The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-04-28
HUNTERS DEFENSE
OF PICKETING BY
ORGANIZED LABOR

OtlOHJvtzlU IHOVil
Below is a summary of the address
delivered yesterday at Hartford by
Robert Hunter the Socialist candidate
for Governor at the late election who
spoke in support of Workingmen's
Compensation and Trade Dispute. bills
now pending before the Labor and
Judiciary committees. MT. Hunter said
in substance:
"I desire to say that I represent
over 10000 men in this State who last
year voted the Socialist ticket. / am
also one of those who represent about
ninety unions, together with every
city Central Labor body in this State.
At the first hearing Mr.. McLevy, the
president of the Central Labor Union
of Bridgeport, was told by Mr.. Banks
that the committee did not desire to
know who had endorsed our bills. 1t
sought information only as to the
merit of those bills AT the last
hearing Mr.. Chandler rebuked Mr..
George w. Hull when the latter en-
deavored to impress the committee
with the fact that the workers of this
State would unquestionably hold re-
sponsible the men who failed to con-
slider seriously their most earnest de-
mands. So far as 1 am personally
concerned am also carrying out GER
tain pledges made in the last political
campaign.
1.-The campaign had hardly finished
before we began the work of trying to
fulfill our pledges and two bills were
drafted: one concerning workmen's
compensation. the other trades dis
sputes We decided that we would not
ask for radical legislation. We sim
ply copied two laws from the statutes
of Great Britain on the two subjects
in question. We did this for the rea-
SON that. as so many of our bad laws
are taken from England, we thought
we might perhaps persuade You to
take from that country two of it's good
laws
1.-The Workmen's Compensation Act
presented TO you provides for damages
to the injured We are making a
common protest against the old and
harbarous custom in this country OF
legs. arms, health and lives of work
ing people. If the New Haven rail-
road runs a track over the land of an
employee it must compensate him Tor
the damage. but if it runs an engine
over the leg of that employe it may,
under our present law, escape the pay
ment of damages. It cannot conffs-
cate without compensation the mans
land; but it can confiscate the mans
leg. The great industries of this
State are allowed to carry on this
kind of confiscation without hindrance,
because. while in this country our
laws protect property rights, they do
not protect human life. If the prop
ertv Of any one in this State suffers
an injury the owner is insured against
loss. but the workers have no insur-
ance against sickness, accident, unem-
ployment old age and death Conse-
quently they must suffer anguish, mis-
ery and starvation. Now, gentlemen,
we believe these evils are proper sub
jects to be dealt with by legislation,
and we have urged upon you a bill
which will give the workers OF this
State some slight relief.
1.-THE other bill which we have pre-
scented to this Legislature is one reg
I,lating the conduct Of trades disputes.
This act Is an exact reproduction of
the English law We admit that the
bill which we suggest is an advance
upon any legislation yet, passed on
this subject in America, although II
may be said that Maryland has very
much the same legislation. The word
ing of the Maryland law is indeed
about the same as the English stat
ute It reads: An agreement Or COM
bination by two or more persons, 10
do, or procure to be done, any act IN
contemplation or furtherance OF a
I
work1nen, shall not be indictable as
conspiracy, if such act, committed by
one person. would not be punishable
as an offiense; nothing in this section
shall affect the law relating to riot,
unlawful assembly, breach of the
peace. or any offense against any per-
son, or against property.
you may remember that one of the
attorneys of the manufacturers at the
last hearing declared there was no
such thing as peaceful picketing, but
you will observe that he is behind the
thought and, experience of England
about Al years. The fact of peaceful
picketing was recognized even in Con-
necticut thirty-five years ago. In
1876. Mr. Alfred S. Bodies, then editor
of the Norwich Morning Bulletin, pub
lished a book called The Conflict Be
tween Labor and Capital. He quotes
from the report of the English Com
on Trade Unions of 1867. the
following sentence: so far as it re-
lates to worklnen who are not men,
bers of the union picketing implies in
principle an interference with the
right to dispose of their labor as they
see fit and is therefore without JUS
tif1cation. And Mr.. Bodies asks: DO
they contend that when one sees an
other doing thing believed to be
contrary to the interests of both,
neither has a right to say anything
about the matter? This is very
extreme view to take. Suppose A
should advise how he could make
greater profits in his business, would
the latter regard such suggestion
as an interference? B is not bound
to follow the advice. Daily. hourly,
men are advising one another not to
do thus or so; we have never heard
before, that. in so doing, a right is
violated So long as the advised is
left to act freely as before, how is he
lnterfered with in the prosecution of
his business? Advice is all that pick |
cts are expected to give and the rea.
son why they give it is, because they |
deem the interest of those advised to |
be the same as their own. Certainly |
they have a better ground for advia : |
ing with their fellow workmen than |
~es& ReSsana Kha dala out wisdom