The Connecticut labor press., 1920-01-17

that your interests are the same, that the
purposes you strive for are identical, re-
gardless of the race or country from
which your ancestors may have come.
and that iii your trades-union meetings
you meet upon common footing and
endeavor to apply the same principles
of brotherhood, which the workers of
the several nations do in Europe.
"We hope that the terrible lessons
which we all learned during the war
will be applied so that beneficial results
may follow to mankind through truer
application OF the principles of brother
hood.
GAS for the war we see no victors,
in the common use of that term. ALL
all were losers in many respecrs, and
unless we profit by the lessons which
we learned the loss which all suffered
will be catastrophe.
ut is our duty, it is your duty, il j.
the duty of the workers in every land
to use their influence so that no CAM
paign for new war can make success
full headway, for the workers bear the
greatest burdens of war: they are the
ones who in largest numbers leave their
families and perish upon the battlehelds.
1t is from their ranks that the largest
number of widows and orphans are cre[
ated. They are the ones who suffer
most severely from the financial burdens
incurred by war.
During the war, the French work
ers' wages did not keep pace with the
increase in the cost of living. The
nations safety demanded that many
trades-union protective regulations
should be set aside; the men and the
women toiled in the munition fac
tories regardless of the hours of labor,
for not only was the nations life in
danger, but everyone had fathers, hus-
i,ands, sons and brothers facing the i'm
n.inent dangers of the battle front. Dur
ing the war the effectiveness of the
trades-union movement was somewhat
weakened, but since the Armistice it has
become stronger than before the war.
One union alone which previous to the
war had membership of but 10000
members now has over 100000.
Previous to the war the eight-hour
day was only trades-union principle; ;
since the war the eight-hour day has
become an established fact.
''The rapid growth of trades-union-
ism has enabled the Fernch trades
union movement to apply more practical
methods than IN the past. Previously it
had been difficult to enter into trades
agreements with employers; today the
large number of organized men in in
dustry enables the unions to negotiate
agreements, and, through the confer
encesg which are held with employers,
many Irritating and unjust conditions
have been removed.
.sWe viewed with deep regret the fail
ure of your Senate to ratify the Peace
Treaty. We have no criticisms to offer
Undoubtedly your senator's are all
patriotic men, but it is unfortunate that
the Treaty was not ratified because the
Senate's failure to do this has placed
heavy burden upon the French worker.
American trades-unionists should under
stand the reasons why this is SO.
"We are a nation of a little over
100000 people; of this number
500 900 lie buried upon the batt1efelds,
a million more are mutilated We have
100000 widows and 100000 orphans.
Our youth-the most promising of our
young men, those most active in body
and spirit-now lie beneath the sod.
In ten of our northern departments
nothing but destruction exists; the
cities, the towns, and the villages have
been destroyed, the very land itself is no
longer fit for cultivation. Those of us
who survived the war are worn out
physically and nervously as "a result of
the four years of frightful struggle
through which we passed.
1--WE understand the philosophy of
your eight-hour movement. We know
the reasons why it is not only better
for the workmen, but better for indus
try. But the eight-hour day means
something more to us, for we require
an eight-hour day SO that there will be
the opportunity, while we are carrying
on industry and producing wealth, of
recuperating our lost physical strength
and our nervous vitality. The very well
fare of our country demands that we
should recover our previous vigor, for,
unless we can do this, the nation itself
is doomed. .
"The story, however, has been circu-
lated that when the French worker Sc
cured the eight-hour day he also was
unwilling to work during the eight
hours; that, instead of endeavoring to
produce during the hours of labor, he
continually shirked We fear that this
story has been circulated in America for
sinister motives. The French manufac-
turer whose resources were destroyed
by the war finds it necessary, in order
to begin again to borrow money, and
these manufacturers have looked to the
United States as the source from which
money COulQ De secured. ne american
money lender uses these stories of the
French workers l,nwillingness to work
as an excuse for charging rates of in
terest which are almost prohibitive. We
cannot escape the thought that there is
connection between uni just stories be-
ing told about the French workers url-
willingness to work and the high rate
of interest which the American fnan-
ciers are charging French manufactur-
erS.
THE situation in France is at the
present time most somber one. Pre-
vious1y we had been the greatest money
lenders per capita in the world, we
spared ourselves nothing, and now we
feel that our Allies are justified in deal
ing with us in the same spirit of CO.
operation which we showed during the
time that the armies of autocracy were
threatening the worlds liberty on
French batt1ehe1ds. However, we are
Frenchmen. We are not beggars. Our
hands will never be held out for aims
the blood flowing through our
veins would never permit Frenchmen to
do this. Our ancestors passed through
bitter experiences during the life of Our
nation, and had the courage to assume
the added burdens and struggle on until
success had been achieved; to again be-
come one of the great civilized nations
of the earth. We can assure American
trades-unionists that we still have that