Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1916-07-28
Continued from last week.
The Chambers New Development,

The Chambers New development,
The National Chamber of Com
merce has a new development, as
you understand, and they are begin
ming now to practice it on you.
daughter But you are not the
first victims. (Laughter.) They
have what they call the referendum
vote, and a very good man, who,
in his way, believes he is helping the
cause of democracy, and the work
ers-a genuine, well-intentioned be-
lief that he has seems to imagine,
that something can be handed down
from the gallery to this assembly
that would send you away contented
and happy even if you were slaves.
(Laughter.) He made an issue of
what he termed the "Democratiza-
tion of the National Chamber 0
Commerce. He provided that a
referendum vote should be taken,
not in the hall, but from each one of
the executive committee or the ex-
ecutive officers of the Chamber of
= Commerce throughout the United
States, and l believe the very first
thing they passed upon in their Dem
ocratic capacity was the Seamen s
law BY vote of 5 to they de-
clared for the repeal of Seaman's act,
the amendment of which was so ear
nestly fought for by that great work
er for the cause of democracy, An
drew Furuseth, president of the In.
ternational Seamen's union-an act
that has absolutely nothing else in
it's provisions except the protection
of human life and the abolition of
slavery-manhood slavery upon the
high seas.
We investigated this body little.
They have publicity organ called
The Nations Business-many of you
have probably heard of it. The
Nations Business will be ever ready
to show you how you ought to sub
NIT to some authority other than
your own economic power the ques-
tion as to whether you shall keep
life in your bodies or not; whether
you shall have the right to live OF
not.
We found in the correspondence
which we examined bearing on the
mining industry of this state tCol-
orado) there was a great deal be-
tween No. 26 Broadway-Mr. Rookie
feller's office-and the National
Chamber of Commerce, and, particu-
larly, it appeared, the manager of
The Nations Business. We inves-
tigated it because it is mighty i'm
portant to understand who has the
avenues OF publicity in this coun-
try-the only means of true edu-
cation-and we summoned the man
ager of the National Chamber of
Commerce, and we summoned Mr..
John D. Rockefeller, Jr., and Mr..
Ivy Lee, the publicity man of the
Rockefellers, and we found that the
National Chamber of Commerce had
attempted to peddle themselves to
the Roekefellers, but the Rockefellers
would not buy them. In other words,
Mr.. Rockefeller considered 1t in cor
respondence, extended over period
of many weeks, as to whether OF
not, at the request of the National
Chamber of Commerce that is seek
ing to advise you men today, he
would finance the entire publication
of the Nations Business, . and after
Mr.. Rockefeller had engaged Mr.
Lee. who is a known publicity ex.
pert and probably had some per
sonal desires at stake in the matter
he concluded that THE Nations
Business" and the National Chamber
of Commerce were below the deal
ings of their mighty organization
and told them that they would have
nothing to do with them.
National Chambers Proposition.
Now, let's see what the proposition
of the National Chamber of Com
merce is, because it is the only new
thing | see to develop in this case
It is that you should submit the ques
tion as to how long you should worl
to the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion of the United States. Now.
know many of these gentlemen
perhaps all of them-one or two o
them are my very dear friends. am
they are good men, as men go, bu
Il want to say, without any reflection
upon them. if the working people o
this country ever surrender one atom
of what they have gained in econom
ic power during the years of strug
gle and bloodshed and suffering ant
starvation, through which they hav
passed, to any political body upol
the face of the earth, they deserve Il
be slaves. (Applause.)
Economic Independence.
| believe, my friends, that thi
march for the eight-hour day cal
not be checked. | believe that you
example is going to show. not onl
to the workers of this country, bu
to all of the people of this country
to the small business man and tn
large business man-that an intelli
gent and free industrial manhood
an economically independent body G
workers, is the greatest thing for al
v7ihe people.
What good Is a man to a com
mnnity If he is making only enoug