The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1913-03-17

sweat shops and the unsanltary conli'
tions of the tenements. Labor has n
campaign against intemperance and II
was my pleasure only recently while on
visit 10 England 10 find that the la
Dor delegation In the House Of Conn
mons was composed entirely OF total alb
stainers. The day Is passed and gone
when a resolution In favor OF the liquor
traffic will be indorsed by the Amer
lean Federation of Labor In convention.
And prophesy day when any aspirant
TO an office in that great labor organ
ization will have 10 present clean bill
of temperance before he can be elected
TO office The labor movement is max
ing the American workingman sober.
Labor is Americanizing the immi-
grant. Some day war viii cease when
the delegates in peace conference at The
Hague cease TO be war experts. But
the abolshing OF war will come through
the workingmen when they refuse TO go
out in the field and shoot down the work
ingmen OF other nations. Some day the
workers OF the world are to establish a
worldwide brotherhood. Believe il, my
friends, the day is not altogether fa-
distant.
"Now then, wherein lies the differ
ence between the things for what the
church stands and the selfsame causes
for which the laboring men are work
ingi We are to Judge both by the best
that is in them. Let me be understood,
the business of the church is TO create
social unrest. At the present time there
are no labor troubles in darkest Africa
and the workers, whatever they are en-
ployed in doing, are going along in the
old ruts. But, mark my word, when
the missionary strikes the Jungle sec
tions, there will be labor trouble. The
church has been the whitest light in his
tory. Reforms, when they came, pro-
reeded from within and not from the en-
emies without. The church's critics have
lived and labored within the church.
lust as | ask for square deal for the
| ask you union members
md all Others for square deal for the
,hurch,
Church's Relation To Labor
"Nlith reference to the church's rela-
ion to the labor problem, some say that |
Iesiis came to establish Utop;an
Others, to found an ideal |
Republic He came to establish an ab- |
olute monarchy of a certain kind. The |
saws Jesus Christ was So |
alist and the anarchist declares that |
Ie belonged to his own political faith. |
Nobody can prove from the scriptures
hat Jesus was the advocate of any par
icular social system. Josh Billings once
aid that before you could have an hon-
-
uman race. Before you can have an
ieal social system, you must have an
deal human being. The church's mis-
ion is quite apparent and its relation
0 the labor movement is established
"0ne man argued to me once that AL
in proceeded from poverty. | men
ioned certain millionaires in a Chicago
istrict and the reference was quite
nough, it seemed, to disprove his state
lent. 1t is the height of folly to say
hat poverty causes vice. 1t matters not
J much what we are without as whet
-e are within The fundamental thing
the question Of the mans character.
o You see. in the end. the social prob
m is a religious problem. The Social
t says, from every man according to
is ability, and. to every man accord
IL to his needs II means self-sacriiice. I,
rat kind of doctrine; and it is one of
le finest things about Socialism. The
narchist says there is no need of law .
nd be thus records himself in favor of
high Kind Of justice. In a certain
nse, both are right, but their con.en !
ons only go to show that before any
these better conditions can be brought |
pass there must be change of char !
ter. And that is exactly what Jesus
Iught.
To-day. Jesns Christ, as always, is the !.
urt of last appeal. To what philos-
,her, to what thinker OF the times !.
ould we carry our labor problems for !;
luton in preference to Jesuss He is
boris champion and he fought the bat Z
IS of the laboring men centuries ago. 9
sus is the founder of the Christian I,
urch and as | ask of everyone a square : .
al for the laborer. so do ] ask of you !, !.
square deal for the church. I I