Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1911-09-11
INDUSTRIAL PROBLEMS.
Discussed AT Special Service in
Saint Anne's Chapel
LABOR UNIONS ATTEND
All Controversies Adjustable Upon
The Basis of Pure Christianity

Last night the Labor Unions of An.
napolis, by special invitation, attend
ed service at ST. Anne's Chapel. The
Rector, Rev. DR.. Joseph p. McComas,
| and his assistant, Rev. James L.
Smiley, officiated. The latter preach
ed upon the text Deuteronomy, S2:4,
"God is the Rock, His work is per-
feet; for all His ways are Justice"
The preacher reviewed conditions
today in the industrial world, taking
as a specimen the situation in the
Steel Works at South Bethlehem. Pa.
There the United States Bureau of
Labor found last year the following
facts, 81 per cent. of the 5000 en-
ployees. before the strike, worked
twelve hours daily; 43 per cent.
worked seven days Tor nights) each
week; % per cent. earned less than
IA cents an hour.
These and other deplorable features
prove the need of agencies which
will work to promote justice for the
workers. Two such agencies are the
Church of Christ and the Labor Union
The one is a divine institution, the
other is in harmony with the Divinity
just so far as it is striving for JUS
tice. All thoughtful persons now
stitute an essential factor in the
development of the worlds welfare
To be perfectly safe, both Church
and Labor Union must seek the
guidance and aid of the God of JUS
tice. Moses taught the ancient
Israelites that their national safety
depended upon God. Their national
hymn teaches us the same truth. God
is the only foundation for national
security; He is the Rock. all other
trust is shifting sand.
Men and nations often make the mis-
take of supposing that conscience will
always determine what is right.
They forget that even conscience can
be wrong. 1t needs enlightenment
and education. For example, there are
some savage tribes on earth that eat
their fellow men. We regard this
practice as abhorrent, but they don t.
They can conscientiously defend it,
They would tell in substance: "Of
course we eat prisoners of war. 1t
is a universal custom among our
tribes. 1t is recognized privilege.
From an economic point of view, it is
the best use we can make of prison
ers. :"
But, when the missionary brings
the light of the Gospel, the Cannibal
begin to learn of the Fatherhood of
En1 hn DrnNhArkAn1 &c
Then they see the cruelty and afro
ciousness of man-eating. Then they
carry the message of love to the very
tribes which, before, they murdered
with war clubs.
In like manner today, enlightened
people live upon each other. Fierce
commercial or industrial strife is
only another form of cruel cannibal-
ism. Conscious men defend inhuman
practices upon the excuse that "It is
business. They need the light of
the Gospel as much as the heather
do. We must deliver that Gospel
fearlessly to both. To accomplish
this work at home, to preach the JUS
tice of God and its necessary appli-
caticn in the social world, this church
has appointed Social Service Com
missions. So have other churches.
A crusade against injustice is moving
forward with irresistible determina-
tion.
The church commissions and the
labor unions with the boards of trade,
should all cooperate to promote JUS
tice. Here are some of the enter
prises for which we should work
together: ], the abolition of child
labor; 2, the enforcement of one full
days rest in every seven; 8, the re-
duction of hours of labor to reason
able point; 4, living wage. Each
of these questions has q religious as
an economic value. We cannot be a
strong and Christian nation until we
| follow the God of Justice in melting
out justice 70 the children of the ma
| tion and to the overworked and un-
| derpaid men and women.
Let US not make the mistake, how
ever, of supposing that all capitalists
are the authors of oppression. There
are some manufacturers who, with
their employees, are the victims OF
| circumstances. Take, for example,
the comparatively small manufacturer
who employs one hundred persons
In a good year he clears, we will
say, about $4,000. He has the man,
risks of trade and much responsibilit,
upon his shoulders. But his EN-
ployees, feeling the increased cost o.
living, ask for raise in salary. The,
think their demand a moderate on,
when they ask for an increase of onl-
fifteen cents. But now see wha
this increase would mean. You will
find it would mean s46.s0 per yea
for each, or S4.6S0 for the who'll
force of workers. AS the employe
himself is barely making 81, 900, W
see at once the impossibility of yield
ing to the demand.
Now, here we have . conumdrum
The increased cost of living on tn
one hand, justifies the employees i
asking proportionate raise in wages
On the other hand the employer i
unable to raise them. Where is tn
trouble? That is the question for th
church, the labor unions and tn
boards of trade to study and to settl
fearlessly. To throw light on sue
problems, the Social Service Con