PORTLAND LABOR PRESS
o
A W A V E o r U N IO N IS M .
That
1» S w e e p in g th e C o u n try
F rom O ne E n d to th e
O th er.
A w ave of unionism is sw eeping over
th is p a rt of the coal iegions, and fa -
slighted m en are w ondering w h eth er
th e re will not be a reactio n th a t will
in ju re th e cause of th e w orkingm an.
E v er since the v ictory of th e U nited
Mine W o rk e rs la s t O ctober th e fever to
form unions has raged in th e heads of
n early all o th er classes of w o rk ers w ho
did not have a union. As a re su lt the
m en who toil for w ages a re being
unionized from one end of th e coal re
gion to th e o th er, and it would be d if
ficult to pick out a tra d e or a class of
w o rk e rs w hich has not been unionized
or is in th e process of o rg an izatio n .
Since th e coal s trik e u n i o n s nave
been form ed by th e bakers, s ta tio n a ry
en g in eers (tw o branches», s tre e t car
m otorm en and conductors, silk m id
w orkers (g irls and m en se p a ra te ly ),
cotton m ill sp in n ers, lacew orkers. b a r
bers, iro n w orkers, b a r ten d e rs, hotel
and re s ta u ra n t w aiters, team sters,
brew ers, sto re clerks, stag e c a rp e n te rs
and p ro p erty m en, boiler m akers, boot
and shoe m ak ers, gas m akers, coal
h o istin g engineers, jou rn ey m en tailo rs,
cab d riv ers and m olders.
A dozen or m ore o th e r unions a re o r
ganizing. T here m u st be th e union
label on e v e ry th in g sold o r th e s to re
keeper will find t h a t he is rap id ly lo s
ing tia d e . U nion flour, union bread,
union m eat, union groceries, clothing,
shoes, hats, beer—e v e ry th in g is de
m anded. U nion p apers flourish and
boldly announce boycotts.
Good is com ing from th is o rg an iz a
tion, but m uch harm m ay resu lt. The
h a rm is in m en looking on a union as
a m eans to gain large pay w ith sh o rt
w o rk in g tim e, reg a rd in g th e union as a
pow er to com pel em ployers to do as
the w orkingm en like and u sin g it as a
c o n sta n t th re a t over th e m oneyed men.
A lready th is is felt, a lth o u g h th e worlc-
ers of th e d istric t are in b u t th e first
y e a r of th eir unionism . Much as the
conservative lab o r leaders deplore it,
th e re are c o n sta n t strik e s and th e cry
of th e org an izer th a t the u nion is to
prev en t and not to encourage strik e s
is not fallin g upon listen in g ears.
T he m ine w o rk ers h av e been the
forem ost in s trik in g , and th e re are
now in th is region nearly a dozen
strik es, keeping idle som e 3000 mien
and boys. The s trik e s are not justified,
a re not san ctio n ed by th e union and
are cau sin g a loss to both th e m iners
an d the op erato rs. S trik e s have been
declared on th e im pulsive h e a t of the
m om ent, s trik e rs have m arched from
one colliery to th e n e x t and induced
th e w orkers th e re to join th em before
the cause of the s trik e w as know n. In
a score of cases a b re a k e r boy or a
d riv e r boy e a rn in g from GO cents to
$1.10 a day has been disch aig ed for d is
obedience o r neglect of w ork, and ne
has rallied th e 100 o th e r b re a k e r boys
or th e o th e r 25 d riv e r boys to his side
by crying th a t he is a union m an and
m ust be protected.
A lm ost w ith o u t
fail they h av e ru sh ed w ith a h u rra ii
in to a strik e. As a consequence 400 or
500 .xiiners and lab o rers e a rn in g from
$1.50 to $3.00 a day have been com
pelled to lie idle, n o t th a t they favored
th e strik e , but th a t w ith o u t th e d riv e r
boys or b rea k e r boys th e m in e c o u ld n o t
oe w orked. T h is has been as an n o y
ing to th e m in ers, the la b o r leaders
and co n serv ativ e union elem en t as it
h as been to th e o p e ra to rs, and it has
caused both a considerable m oney loss.
T he union leaders have th re a te n e d to
ta k e aw ay th e c h a rte r of th e locals
whose m en s trik e w ith o u t a u th o rity ,
b u t th e locals a re no m ore to blam e
th a n th e leaders, and th ey can no m ore
control th e ir m en.—W ilk e sb arre Cor.
New Y ork P o st (N on-union).
T he to ta l n u m b er o f no n -u n io n b a k
ers who deserted th e bosses and joined
the s trik e rs in th e big New Y ork fight
num bered over 600, T he bosses a re
paralyzed and tu rn o u t very little
work.
IN T E R N A T IO N A L U N IO N IS M .
S om e
o f t h e T h in g s T h a t H a v e
B e e n A c c o m p lis h e d b y
O r g a n iz a tio n .
H ugh M cGregor, in sp eak in g of I n
te rn a tio n a l tra d e su n io n lsm in th e Fel)-
m a ry
F e d e ra tio n ist.
am o n g o th e r
th in g s says:
“ If we now tu rn to the c o n sid e ratio n
of th e p rogress m ade in th e in te lle c tu a l
and m oral co n d itio n s upon w hich the
very existence cf th e tra d e union m o v e
m en t depends, we sh a ll see th a t s u n
s h in e covers th e w hole field.
“ The w o rk m an h as come to feel th a t
a red u ctio n in th e h o u rs of lab o r is
even m ore d e sira b le th a n an in crease
of wages, since it gives him leisu re to
live, leisure to ta s te his freedom . He
has come to feel it a crim e to ta k e th e
job of a n o th e r engaged in a stru g g le to
re sist in ju stice or im prove his co n d i
tion, so th a t th e dictum “ thou s h a ll
not ta k e th y n e ig h b o r’s jo b ” h as been
added to th e decalogue. V o lu n tary a r
b itra tio n of all m a tte rs in d ispute b e
tw een em ployer and em ploye h as be
com e a custom so sanctified th a t they
w ho refuse to abide a re bran d ed by
public opinion as gu ilty . And. finally,
em ployers a re fast g iving up th e ir old-
tim e claim th a t th e p ro p erty in th e ir
possession is th e irs to use or abuse,
and th ey a re in creasin g ly com ing to
reg a rd them selves as public s e rv a n ts
e n tru ste d w ith a c e rta in p o rtio n of th e
social funds for th e p roper a d m in is tra
tio n of w hich th ey w ill be held m orally
responsible.
“ Such in brief, is th e p ro g ress th a t
has been m ade in th e in d u stria l w orld
d u rin g th e p rese n t g e n e ra tio n ; p ro
gress th a t, in our opinion, rem oves the
d a n g e r of a rec u rre n c e of forixer e rro rs
and ren d e rs in te rn a tio n a l tra d e union
o rg an iz atio n , for the first tim e in th e
h isto ry of our race, now possible.
“Of th e d e s ira b ility of such e x p a n
sion th e re can be little doubt. The
g re a t im p ro v em en t in th e m eans of
co m m unication h as bro u g h t th e u tte r
m ost p a rts of th e e a rth in close con
tact. T he m ig h ty a rm a m e n ts of the
w estern n a tio n s a re engaged in b a tte r
ing down th e b a rrie rs th a t have h ith
e rto p ro tected o rie n ta l people and th e ir
han d -m ad e goods a g a in s t th e com peti
tio n of ou r a a c h in e -m a d e w ares. The
o p en in g up of th e e a ste rn m a rk e ts
m eans th e flooding of those co u n tries
w ith cheap w e stern p roducts and th e
consequent in ev itab le flooding of tne
w estern m a rk e ts w ith cheap e a ste rn
labor. T he v an g u a rd of th e u n n u m
bered m illions com posing th a t migh-.y
A siatic horde, w hich h a s been for sev
e ral y ears im p in g in g on our fro n tie rs,
is destined e re long to sw eep across
them in a restle ss flood, unless m eans
o th e r th a n m ere “ exclusion a c ts ” are
ta k e n to reliev e th e p ressu re a t th e
source. T he peaceful ev o lu tio n of our
w orkers a re endangered by th e clash
of o rie n tal and occidental in d u stria l
system s in different stag es of develop
m en t, th e evil effects of w hich can only
be averted by o rg an iz atio n ; n ot by o r
g a n iz a tio n on th e p a r t of one o r ttie
o th e r of our tw o g re a t in d u stria l c la ss
es, b u t by o rg a n iz a tio n of both. T he
o rg an iz atio n of ca p ital is no lo n g er lo
cal or n a tio n a l, it is fa st becom ing
p la n e ta ry ; and, if o u r w o rk in g class is
to be saved from an a b a se m en t of th e
sta n d a rd of liv in g fearfu l to c o n te m
plate, it is h igh tim e th a t th e o rg a n iz a
tio n of th e tra d e union becam e co-ex-
ten siv e w ith th a t of capital.
“ T he decision of th e tw e n tie th ses
sion of th e A m erican F e d e ra tio n of L a
bor to o rg an ize th e 15,000 skilled w o rk
ers of the island of P o rto Rico on th e
basis of th e tra d e union is b u t a first
step in a g ran d m arch destined to e n
circle th e w orld.”
O rganizer Pierce, w ho is in San F r a n
cisco in th e in te re s t of th e A m ercan
F e d e ra tio n of L abor, is expected to be
in S pokane d u rin g M arch. T h e re is
ta lk of a ro u sin g recep tio n fo r him
w hile here. H e h as done good w ork in
C alifo rn ia and should be given all th e
a ssistan ce possible w hen in S pokane.—
F re e m a n 's I^abor Jo u rn a l.
LABORING MEN GET YOUR
A PO STA L TELEG R A PH .
A n I n s t i t u t i o n T h a t th e G o v er n
m e n t S h o u ld R u n in th e P e o
p le ’s I n t e r e s t.
DRUGS * AND * MEDICINES
OF
ALBERT BERNI
COR. SECOND AND WASHINGTON STS.
T he C o n stitu tio n of th e U nited S tates
gives to C ongress th e pow er “ to e s ta b
lish post offices and post roado.” And
C A . r i, P ro s.
O to. M. O r to ,,. . 1 / , ^
th ia g ra n t is exclusive. No o n e can e n
te r in to co m p etitio n w ith the G overn
m ent in the c a rry in g of m ails. T he
PRINTING
Suprem e C ourt of th e U nited S ta te s
LEGAL BLANKS
has decided over and over ag a in th a t
fl Col. Phone, 75
Ore. Phone, Hood 443 «
th e F e d e ra l G overnm ent m ay m ake use
| J , 107 Front, Bet. Washington and Stark j
of any and all in v en tio n s th a t m ake
fo r th e b e tte r execution of th e d u ties
NEW AND SECOND-HAND
th a t devolve on it by v irtu e of th e
C o n stitu tio n .
F ro m th e fo u n d atio n of the G o v e rn
BOUGHT AND SOLD
m en t th e p o st office h a s a lw a y s been
J o n e s B o n k S to r e
considered a G o v ern m en t m onopoly. To
co n n ect th e te le g ra p h w ith th e post
291 Alder Street, Bet. Fourth and Fifth
office is sim ply a logical developm ent
of th e post office, say s th e New Y ork
Jo u rn a l.
PHONE, SO U TH 37 I
T h e ado p tio n of th e tele g ra p h by th e
post office is no m ore rad ical o r so c ia l
istic in its tendency th a n w as th e d is
p lacem en t of th e post coach b y th e r a il-
109 Fifth St., Portland, Ore.
road. T he post office w as founded to
Deutsch« Basthaus
BREW ERS’ HOME
tra n s m it intelligence. I t is bound to
keep a b re a s t of m odern in v en tio n s. It
M e t r o p o lis H o t e l
w ould be a d m issib le to s u b s titu te som e
P hilip S treib , Proprietor
th in g else fo r th e tele g ra p h if t h a t
Cor. First and Main Sts., Portland, Ore.
so m e th in g else w as b e tte r a d a p te d to
Finest Table Board in the City
Only White Help Employed. Meals 15c. Lodging
th e purpose.
20c and 25c. Milk and Eggs Iresh from our
own ranch daily
W hen th e post office w as first e s ta b
lished, le tte rs w ere n o t enclosed in e n
C O U N T Y A N D B A N K S U P P L IE S
velopes, b u t w ere doubled up and
sealed w ith wax. T hen som e one in
vented th e enevelope. T h e G o v ern
P R IN T E R S
m en t p rescribed th a t all le tte rs should
BLANK BOOK M A K ER S
L IT H O G R A P H E R S
be enclosed in envelopes. The G ov
123-122
F
ir s t S t .
P o r tl a n d , O reg o n
e rn m e n t first em ployed h o rses and
w agons for p o stal tra n s p o rta tio n w tien
Henry Doerr
Ed. Helseth
ra ilro a d s w ere in tro d u ced t'he G overn
H E L S E T H & DOERR
m en t a t once m ade use of them to
Certified Members of the Nat’l Horseshoers’ Ass’n
Local No. 36
c a rry th e m ails. In n u m e ra b le in v en
B
la
c
k
s
m
it
h
s
: a n d : H o ra c R h o e rs
tio n s h a v e been an d a re now used to
Wagon
and
Woodwork
of All Kinds Done on
fa c ilita te th e m ail service. H ow does'
Shoit Notice. Phone, Hood 592
it h appen th a t th e in v e n tio n w hich is
285 Couch St., Bet. 4th and 5th. Portland, Oregon
t h e ’ m o st p erfect of all fo r th e tr a n s
PRINTING i
m ission of in tellig en ce is ignored by
th e G o vernm ent?
BOOKBINDING
Largest and best equipped house in the
T h e re can be b u t o n e an sw er. I t is
Northwest. Every description of Printing
in th e h a n d s of a pow erful p riv a te
and Special Blank Books to order. Get
our prices. Telephones 312.
m onopoly, w hich h a s th e G ov ern m en t
THE
IRWIN-HODSON
COMPANY
by th e th ro a t. T he first line of te le
2 1 2 -9 1 4 F irst Street
g ra p h e v e r b u ilt w as b u ilt by th e
U nited S ta te s G o v ern m en t and ow ned
by it from 1844 to 1847. W h en th is
lin e w as tu rn e d o v er to a p riv a te
Of P o r tla n d
m onopoly, H e n ry Clay, th e W h ig lead
S ta r k S t r e e t, B e t. S e v e n th a n d P a r k
er, and Cave Jo h n so n , th e D em ocratic
2 8 ,0 0 0 V O L U M E S
P o stm a ste r-G e n era l,
e a rn e s tly
p ro
2 5 0 P E R IO D IC A L S
tested . W h en th e p a trio tic A m erican
All Popular and Standard Magazines Circulate
citizen, M orse, in v en te d th e tele g ra p h
as Books
he designed it p rim a rily for th e benefit
H ou r»—9 :0 0 A. M. to 9 :0 0 P. M. e x c e p t
S u n d a y s an d H o lid a y s
of all th e A m erican people. H is in
v e n tio n is now co n tro lle d by tw o
$5.00 Per Year
$1.50 Per Quarter
Students
Special
Membership
$ 1 .0 0 Per Year
m onopolies, w hose se rv ic e is w retched
and w hose ra te s a r e e x to rtio n a te .
T h ere a re 77,000,000 people in th e
U nited S tates. N ot m ore th a n 500.000
h av e th e benefit of M orse’s discovery.
25314 Washington Street
B ut in every o th e r civilized c o u n try in
Bet. Second and Third
th e w orld th is A m erican in v en tio n is
Oregon Phone—Office, Black 2945
Residence, Green 635
th ro w n open to all. I t is only in th e
c o u n try of its o rig in t h a t p riv a te
TEACHER
MRS. J. MARTIN
m onopoly d e p riv e s th e people of its
O F ...
PIANO,
ORGAN,
GUITAR,
BANJO
use.
f
MULTNOMAH PRINTING CO. ’
BEATTIE & HOFMANN
PRINTERS
GLASS & PRUDHOMME
Library Association
pr. JSmmet prake
Pentist
A sk th e c le rk
card.
to show
h is union
MANDOLIN, VIOLIN AND ZITHER
Lessons 50 Cents
P ianos, O rgans and all kin ds of M u sical In stru m en ts
for sale ch eap . T u n in g and R e p a irin g
1 0 4 ^ F IR S T S T R E E T
D on’t fo rg e t the u nion label, th e
union card and u n io n hours.
W o rk in g m en p a tro n iz e th o se who
a d v e rtise in y our paper, th e L abor
Press.
W hen you buy a h a t or a p a ir of
shoes, see th a t th e u n io n lab e l is con
spicuous by its presence.
August 10, 1900.
This is to certify that we in -11
dorse the PORTLAND
LABOR
P R E SS and adopt it as our offi
cial paper.
PORTLAND FEDERATED
D on’t be a p a ra s ite and receive th e
benefits of th e U nion w ith o u t c o n trib
u tin g a n y th in g to its support.
T h e d ry-goods m a n u fa c tu re rs a re in
sig h t of a h e a v ie r dem and and a good
m any New E n g lan d m ills are s ta r tin g
up.
TRADES ASSEMBLY,
1 Signed and
Sealed)
A. A. BA ILEY ,
Secretary.
'
J. A. B U SH M A N ,
Preaident.
] 1