St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1913-04-02

simply because he was anxious to
do anything in his power for the
benefit of the laboring man. The \
church which he represented is the
friend of the working man and the
working man is the friend of the
church. There is no man for whom
he would DO more than a iaboring
man. He stated that he did not Da-
lieve in millionaires as he did not
wronging the interests of Others |
He believed that if the money put /
into public libraries donaed by |
multi-millionaires could have been |
utilized in building up the welfare |
of the laboring man it would have |
been o. much more benefit to the
country as a whole. He then
told of his personal experiences in
Burlington where % years ago
men with families of from five to
eight children were supporting
them upon S1.25 a day and, not
withstanding the tremendous in
crease in the cost of living, they
were getting only that amount of
wages today. We are simply asking
Justice for the working man and
justice for the capitalist. If a
man is honest he should give honest
work. He was not in favor of vio-
should work fairly in the interests
lent methods but believed that We
should work fairly in the interests
of labor and capital alike because
we were all brothers. Every honest
man should strive to raise the STAN
dards of labor as we'll as to seek
! it's honest compensation.
He then read a poem entitled
Zone hundred years from now"
and before closing wished the men
success in all their undertakings
and said that he wanted to pay
! tribute to the large corporation in
this town where there was less
| fault found on the part of the
workmen than in almost any other
] factory. He believed that the con-
ditions were fairly good there be-
cause there is so little fault found
and believed that the men in the
management of that business are
fair and conscientious in I their
work.
Capital is Dishonest
r. w. Simonds said that
ministers, doctors and lawyers are
not producers but live off the
products of others. Consequently
he was interested in the improve
ment of the conditions of the labor
| ing man because it meant better liv-
/ ing for him. He said that the labor
ing men with whom he worked in
saw mill 20 years ago were the best
men that he lad ever known. Labor
| has to face the combination OF
| capitalists and if it cannot combine
! itself it must lie down and be
| overrun by combination of capital
| lists. Most of the combinations of
! capitalists are dishonest and are
brought about by the increasing of
capital stock and the payment of
! dividends upon their Watered stock
! at the expense of the wages of the
| laboring man. There is a concern
| in Vermont which % Years ago was
! capitalized at $250,000 and now at
| $2,50O,00O, the increase in the cap
! ital stock being all watered, and
this corporation pays the lowest
wages to it's men of any corporation
! in the state.
He did not believe that it was
| right for man earning $500 day
for his labor to receive only $3.50
and to go home at night and hear
his babies crying for the necessi-
ties of life. When capitalists re-
fuse competent wages in order that
they may pay from 2 to 10 per
cent dividends, it is time for the
working man to strike. He then
told how he worked in a saw mill
in a town below here some 20 years
ago and of the low pay received by
the men and how the head of the
concern when he died was estimated
to be worth $22,00G, 900, money
made by underpaying his help.
In ST. Johnsbury we have every
kind of combination against us, the
doctors have combined, the milk
men have combined, the grocers
and meat men have combined. If
these have combined and it is a good
thing for them, it will be a good
thing for you to combine. You are
wicked to your own families if you
do not get fair wages. The improve
ment ought to be brought about
peacefully if it can, but if a man
has a family and is earning three
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