Evening star., 1932-09-04
YESTERDAY
BY WILLIAM N. DOAK,

secretary OF LABOR Oh tne UnlbeQ otAtes'
ITO see the future of labor in Amer
lea we must first glance back
over the past And in that sur
i vey of labor's experiences IN
years gone by, We find justifi-
fable hope for the men and women OF
industrial America today.
The history of labor in this country
is record of progress. Not constant,
steady progress. but a movement for
ward interrupted by temporary set
backs. Yet, over a long span of years,
the condition of labor has improved
greatly That improvement has not
reached an end. 1t will be resumed.
New and higher levels of comfort and
security will be attained by the great
mass of people in industrial ranks.
One of my boyhood recollections is
the industrial depression beginning In
1898. There were riots and disturb
ances, with destruction Of property. and
the summoning of State troops in sew
eral States to maintain order. Great
numbers Of unemployed men wandered
from town to town, and many said that
America is in its last days" Yet, with
tariff law-enacted under the new
Mckinley administration-that pro-
tected American workers from low for
eign-wage competition, and sound
currency system insured, labor quickly
moved forward to higher and better
standards of wages hours of work,
working and living conditions. The
storm passed in a few years. Yet dur
ing those years dire predictions were
made-and widely believed-that were
strangely akin to some of the things as
serted by the critics of today. 1t was
said during the depression following
1893. for instance, that British capital
lists owned all the money in the world
and that at pre-arranged time they
would draw the money out of this coun-
try and our working class would staFve
to death in 20 days. At the same time
others made the contradictory state
ment that Wall Street owned 80 per cent
of the wealth of America, and was ac-
quiring the remainder at such rate
that within IL years it would own
everything in the world.
Even at the present time, when labor
conditions are by no means satisfactory,
We can see how false those predictions
and statements were. Locking back we
see that after those trying years there
came many more years when labor
gained vastly-when hours of work were
reduced materially and wages increased
time and again.
Incredible Advancement"
Within the comparatively short span
OF my own life, there has been an al
most incredible advancement in the
general standard of living and work.
ing conditions of labor generally. Yet
during that same period there have been
frequent, purely temporary setbacks,
when conditions were somewhat dis
heartening. Nevertheless, labor has al
ways come back" and moved to q
higher plane after each reverse.
I doubt whether there Is any man
past middle age who once earned his
living with his hands who would will
lngly return the mass of laboring peo-
pie to the standards that prevailed for
workers during his boyhood There
were periods OF unemployment and anx-
iety then, but when work was avail
able it was under conditions far less
favorable than recently. In many in
dustries, then, the 10 or IL hour work
ing day was standard"
The laboring man had little or no
leisure to spend with his family Work
was done in shops that contained in
Vulnerable health hazards, with no at
tempt to provide proper lighting or ven-
tllatlon, or to safeguard pulleys, wheels
ana knives to prevent dreadful, life
destroying, disabling accidents. Wages
were on a basis that might provide
necessities, when work was available,
but nothing for saving or so-called lux
uries: The workingman's house then
was far below the present-day standard
1t lacked running water, hardwood
hoors, rugs or carpets. Even gas was
a luxury. The worker who owned a
morse and buggy was a rarity; yet, to-
day, even in time of industrial depres-
SION, there are great numbers of work.
ingmen with automobiles for their fam
lilies to enjoy.
In the time when Labor day was
young. practically no industry made
provision for the worker in his old age.
Ihere was no adequate provision-out-
side OF the trade unions-to aid a
worker in his distress If worker lost
a hand or leg in an industrial acci-
dent, or his eyesight was destroyed, or
even his life sacrificed by the hazards
OF his employment, there very often
was not guaranteed compensation to
him or to his surviving family-for, by
unauthorized Interpretation of the COM
mon law: the laborer was compelled to
assume the risk of his employment, and
"e.N' AaSio ASoPOAAoAbiC, wv, lOl WLldJ was
called "contributory negligence"
Women and children were worked at
wages Of less than a dollar a day, for
days that began at dawn and lasted
until after nightfall-and without any
protection Of their health, safety or
morals. There was no Saturday half
holiday, Of course. for any workingman;
and often whole industries worked some
of their men seven days q week. Men
frequently were compelled to be on
duty "A hours without rest. There was
no limitation on the hours Of service
for raiload employes-with resultant
danger to the travelling public, whose
lives we're in the hands of exhausted
workers. The eight-hour day was con-
sidered a wild and radical imposs:bility
in industry The workingman's son or
daughter who attended high school was
the exception rather than the rule.
Many states had no laws regulating or
prohibiting the employment of little
Children. In other States 1t was con-
sidered proper for children to start
work in factories at IL years Of age and
| to work from dawn to dusk,