New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-03-21
PROTECTION AND WAGES
Workers as Well as Business Should Benefit
from System.

To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: The letter of Mr. Baier in to-day's
Tribune regarding the alien labor law is
worthy of commentator and lends me in
spiraton for a few comments along the same
line.
| am workingman, member of organized
labor and have always been the blacklist
kind of BLACK Republican," neither social
ism nor the call of the Bull Moose having
drawn me from the grand old party. For
years it was continually soaked into my sys-
tenn by successive Republican national plat
forms that high tariff was necessary to
protect our manufacturers so they could com
pete successfully with foreign made goods
and at the same time pay high wages to
American workingmen. SO it is somewhat
confusing to a Republican state Legis-
lature and Governor taking the stand that
cheap, foreign labor is necessary TO the de-
velopment Of great public improvements.
They seem TO be perfectly willing that the
American wOrkingman shall have to compete
with this cheap labor, but they still main
tain that the poor" manufacturer shall be
protected against the importation of the
cheap, foreign-made goods If competition
with cheap labor is good for the American
workngman, why isn't competition with
cheap, foreign-made articles good for big
business?
The answer to this question seems to be-
Our laws, courts, legislatures and govern
mental machinery are maintained solely for
the benefit of big business while the workers
are considered only about election time, when
We are told how important we are and how
much our votes will be appreciated. Lin
coin, in his first annual message to Congress,
said: Labor is prior to and independent of
capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor,
and could never have existed if labor had
not first existed. Labor is the superior Of
capital and deserves much the higher con-
sheraton" Why, 10 Judge by the opinions
of the eminent United States Supreme Court,
in the light of the recent decision in the
case of the striking Danbury hatters, if that
tribunal had existed at the time of the "Bos-
ton tea party" it would have assessed heavy
damages against our Revolutionary fore
fathers because they refused to purchase
English goods and persuaded others to follow
their example. In this connection il might
be well to call attention TO the facsimile Of
a handbill shown in Sparks's Men Who
Made the Nation" This handful, which was
printed in Boston at the time of the Stamp
Act read az follows:
"WlLLIAM JACKSON. an Importer. at the
Brazen Head, North Side of the Town House
and opposite the Town Pump, in Cornhill.
Boston 1t is desired that the Sons and
Daughters Of Liberty would not buy any one
thing Of him. for in so doing they will bring
Disgrace upon themselves and their Posterity
forever and ever AMEN"
How is thar for public boycott, and vet that
which was patriotic in the days of Samuel
Adams AID the Sons and Daughters of Liberty
TO day Is d terrible crime, 50 say our learned
courts and judges. Is il any wonder that
Lincoln again and again quoted Jefferson's
statements that our courts would in time
constitute an oligarchy that would nullify
and disregard the rights of the common peo-
pie?
few years ago n trolley line was built
through Oneida by cheap foreign labor. As
often passed these poor Italian workers AZ
noontime had an opportunity TO see wha,
their dinners consisted Of With some il
was Just hunk of stale bread. with others
bread and solitary tomato and again. BY
way OF variety, some had a piece of bologna
to eat with the bread. II paying hard work.
ing men and boys wages that permitted them
10 have no better food than this with which
to sustain them in performing the hardest
KIND OF manual labor is necessary TO the de.
velopment OF this great Republic of ours then
all can say is God help the Republic,"
And what must we think of men in public
office who profess allegiance to the party OF
Lincoln and Sumner and Thaddeus Stevens
when they declare their willingness to COM
pei our American workingmen to compete
with the cheap labor of Europe for the sake
OF putting bigger profits into the pockets of
big corporations and millionaire contractors
ERNEST l.. HARVEY.
Oneida, y. Y, March 10, 1915.