The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1920-06-11

Countries 9: Es--y-eighcl
=.-.ssss.5 striking and sig
-----s....-z-- s,-4-s recently IN the office
= E,-v=--1- EcEar1s g the State
House Z Trenton. y. J.
4 delegation q women from New
z-.. aLo rad appealed in vain 10 the
-a-t=-s 4 -1e Legislature 10 do
something 70 relieve the poor people
Z Eewz-E from the rapacity Of
landlords. were making a last des-
-.e-zz= appeal 20 the Governor. The
fats they presented were heartrend-
.-g II the extreme and aroused the
Governors profound indignation.
Sample notices Of dispossess war
rants were exhibited, several of them
affecting families which had sent
sons 70 the war. One warrant was
issued 70 evict a widow whose only
son had been killed in France fight
ing the Germans. One woman who
presented her grievance TO the Gov
ernor said that her father fought
in the Civil War, her husband fought
in the Spanish-American War and
her son had recently returned from
France, where he fought in the re-
cent World War. Another woman
in broken English presented her
grievance. She and her husband had
come to this country as young peo
pie They had four children. She
said she heard much about "Amer-
icanism" and foreigners. In broken
English she told the Governor that
she and her husband came to this
country hoping to find better con-
ditions than in the old country; that
they loved America; that they want
ed their children to grow up as
American citizens, and with her
hands extended in appeal to the Gov
ernor, she concluded: eve are to
be put out on the street on Satur-
day; how can we be good Americans
when we cannot meet the rent, and
without any place to go; tell US,
Governor, what we can do to be
good Americans"
In the other part Of the State
House the expiring Legislature was
holding it's final session. These stor-
les had been presented to the mem
bers Of the Legislature for weeks,
but to all appeals they turned deaf
ear. There was plenty of time to
devote to political legislation aimed
to put the Governor in a hole, which
should raise the salaries of political
henchmen all over the State; which
should protect the Public Service
Corporation from the efforts now
being made to compel it to reduce
it's charges to a fair return upon
the costs Of its several plants; and
to passing bills to resore the saloons.
But the Legislature could find no
time to remedy these dreadful hous
ing and living conditions in our cities.
The same conditions exist in Con-
gress. Plenty of time can be found
to discuss the treaty; to elaborate a
complicated bills to restore the rail-
roads to the control of Wall Street,
and to devise new taxes to enable
the rich to saddle the cost of the
war upon the poor; but no atten-
ton is paid to the matter of i'm
proving the living and working con-
ditions of those who toll.
The answer is that both political
parties are controlled by the money
ed interests of the country, who will
not permit even the discussion of the
| fundamental measures which alone
can remedy these conditions, such as
government ownership of the rail-
roads and such natural resources as
mines, which are the bases of our
trust control of industry, and the
holding of millions of acres of land
in city and country out of use for
speculation.
These are the conditions that are
creating the popular demand for
new political party that shall give
some attention to the peoples needs.