The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-08-26
THE LAW OF CHRIST
AND LABOR SITUATION


Ioses of this hour it may be dis
tinguished from the great world prob
I'm as whole, and may be dealt
With as a distinct, but vitality cor
related problem. The inspiring cause.
the taproot of 1t. so to speak, must
be sought in the prevailing convic-
ton Of the workers that something
In the present order is sadly wrong,
that fundamental changes in the or
eanization and control Of industry
must somehow be made, In the inter-
est primarily of labor. but also of
the community at large
The war did not create, but it did
deepen this conviction. 1t helped to
reveal the defects of the pre-war or
ganization and methods OF business
and the pre-war methods OF conduct
ing the nations enterprises The ma
tional emergency imposed upon the
warriors and workers alike. those toll
ing at home no less than those fight
ing overseas. many heavy burdens and
hard deprivations. Some OF these
were felt to be unavoidable, but others
were seen to be due to an imperfect
order and system of things that had
been allowed to grow up to the ad-
vantage of the fortunate few but to
the disadvantage OF the toiling many.
the workers as we'll as the warriors
with heroic and unmurmuring forth
tude In the main during the war be-
cause of the sustaining hope Of the
workers of both sorts of welcoming
or bringing about a transformed So
cial order when the war was over.
They saw and heard everywhere a
promise held out by their leaders and
counseilors encouraging them during
the darkest days of the war to, work
and fight on till victory crowned
their efforts, assured that a thorough
going reorganization OF society-a re-
construction of the business world in
| the interest OF the workers and en-
ployers alike-would follow Now,
whatever else the revolt of labor
! means. it means that the working
class iso clamoring for the liquidation
/ Of that promise. 1t means that the
| leaven at work In the measures of
meal--long before the war began, but
held in allegiance during the warts
fomenting again.
Incidental. Of course, to the close
OF a cataclysmic war which wrought
such wholesale economic dislocations
and entailed such colossal losses Of
life and property. has resulted the
complex problem and task Of placing
business once more upon a peace
basis. to say nothing of the problem
of unemployment, and the appalling
and pinching increase of the high cost
of living. For above all else 1t would
seem. is this well-nigh all-prevailing
feeling among the workers. that the
fair promise held out so alluringly, of
the land we love being made country
fit for heroes to live in and labor in,
Is not being liquidated. These things
and others OF kind may suggest. II
they do not fully explain. why the
working class has risen. should they
not also make our people generally.
but Christians In particular. concern
ed enough ard sympathetic enough to
set about to realize the nature OF tho
problem and the possibility OF its So
LUTON?
1t must be. more fully realized that
the conditions and hardships and dis
appointments complained OF by the
working class are to some extent ex-
istent and are. as they think, largely
the inevitable experience Of the wage
earning class under the present indus
trial system But the revolt ID not a
blind or mad rec0il from existing con.
ditions There Is increasing pneol
that it is conscious and deliberate
facing toward q new order OF things.
a determined collective attempt 70 ap
ply new principles and bring about the
practice OF now methods in the own.
ership. control and organization Of in
dustry.
1t i easy to ut il dawn to L.
norsnoe and nAAnsaN e. ~ that he