The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-01-05
SERVE GARBAGE
AFTER 10 HOUR
DAY OF SLAVERY
Pay Bridge Builders 40
Cents an Hour
(By a Worker Correspondent

Times were So pau Jidl - udu "
take any kind of work that | could
procure. After seeking for it for
some time, I landed position as a
laborer, through an employment
agency. The agency charged me
four dollars for the position, but be-
sides the four dollars I had to sit
for hours in the office of the agency
before I got this job.
At last l was shipped out" to
Cnancey, N. Y, Is miles out of New
York City, to John S. Lowney and
Co., contractors for bridges and
similar work.. I was accepted. The
chief showed me into a room where
1 was to sleep. 1t was a room OF
about 10 by 10 feet in size. One
window, two doors. Along the three
walls were three two-story narrow
iron frames, that were supposed to
be beds. There were no bed sheets
nor pillows, and the blankets were
as dirty as one could imagine. Six
of the workers rest here to recuper-
ate in dirt, without air, for the slav-
cry of next day. I was assigned to
the top bed in front of the window.
l was glad of it, thinking | would
put my head out through the win.
dow and get plenty of air. One had
to go to bed early for there was no
kind of light in the house, although
electricity could be had. If you want
to have light-buy your own can
die. The worker must not get any
kind of light neither physical nor
intellectual, He must not read, he
must stay in: darkness, or he will
see the truth and slave no more.
The next morning l was up ear
ly. / went into the cellar for water
to get washed, and to my great sur
prise, the cellar was doubly packed
with men. The cellar having only
one half window was dark, and
moist from the dripping water. The
air and odor could be measured by
the yard stick. And yet, my fellow
workers had to wash here!
Well, we were constructing
bridges, working under the burning
sun, digging, pushing wheelbarrows
and moving stones for 10 hours a !
day and the pay we got was 40 cents
an hour. John S. Lowney and Co.
was kind enough to advance us
board and to supply us with food.
But the food! The coffee that was
given us with condensed can milk, !
had no coffee taste at all. The same
condensed milk diluted in water was
used with cereals. The eggs that !
were given us were absolutely I'M /
eatable-rotten. The stale whitej
bread without the least bit of butter
could not be swallowed after 1OI
hours of work on concrete under |
the sweltering sun, and having eat
en- only very little the previous days, |
l was hungry and weak, thinking
that night | was going to eat no /
matter what the chef put on the
table.
Yes, there was a big slice of ham
on the plate over the potatoes and
beans. / looked at it, but l could
not believe what l saw. l wiped. my
eyes and looked again and examined
the plate. White worms were creep
ing in piles all over the ham. I
left the table and went into the
neighboring town to get something
to eat.
Yes, some of US did see and we
remember the picture "The Potem-
kin where the Russian sailors re-
VOTED on the battleship in the times
OF the car when they were fed on
meat full of worms and we thought
the revolt was perfectly justified.
We applauded them. But what
about John S. Lowney and Co. in
Chancey, N. Y? Should not the
workers revolt there?
Should not the Board of Health
investigate the matter? And what
more, that company charges for
that kind of board and room s11 per
week and pays to the workers only
40 cents per hour. And that's
state road job! Can you beat it!
Some of the workers who manage
70 eat that kind of food are buy- |
ing beer from the chief on credit
and paying Is cents per bottle for
the home brew. A bottle for each
meal, makes As cents extra expense
per day.
The light beer leads to something
stronger, and when the week is end
ed the worker has not penny left
in his pocket. He cannot even pet
away if he wants to. He slaves on
the next week, and so forever.
A WORKER
Workers School Form,