Denver labor bulletin., 1917-05-05

"In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth" So the first
work was accomplished and the labor
question begun.
For ages the only labor performed
was that required for mere exist
ence and consisted in extracting a
livelihood from natural resources, such
as hunting, fishing and gathering roots
and herbs. AS time went on the de-
mand came for a more assured supply
of food. Flocks and herds were COL
lected that they might have regular
supply of milk and meat. So capital
began to take form.
| As the fiocks and herds increased in
size the necessity of larger range led
the tribes to make wars to obtain
| larger domain. The captives taken in
these wars were used as slaves. And
away back there ages ana ages ago
and labor" a problem that so many
learned men have tried to solve.
At first it was the master surround
ed by his regiment of slaves to wait
upon his needs. Men who had no
rights and when they became old or
sick were cast out to die.
Finally they revolted and threw off
their bonds; but the serfdom TO which
they were subjected was little better
than slavery, as they had so few
rights.
In the fourteenth century thru the
! influence and teachings Of Wyclifs'
moor priests, the peasants revolt was
/ brought about and serfdom was wiped
out of existence. This ended enforced
labor in England, and from this time
one we find the man choosing his own
] occupation, his own residence and his
! own employer. Thorold Rogers says,
aThe century and a quarter following
the peasants revolt, or the fifteenth
and the first quarter of the sixteenth
centuries, was the golden age Of the
I English laborer. AT no time before
/ or since have the laborers' wages pro
cured for him so many necessarles Of
I life. and at no time have wages, rela-
Y lively speaking, been so high and food
/ The middle of the eighteenth cen
tury marked the beginnlnE Of a new
| system Of labor. Up to this time the
work had been done mostly IN the
I homes or private shops; but now, thru
| the invention of the spinning jenny,
steam engine and other machinery, the
work was transferred to factories and
[ shops, and labor became community
affair instead of a family affair.
Then began the amassinE Of great
| fortunes with the tendency Of wages
I ever downward. Women and children
were forced, by circumstances, to
work long hours, under the most de-
! grading circumstances. ana conditions
To better their conditions the la
{ boring classes began to organize un-
/ ions. hoping to gain thru combined
efforts what individual efforts could
not obtain. Their cause was met with
the most bitter opposition, but finally
r ~ 1.ar1-
With their sword (the strike) they
set out to win: then in 1880 the boy
colt, so named because it was first
practiced on Captain Boycott, was orr
ginated by Charles Stewart Parnell of
the Irish National league, and the
union had n helmet; later the union
came as a shield, and so in this COM
3lete armor the laborer stands ready
to make his demands and to defend
his rights.
The strike was used to cause an
inconvenience to the employer who
refused to better conditions or increase
wages according to demands. When
the organizations are headed by con-
servative, reasonable men, these diff
culties are usually settled by arbitra-
ton; but when headed by men who
are radicals and unreas enable, the re-
suits have often been quite disastrous.
Profiting by past mistak kes, the organ
izations are forging ahead and becom-
ing n great power.
In our country the first great demon
stration was the carPCnters' strike IN
Philadelphia about 1880 About 1000
men, who had been working from sun
to sun with no definite time for lunch,
struck and gained shorter hours with
half an hour for lunch md an increase
in wages. Quite a victory you see
The Typographical Union struck in
1852 and gained better wages and bet
ter working conditions. About 200
men were involved.
Perhaps the biggest strike and the
one affecting the most people was that
of the railway union which occurred
in June. 1894. 1t incluied all the rail
roads leading out Of Chicago: Inc
militia was called out 20 quell the dis
turbance and the strike was lost to
the trades.
The last big strike is one with which
we are all familiar, for it has brought
such scorn and disgrace to the name
of our beloved Colorado. l refer To
the Ludlow strike in 1918. While ap-
parently the strike was lost to the
trades, it has done much for the labor
ers in the way of bettered conditions
Strikes are all very well if used as
a last resort, and if conducted without
violence; but otherwise they bring
nothing but hardships to the strikers
and their families and discomforts to
the general public, while the capital
list reaps rich reward by initiating
prices.
Perhaps my idea Of strike has
been distorted by my first close view
of one. You know, first impressions
are usually the lasting ones" 1t was
in tho snrinp of 1908 when the CANDY