Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-09-03
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

mp. Then Queen Elizabeth undertook
to force lords and churches to give
contributions to the poor. under penalty
Of Imprisonment for the unwilling giver
From Thorold Rogers. M. P, in his
book Work and Wages" We quote his
description Of degradation Of labor in
England, even unto this day:
How far beggary, wretehedness and
crime, with their most fruitful con-
con1itante. drunkenness and hopeless
ness. reciprocally act on each other We
cannot and never shall be able to tell.
We know that they are the miserable
circle In which thousands Of our people,
especially In London, revolve. We know
that they have destroyed all interest,
except in the means Of the present day.
In thousands. There is a large popula-
ton which would, If 1t could, make war
on society, which measures its own mis-
cry by the opulence Of others and Is
| profoundly convinced that every power
which society has and uses is employed
against IL. These people live in suualid
deps, where there can be no health
their own lot and futile discomfort at
the wealth they see possessed by others"
The author adds concerning the laws
! OF England and the olden efforts to
soften their harshness upon the laborer
with poor laws" for MS relief:
II can conceive nothing more cruel,
] had almost said more insolent. than
to condemn laborer to the lowest pos
sible wages on which life may be sus-
tanned by an act of Parliament inter-
preted and enforced by an ubiquitous
body OF magistrates whose interest IL
was to screw the pittance down to the
lowest conceivable margin and to In
form the stinted recipient that when
he had starved on that during the days
Of his strength others must work to
maintain him In sickness or old age.
Now this is what the statute Of ap-
premiership. supplemented by the poor
law. did IN the days of Elizabeth. And
! il you 60 into the streets and alleys
Of our large towns. and. indeed, Of many
! English villages. you may meet the fruit
! OF the wichedneSs Of Henry and the poll
icies Of Elizabeth's counsellors IN the
depreciation and helplessness Of your
! countrymen.'' .,.
Was he not referring to the millions.
even today, out Of employment in Eng
land and dependent upon the charitable
dole" Of the government?
| II
Wages have risen In England and all
over Europe since the World War. but
| nowhere comparable to the rise in the
| American rates, and England today Is
carrying q tremendous load In It's
"doles" to the unemployed. We hear
more or less agitation in the United
States In favor Of "old age pensions"
but not nearly so much recently about
the deSirability of going back 10 pre-
war wages. For q while after the war
ended there was urgent talk about re
| adjusting mechanics wages" To pay
| this or that mechanic $40 or SIS day
| appeared preposterouS to the men Of
hxed incomes. and some newspapers
] fFNAtg ~ ANU4n 80 L
the wage rates to normally" It is not
attributed TO union labor that such agi-
tation has largely ceased. but rather TO
the discovery by merchants and the
public generally that high wages. dis
tributing prosperity among q larger
proportion Of the people. enhanced
trade and added to general prosperity.
High wages and shorter hours give
greater opportunity for development Of
more people into worth while CONSUME
ers Of al sorts Of goods, and that in
creases demand and profits and in
creaSes employment to the producers
The same conditions enhance standards
OF living, standards Of education, SO
| that our Continuation schools" as we'll
as places Of amusement and recreation.
| are growing in use by the millions whose
noses are no longer against the grind
! stone OF toll. Union labor il no longer
synonymous with strikes, but Is finding
ways Of peace and reason efYicacious in
reaching its goals, though. when nee
| esSary, it's strikes are more effective
than ever, in reaching It's detectives.
\ + =
| when the World War showed that
| this country, too. would be involved
there was no more patriotic class than
union labor. whether occupied in fac
tories In support Of the Army and Navy
or 1ighting as individual soldiers er
sailors In battle. The American FEEDER
alton Of Labor today is the greatest
bulwark Of the Nation against COM
munism and other forms Of subverSion.
It joins with the American Legion
and other patriotic veterans in sup
porting the plan for not only a uni
versal draft of menpower in case Of
war or wars threat. but also In de-
handing the drafting OF industry and
| capital equally with the taking OF young
manhood to night the battles and make
the sacrifices. Union labor desires to
take for all classes ali the profits out Of
war to the end that there viii be less
incentive to false patriotism and false
enthusiasm for war, while more equi-
tably strengthening national defense.
1t Is. indeed, far cry from the work.
ing serf and slave of King Edwards
day to the outstanding. free and self
! respecting mechanic of the United
States today--the one IN chains. with
the brand Of servitude burned upon his
body, the other riding to daily employ
ment In transportation which King
Edward himself never 'equaled The
fourteenth century king" Is dead
long 1--we the wage Garner Of the