The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1917-01-20
BY Dante Barton.


seance. according to the gost cl,' de-
clared the Rev. John H. o. burke, d
Jesuit father, director Of the APOSTLE
ship of Prayer. in an interview given
to Dante Barton, of the committee on
industrial relations.
Preaching the Christmas sermon in
the vast st. Patrick's cathedral in
New York city, o. two before
he received his visitor, Father
O'Rourke had commented scathi4.s.y
on many phases of the treatment of
the poor by the rich. He ID con-
demned the practices of those who
profit by labor to keep the wo. ker out
of the just recompense of his TO-: lid
|; then throw sops of Shall restitution
to keep the oppressed poor quiet. He
|, had spoken of the willingness # hard
; employers now to co:nprom~, by ar
bitration since labor had crown
strong enough to resist the older
cruelties and injustices.
Leaning to ards his visitor, the
studious priest and teach, sale
This Christmas season has been
made the occasion for many bonuses
by employers to EN- .,loyes. 1t has
been signalized by many apparently
voluntary increases in salaries and
wages. But we should exam: -
closely these bonuses and creases
lest t. It great sin Of defrauding the
worker of his wages 70 inrebuked
and even unnoticed and persist more
strongly fortified than ever
"A bonus to ployss,"' he declared
earnestly, that is stained with the
blood and tears of women and chill
dren :.nd undergrad, overworked and,
many times, m; ngled men, is not
even charity. Such bonus at it's
best is but d small 1.-THE of restitu-
ton. At it's worst it is a cal culated,
shrewd busin~ investment, to con-
tent them with de, 1encc upon h
ers instead of requiring that which is
theirs-a just sh re Of the p~ofits to
which they have right.
F tier O'Rourke's kindly face
showed no sign OF hate "s he @poke of
these evils of modern industry, as he
talked intently of the duty to expose
the sins - ~. .crisy and cruelty, the
Unsuitable gree of predatory wealth
and the dreadful and awful sufferings
of the p Or. An occasional smile VI
understa.- -, an pity liSrt'l the
face over to black robe.
1--WE must examine these Increases
in pay to see whether they do not
mean only brides either to keep men
from nunition factories where the
pay is high. or temporarily to make
them forg .tf"l of the old wage con-
ditions which will be theirs when the
competition l prosperity incident
lpCI the ar s. I h We CEASED. We
must ccnside: SIC, gifts in almoct the
same class as the libraries aad nomi-
nally >ph.la schools and in
st.tutftns built mainly from moneys
which belong to Ire puddlers Of
Pittsburgh and other underpaid
workers like them"
The interviewer evr ~sed his Ee-
lief in the great influence for &c, | Of
the disseminA of the ideas from
affairs and pulpits such as had been
preached in st. Patrick's on Christ
mas day: The opinion was expressed
that what the priest had said to the
v"7- modern congregation in large
m -.crn catho raj had in j. the %oul
Of St. Augustine's saying: ''Thou
savest bread to the p ;; but better
were it that none hungered and thou
hadst more to give to him."
Quickly the wer came as Father
O'Rourke leaned forward:
The logical. natural place and
sympathy of the priests are with the
poor. ~ead the letter of Leo XIII on
the condition Of the workingman.
There you have the attitude of our
church on the relation Of the en-
ployer and employe. No man can
condemn more strongly the injusticc
and cruelty of capitalism and the
greed for money than does the holy
father in that immortal document.
So:r etimes the attitude of the, Catho-
Ire priest is supposed to be antagonis
tic to the workingman. This i'm
preston arises from the clersy's
opposition to Socialism. We need rot
lear Socialism. Socialism is the
child of the crueties ..e capitalism.
IT we can ameliorate and cure these,
Socialism will Gle natural death.
he priests are anti-Soci list, but
they ere not OPP Jed to the labo:in:
man and his s. gle for his rights
'"ainst injustice. They are heart md
soul with the laborer for better con-
;itions and ,tter wages, better hous-
.nS. bette provision : old :: >, for
:uller and juster distribution of .ac
profits of their own toll. Why should
The priest not take tbs ttitude? It
is the attitude Of the holy see, as ex-
pressed by Leo XIII. Most Catholic
people are poor. Christ. our Master
and our Model. was poor, lived the
poor. lived with and work I'd for the
poor. Surely the pri ,st can do no
less We priests helie> t. 1T the So
: 'uti of the onomic troubles il
contained il. tt gospel Of Christ. Put
this teaching into mems heart and
you will have a. united people which
will be invincible"
After paC-c the thoughtful priest
continI,d:
You can't s"lve this question al
together by :isiation. NIone1 in tive
past has boue 1t up and will i'm the
future buy up lecislati IN. You can't
solve this question by shooting strik.
ers-doWn in the streets or burning
them to death at Lu !low. If ..ou do
so, you will na silence, but il is tho
silence of despotiS", anr death. and
not the {: which .,ould reign
over free people. There is only one
afecaate ut nd that is tn: