the birth of our first
president. Later we honor our soldier
dead and celebrate the anniversary of
our independence. The closing days
of the year are set aside for our
great religious observances. Today
we pay tribute to the dignity of labor
and upon it the orator could spend
hours of profitable time.
Political economists tell us that
there are three leading factors in the
production of wealth, namely: labor,
land and capital but as matter of fact
labor is the true source of all wealth.
Without labor, land and the natural re-
sources could not be developed and
capital could not result. This cannot
be better exemplitied than by a
survey of the development of this our
own immediate vicinity. | have often
wished, and | know the wish must
have come to each of you, that we could
have seen this Wisconsin river valley
before the time of the white man.
To have seen the forests, the rivers
and the lakes before the despoiling
white man with his greed for gain
changed the whole face of nature. ISee
inmy mind eye the first trapper as he
assembled the river. His wonder as
his explorations continued northWard
and L hear the tale he told of the
wealth of timber and its future
possibilities when he returned to the
frontiers of civilization. Then CAME
the lumberman and the farmer; the
one to rob nature of its acquired
abundance, the other TO develop the
latent possibilities of the soil. But
not one tree could have been cut and
not one acre cleared without the pro
ductive labor of the man who worked
with his hands. And what work it
was Even inymy time the lumber
man worked long hours and lived on
small rations. 1t was not an unusual
thing to know of sawmifls that
started up at O'Clock in the morning,
ran until u O'Clock, gave half hour
for noon and closed at half past six in
the eyening-12 full hours of real
work. Bad as they were they made
possible our present condition. 1t
was this kind of labor that made
capital possible and built up just such
cities as our own but all of it, every
bit. came through honest labor. This,
then, is just a sample of what has
been done the world over and proves
the first contention that although
land, labor and capital makes wealth
possible, labor is the source OF IL all
and without it you could have neither
development of land nor capital.
However, / am not supposed to
quarrel with the definition of politi-
cal economists nor to comment upon
local conditions past or present.
We have come to look upon this
day as one belonging particularly to
the organized labor OF our country
and when we come to so regard 1t we
naturally and at once open up the
whole question of labor unions, the
relation of these organizations TO
organized capital and the settlement
of disputes between them. Organized
labor is not new in history and its
many achievements are matters OF
plain record. If we reject the sup
position that they existed IN the an
Gent crafts and in the guilds OF Ger
many we must admit its existence as
l.. =