Democratic Sentinel, Volume 15, Number 20, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 June 1891 — Protecting American Labor. [ARTICLE]

Protecting American Labor.

When the protected coal and coke operators of Pennsylvania had their great difficulty over wages some years ago, they got rid of their American labor and imported Hungarians and Italians by contract to take its place. This was the occasion for passing the national contract labor law, which forbids the employment of laborers in foreign countries and bringing them here under contract. The law was really a scheme to prevent protected American mine-owners from degrading American labor. The law was passed at the instance of Pennsylvania labor organizations, which were suffering from the competition of imported contract labor. These organizations hoard the usual amount of rot about protection of American labor; but they saw that a protective tariff law alone did not secure any benefit to labor. There must be a separate law to prevent the protected mine-owners from making contracts in Europe with “pauper labor,” to come here and take the place of native Americans, who should organize and attempt to enforce their demands for living wages. But tho mischief had already been done. Tho Pennsylvania mine-owners had already brought in large numbers of Hungarians and Italians; others followed rapidly, and for somo years now the Pennsylvania mines Iwivo been worked a'most entirely by hordes of ignorant foreigners, tho cheapest and most degraded labor in the United States. This labor, however, learned to writhe under its degradation. Tho worm trodden upon will turn. The imported labor learned to organize itself and move in a body for higher wages and a better standard of living. When, therefore, tho mine owners several months ago resolved to reduce wages, they were met by a domand from their imported Hungarians and Italians for an increase instead of a reduction. Then followed the great coal and coke strike with some 30,000 laborers out of work. Bloody riots followed and the troops had to be called out to keep the peace. Meanwhile, the strike had caused immense losses to both sides. At the end of the twelfth week, the estimated loss was $3,500,000, of which sum $1, 000,000 represented loss of wages to the men, and the remainder losses of the manufacturers —an average loss to all parties of about $300,000 per week. The latest news is to tho effect that a new supply of Italians, “most of them fresh from Europe,” is being shipped into tho coke region, “under a strong guard.” It was stated by the Italian leador of this band that there are American agents all over Italy trying to induce Italians to come to the United States. Several thousands of the poorest class have thus found their way to Pittsburg since the strike began, and, it is added, “just who pays their fares does not appear on the surface. ” Such is the fate of American labor under prQtection. And the organs and the talkers go on reirerating their stale and exploded assertions about protection raising wages.