Year: 1877

Labor and Comm unism.


1t is a very old proverb-so old that it
gained currency in our language before the
principal word in it was rejected from polite
usage-that "the belly hath no ears" the
sense being that it is idle to reason with a
hungry mob. Despite the proverb the belly
has ears. 1t listens with avidity to any
plausible sophistry which promises relief to
the cravings of unsatisfied hunger. 1t is
idle to refute such sophistry by argu-
ment, for the belly is deaf enough
to reasoning directed against its
for fallacious promises of alienation


Neither agrarianism in ancient times nor
communism in modern times could have
made headway and gained proselytes if
their arguments had not been addressed to
hunger bitten multitudes. AS Cobbett
once said, with his usual aptness:-"If
agitators have nothing to agitate about, they
will soon have nothing to do. l defy all
the agitators in the world to agitate fellow
who has got good piece of bacon before
him and barrel of beer to draw on. Where
is the man who will become discontented as
long as he has got good leg of mutton on
his table? No, it is the hungry that are the
fit subjects to be agitated. The plan is,
therefore, to give 'em something to eat first
and then agitate them after"


We print elsewhere long communication
in the interest of the complaining laboring
classes. We do not know whether the
writer is laborer. man who bids for the
favor of workingmen or philanthropist.
The soundness of an argument does not de-
pend on the motives of him who offers it.
Besides, we do not publish this commune
cation for it's reasoning, but because it is
symptom of the discomfort which so widely
prevails among the large class who work for
wages or are out of work because they can
not get offers of wages. The recent wide
spread strikes were an alarming proof of dis
content, and there is too much reason to fear
that this feeling has not mended since the
strikers were put down by military force.
That it is merely smothered, and not extin-
guished, is shown by the frantic and sense
less demands of capitalists and the equally
frantic and senseless demands Of laborers.
Colonel Tom Scott publicly advocates a
large increase Of the federal army to protect
the railroads against mob violence; and
champions of the workingmen, like our
correspondent, would revolutionize the re-
lations between labor and capital. The
projects and arguments on both sides are
alike preposterous; but the ugly fact re-
mains and cannot be put out Of sight that
we have large discontented class which
demands redress and could easily be
stimulated to seek it by revolu-
tionary violence. This is fact which
neither the guides of public opinion nor our
legislators can afford to ignore. The true
remedy for this dangerous state OF feeling
is removal OF the evil from which it
springs. Colonel Scott's menace of military
force is blunder, since it tends to exacer-
bate the complaining class Our corre-
spondent's proposed remedies are equally
absurd, but his suggestions of a violent re-
dress if they are not adopted are naturally
provoked by the proposition to create
new army to keep the laboring classes in
subjection. What our government ought
to do is not to erect a gigantic
military terrorism to hold these COM
planners in awe, but to adopt such
enlightened measures as will extend our
markets. revive our industries. stimulate
enterprise and thereby furnish employment
for idle hands and food for empty stomachs.
1t is almost as futile to reason with this
great mass Of discomfort as it is to threaten
it. 1t will disappear and die out as soon as
the country becomes prosperous. Until
then the preachers Of communistic doctrines
will scatter their seed upon soil where it
will easily take root Instead of refuting
the leading positions Of our correspondent,
which would be an easy task, We merely
offer them as q specimen of ideas which will
easily gain admission into the minds of the
wages earning class unless their condition
is improved by wise legislation.