The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1923-07-07
Peoples Forum
Beulah, N. D., July 5
Editor Tribune:

BeuIah, N. L., July y
Editor Tribune:
When the human race was In It's
infancy, way back in the dawn OF
time each man acted alone and for
himself only, except possibly for his
immediate family, but through un-
equal struggles, hardships sad expert
ence, he gradually learned the value
of the strength of numbers. For
reasons of better self defense or
desire for conquest he joined forces
with others who had similar aims
and general desires. Other groups
formed and there were clashes, these
many small groups soon formed
larger groups for still better pro-
lection or for more strength in ag-
gression, gradually leading to King
doms and other forms of Empires,
and Nations.
We find this paralleled in the field
of industry in the way of csombin-
ations of Labor and of Capitol. We
find combinations of labOrers known
as Guilds in ancient history, about
the same as our Unions Of today,
but the Unions as we know them are
of rather late origin. In the early
part of the nineteenth century there
were not many large manufacturing
or other industrial establishments,
the tools used were mostly simple
and inexpensive, most of the work
was so called hand work, most any
one could procure the TOOLS and start
III
owners and correspondingly few
employees, the employer or owner
if he did employ any help, had hut
one or two men and he worked side
by side with them, he knew from
actual experience their wants and
needs, what they had to contend with
their aspirations and their fears, he
was in fact one with the labOrers,
under these conditions Unions were
not needed and not thought of.
When labor saving machinery be-
gan to be introduced into the field
of industry men with capital we're
the only ones who could procure it.
Capital, in the hands of these men
whom we may call capitalists in
their small way, began to combine
for better advantage, to secure
cheaper output, to override compe-
tition, to obtain many of the ad-
vantages a large business may Sc
cure. This grew until immense for
tunes were wrapped up in an in
dustry under the management Of
one or perhaps small group of
men known as Directors, or some
other board of superintendent. As
hundreds of these larger establish
ments sprang up thousands of the
little owners were crowded out and
became wage earners, working for
the big concerns. As this disparity
between the Owners and the wage
earners increased, as there became
less and less owners and thousands
more servants the Employers knew
less and less of the actual needs and
conditions, hopes and despairs of
their men. The new type of Owner
is an office man, or perhaps not even
that, at any rate he is not one OF
the manual laborers. In Eye olde
tyne" the workman could put his
grievance directly before his en-
ployer in person and was talking to
a man who realized what was said
and as this one man, or possibly six
or dozen others, was all the helr
the Owner had he naturally listen
ed close and considered carefully
because it was big thing. some.
times a vital thing to lose this one
servant.
Now conditions are entirely differ
ent, one man, or mere handful
sits at the managing end of the es
Establishment, thousands obey order.
at the labor end, the complaint O.
one or dozen, the quitting of ont
or dozen would make PRACTICAL!
no difference, one is too small F.;
unit to notice, dozen can be re