The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1910-09-09

interest and respect by great crowd
k and his utterances frequently elicitet
e hearty applause. In his address h,
1 said:
TOdaT-On Labor Day. speak In on,
sense especially to those personally anC
vitality interested in The labor struggle
and yet | speak of this primarily as one
, aspect Of the larger social struggle grow
ing out of the attempts to readjuSt scotia
conditions and make them more equitable
The nineteenth century was distinctly
one of economic triumphs-trumphs in
the domain of production, including trans
portation and the mechanics Of exchange.
The marvellous progress made in these
respects multiplied mans productive
power to an almost uncomfortable degree
In the matter Of the production of wealth,
as much progress was made during the
nineteenth century as during all previous
periods since history daWned, that Is, the
changes brought In q single century
through machinery and steam have been
greater than the sum total of the changes
OF the preceding thousands Of years; and
| these very changes and this material
progress have thrust upon US social and
political problems Of the first magnitude
| The triumph Of the physical sciences in
| the nineteenth century represented prog
reSs primarily in the material elements of
! civilization. The most pressing problems
| that confront the present century are not
! concerned with the material production
! OF wealth, but with its distribution. The
| demands of progress now deal not so
| much with the material as with the
/ moral and ethical factors of civilization.
Our basic problem is to see that the mar
!
! bequeathed to Us by the nineteenth CEN
fury shall In the twentieth be made to adj
minister to the needs of the many rather
than be exploited for the profit of the few
The American wage-earner faces this
larger social problem in a dual capacity;
first. as a citizen of the Republic charged
with the full duty Of citizenship; and next
as a wage -earner-as a Wage-WOrker-
who. together with his fellow workers. Is
vitality concerned in the question Of wages
and general conditions of employment.
which affect not only his being and
that Of his wife and children, but the
opportunities of all workers for a higher
Development,
Must Depend on Our Own Efforts. !
IT is true Of wage-workers, as Of all |
other citizens, that most of their progress |
must depend upon their own initiative |
and their own efforts. Nevertheless, there
are three different factors in this prog
fess There Is. first, the share which the
mans own individual qualities must de-
termine. This is the most important Of
all. for nothing can supply the place Of
individual capacity. Yet there are two
other factors also Of prime Importance;
namely, what can be done by the wage
workers in cooperation with one another;
and what can be done by government
that is. by theinstrument through which
all the people work collectively. Wages
and other most important conditions OF
employment must remain largely outside
OF government control: must be left for
adjustment by free contract between en-
ployers and wage earners. But to attempt
to leave this merely to individual action
means the absolute destruction of indvf-
dualism: for where the individual Is 80
weak that he, perforce, has to accept |
whatever q strongly organized body
chooses to give him, his individual liberty
becomes mere sham and mockery It
Is irdispensahly necessary, In order to
preserve to the largest degree our svs-
tenn Of individualism, that there should
be effective and organized collective ac- !
hon. The Wage-earners must act Joint
" through the process of collective bar
gaining. in great industrial enterprises
Jnty thus can they be put upon a plane f
II economic equality with their corporate
employers. Only thus is freedom of con- t
ract made a real thing and not mere |
egaN fiction. There are occasional occu- t
'ations where this Is not necessary; but.
peahng broadly. 1t is necessary through i
ut the great world of organized indus 6
ry | believe this practise Of collective n
argaining, effective only through such b
EXAMINATIONS as the trades unions to s
ave been one Of the most potent factors h
the past century in promoting the d
rngress Of the Wage-earners and in Sc v
hrine larger social progress for human
y | believe in the principle of organ b
ed labor and in the practise of collec- | s
We bargaining, not merely as g. desir- ! a
BILE thing for the wage earners, but az s.
which has been demonstrated S
De essential In the long run to their e
progress. a
This does not mean that I uneouivo- 81
'tlY fndorse any or all practises that | ii
Dor organizations may happen to adopt "
any or all principles that they NAV Al
loose to enunCiate. Labor organizations .,
ave the weaknesses and defects common 0,
all other forms Of human organiza- m
onS. Sometimes they act very we'll ana q,
metimes they act very badly; and I &C
II for them when they act we'll, and 7 ii
n against them when they act badly 10
'lieve that their existence is necessity:
believe that their aims and purposes are ea
morally good; and ] believe that all Of er
EN- have occasionally made mistakes, he
I'd that some of them have been guilty. or
wrong doing. Just in so far as they pc
2 strong and effective they tempt de- hr
gnng men who seek to control them ! de
r their own interests, and stimulate the ur
sires of ambitious leaders who may be So
Yer crooked men. or who may be hon o7
but visionary and foolish In other be
'rds, in treating of labor unions, as in co
'ating OF corporations. or of humanity ak
morally. we viii do well to remember HI
raham Ltncoln's saving that there Is we
deal OF human nature in mankind" tn
hether in man or in an organized DR.
" Of men, the power to do good means az
II such power may be twisted into evil: of
l in proportion as the power grows, so ers
becomes steadily more important that no
should be handled Alright Just In pro- | tee
ton as in its proper function power the
important to social progress, so in its
proper function it becomes fraught with
ial disaster.
Mise Course For Original Labor reg
utside critics should appreciate the 70
essity of organized labor. and under ho,
nd and sympathtze with what is good sul
It, instead of condemning it indiscrim- RI,
tety, On the other hand, those within mr.
fao~