The labor standard., 1919-09-01
SOL. STILL ON
 THE WAR PATH
In the Land of Sunshine, Fruit and Flowers, But Ever Battling Against Trust-Made, Child-Made Cigars

SAN FRANCISCO-Under the cap tion of "A Long Struggle, Sol. Son theimer pays his respects to the United Cigar Stores Co.,, through the columns of The Labor Clarion.
 A Long Struggle
 For years the cigarmakers of San Francisco have had an up hill strug- gle to earn living wage.
 First, the United Cigar Stores have been on the unfair list here for quite long while, yet they continue to prosper and flourish.
 These United Cigar Stores are the distributors and agents for every kind of non-union made cigars in the coun- try, made by a gigantic trust capital ized at over a half billion dollars. These cigars are made by the exploit ed labor of women and children. Everytime union men purchase these cigars, they are giving employment to non- union labor, and at the same time Francisco. These people who make these cigars do not live here, they spend no money here, they do not in any way contribute to the welfare or the prosperity of San Francisco, be- cause they live elsewhere, hence they have nothing in common with the working men and women of San Fran cisco.
 The United Cigar Stores Go. have many stores here. Everything they sell to the consumer they have shipped in here, with possibly one or two ex- captions of cigars, which they have calls for because of their exceptional quality, they being made here in San 1a~++ +Io I/TrN of cigars the United Cigar Stores want to sell. They must dispose of cheap truck, and in order to help the sale of these cheap cigars they also resort to "Cheap John" methods, in order to flimfam, bunco, and horns woggle their customers -"coupons,'" "eoupons", "extra coupons today with every purchase" come in and get your share while they last, don't fail, get your coupons" Special announce ment to the public-we are doing a profit sharing business"
 Great Scott, who ever heard of trust giving away something for noth- ing, and yet the gullible, unsophisti- cated public proceed to swallow the bait, hook, sinker and line in one gulp, and you get, what ?-possibly jack knife, or lead pencil sharpener, or COrk screw. NOW let 5 Seo WudI IIIo manager of the United Trust Stores does with the daily receipts. Having totaled them up in the morning, he proceeds to bank, buys New York draft, and presto chang-o, your San Francisco money has gone out of com mission. Has this transaction done anybody any good here in San Fran cisco? Any mercantile establishment been benefited? any butchers, bakers, barbers, carpenters, plumbers, steam filters get anything out of it? Not so that you can notice it! And now let me say to you San Francisco buyers of cigars, beware of these Greek gods, bearing souvenir gifts, demand union made blue label cigars, let your pref erences be San Francisco made blue label cigars. ...
 A word about the Manila cigars. The United States Government per- mits the importation of three hundred and fifty million of these filthy made cigars into the United States annu- ally, free of duty. These natives re- ceive wages varying from 30 to 40 cents per day and we cigarmakers here are placed in competition with this cheap, under-paid class of labor. The trust imports these cigars put up in packages that are attractive to the eye, with the name of some admiral who has perhaps gained distinction because of some valuable service to his country, but if any of the consum- CTS of these vile cigars could go to Manila and see under what unsanitary conditions these cigars are made not one American would endanger his health by inserting one of these vile | things in his mouth.