Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1911-07-27

49,. "a
ing and carousing. I do not hsl,.
that this is SO, and believe that i =,
safe to trust them with fow = Is
hours of leisure. D'Ofe
Protects Women
Had unionism rendered NJ
service to humanity, it has inst;s
its exictence by its efforts towards Nv
betterment of conditions for ~
working women and children a. - NC
country. Under present copditioa"
and as a direct outgrowth Of the Vs.
lsof the factory system, women ans
child have been taken from the bom
and made subject to the 1oIling of tho
factory bell.
"Unionism seeks to protect the w.
man morally. physically and indn.
trIally. 1t demands that She NOT ~
employed amidst SURROUNDINGS tbos
are detrimental to her moral ar nbTs; '
cal condition, and that she be nais
equftably and commensurate with ny
service she performs. 1t demands and
insists on equal pay for equal worE
be the laborer man or woman.
'The efforts of unioniSm in bebolf
| of the working children are of eyon
more Importance. Owing to the MIN
'oleness and powerlessness Of tho
children they have in many instances
displaced men and have been com.
piled to ruin themselves by perform.
ing work far beyond their age or
strength. The factory system has this
| to- answer for, it is responsible far
| such conditions existing.
| 1--WE believe that the period Of child.
locd is an important one, that II
should be extended as .long as possi
| ole and that it should be period NJ
growth and education. During this
| jeriod, the child should be trained for
| he future, SO that the next generation
be matured.
''Without the protection afforded BY
trades unionism, aided and assisted
| by the best men and women in every
walk of life, further impositionS would
have been placed on the children, and
their growth and development warped
and stunted. The factory system
| xnOws no tomorrow. 1t has no thought
! Of the future. 1t is imbued with the
| spirit of the chase of the almighty dol
lar, and determined that no sacrifice
is too great to accomplish its ends.
x"There should be no letup in the
| fight, and every effort should be ex
| tended to guarantee to the children
happy, healthful and useful existence
I Raises Moral Standard.
more money and less. hours are
| the equivalent. to an equal increase in
1.-THE moral status of the workman, and,
| despite those charges, a lessening Of
the time spent in saloons. Trades un-
| ionism raises the moral tone of the
Workingman by dignifying labor 1t is
| trades unfonism, and that alone, that
translates theories into deeds. 1t is
not the work but the spirit in which
| it is accomplished, as Wen as the
spirit in which it is accepted that
brings about the ennoblement of labor
and the dignity of the working man.
There is no dignity in the forced la
Dor of the slave, the necessary and de-
grading labor of the convict of the
evils of the padrone system. In these
there is little dignity and no ennoble-
ment. There is none of these in the
work TO one who merely works today
that he may live tomorrow.
Summed up, we stand for right
and not privileges, higher wages and
shorter hours and better living condt
tions. We hold strictly to our right
to be consulted regarding, the cond-
lions under which we work. We 1ar6
not revolutionary, we are not destruc
tive. The union is not to destroy but
to protect.
"Our aims and objects are constluc
tive and evolutionary. Labor union
ism, in it's pursuit of ideals, has been
| justified by good works accomplished
and by high aims and purposes for the
| future. In this pursuit, and with these
objects it has gained the affection Of
labor and earned the enlightened re-
spect of capital. 1t has elevated the
standard of the American workman,
| it has diminished accidents averted
| disease, kept the children at school,
| and has bettered the understanding
existing between capital and labor
1T has defended the weak against
the strong; it stands for the producer
rather than for production, and stands
for man rather than for the DOLLAR. It
! has fought the battles of the poor in
attic, mine and workshop, and in DO
ing so, we do not conceal the fact that
we have sometimes erred. No more
than an individual is an institution
free from liability to make mistakes
and where an individual errs, SO does
an institution. What is true OF one
applies equally to the other.
Here to Stay.
Trades unionism and trades unions
are here to stay There will be adVeF'
sity, there will be recessions, but the
movement and tn motto is onward ana
upward. It takes generations to i'm.
plant principle, but once planted, II
is there forever. In this, agree with
the man who said, my country, right
or wrong. God will that she be al
ways right, but right or wrong, my
country" only / place it thus: my
union, right or wrong. God will thai
it be always right, but right or Wrons'
NV union"