Sequachee Valley news. (Sequachee [Sequatchie], Tenn.) 1896-1952, 1912-04-04
SPEECH OF
HON. VICTOR [. BERGER
The SOCIALIST

With this in~stalmeDt we complete
the publication of speech OF Hon. Vic
tor l.. i,prger on Wool Tariff, which
brought out several points on Socialism
and the tendencies of the times to-
wards a change of system" We pub.
lshed this speech by request of Socia.
list friends, and later will publish, also
by request, MIR. Berger's speech on Ole
Are Pensions, a measure which should
be- adopted in this country instead OIL
lavishing SO much money on war.
There ARE too many aged people dying
in want for this to be called a christian
nation, especially so when we consider
that the money whichIshould go for pen
sIons for the aged is wasted IN divers
and many ways.-lEd'
Mr.. KAHN. Mr.. Chairman, will the
gentleman yield for a question?
Mr.. BERGER. Certainly. Il 0 "
much time have /, Mr.. Chairman?
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman
has ten minutes remaining.
Mr.. BERGER. Then l shall be
glad to answer questions for 10 minutes.
Mr.. KAHN. Did | understand the
gentleman TO say that the workmen in
this country are worse off than at any
time in the history of the world?
Mr.. BERGER. / did not say any
thing of the kind. l said that the GER
tainty of employment is smaller under
the capitalist system than under any
previous system.
Mr.. KAHN | understood the gentle
man to say
Mr.. Berger. Oh, no. The gentle-
man probably was not here from the
beginning of my remarks. The wages
are better in this country thar any 9TH
err countryi in the world. | said that at
the very beginning of my remarks and
explained why.
Mr.. KAHN. Because l know in my
own city of San Francisco the savings
banks have deposits of $3.50, 600, 900,
which are the savings OF the working
people of that community.
Mr.. Berger. Yes: and ! know that
you have had more hell in San Francis
co than any other city / know Of except
Chicago. daughter and a~pplause.)
Mr.. KAHN. Strikes?
Mr.. Berger. Yes; more labor troub-
leg.
Mr.. KAHN. San Francisco is to-day
the best organized labor community In
this country, and the workingmen there
udu obEthOS OhA1 ~ Nv c""O cA
tent as they have had them in any 9TH
er section.
Mr.. BERGER. And a few more.
Mr.. KAHN. But they have been
uniformly victorious and at the present
time we are getting along s%plendidly.
We have not had any serious strikes
for about three years.
MIR. BERGER. Mr.. Chairman, let
me predict something. / have been in
the labor and socialist movement for q
wears. The conditions in San Francis
co, which the gentleman from Californ-
Ia paints in such glowing %colors, are
the result Of a quasi-alliance between
big business and a certain trade-un-
ion element, an alliance for which l
would never stand. Let us see where
this is going to lead to 1t SO far has
brought more corruption than was ever
known in any other city of the United
States.
Mr.. KAHN. The alleged corruption
was under a former labor union admin
istration-
Mr.. BERGER. l am not speaking
about the labor unions as a political
tool. lApplause.]
THE SINGLE TAX DOES o HELP LABOR
Mr.. GEORGE, Mr.. Chairman
The CHAIRMAN. Does the gentle
man from Wisconsin yield to the gem
tleman from New York?
Mr.. BERGER. 1 do. Applause.
MIR. GEORGE. Mr.. Chairman, | did
quite understand the gentlem ans
allusion to me and to Vancouver and to
the strike at Vancouver.
Mr.. BERGER. If the geptleman
will permit, l will read to you so that
you can formulate your question just
right. l said:
The other day we listened to a feryid appeal
for the single tax, delivered on this floor by the
gentleman from New York tMr. GEoRGE.l He
paid particular attention to the introduce
zion of this system in Vancouver, British Col
umbia, and painted in glowing colors the bless
ings that had followed it. And now comes the
a general strike, the first of its kind in that
involving every organized workman there.
the single tax rs not a substitute for
bread and butter.
MIR. GEORGE The single tax is a
question. would like to I'M
terstand-does the gentleman connect
ne up with that strike?
MIR. BERGER. Oh, no. Laughter.
Whatever | may say about his theories,
tho gentleman from New York is inno-
cent. The gentleman has nothing to
40 with that strike. did not mean to
anything about it, but | wanted to
show that the single tax does not i'm
prove labor conditions. 1t does not.
are just as frequent in single
AK cities as in cites where they do not
the single tax. That is what /
want to- bring out.
Mr.. GEORGE. | thank the gentle
nan. l feel greatly enlightened.
SATIoNAL OWNERSHIP OF TRUSTS
II ONLY SOLUTION
MIR. STANLEY. Will the gentlemen
held for d question?
Mr.. BERGER. Yes.
MIR. STANLEY. Ii understood the
he said he was not opposed
o the organization of trusts. Is that
Mr.. BERGER. | am not opposed to
he organization of trusts any more
han l am opposed tt the Atlantic
or to the Mississippi River,
-, leJ IL, say, to anything that is a nat
raj outcome Of conditions. | explain
/ Laat III trusts are the natural result
industrial evolution, and anything
lnt'sthe natural outcome Of industrial {
% uLIou, and anything that is the nat
al outr M II an industrial develop I
ont ! am not snposed to. J
MIR STANLEY. That ia, that it a
ol owS inevitably2 q
MIR. BERGER. That it follows in 8
vitality 7
Mir. STANLEY. Nov. want to ask =