Jasper County Democrat, Volume 15, Number 53, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 October 1912 — THIRD TERMER'S JOKE ON LABOR [ARTICLE]

THIRD TERMER'S JOKE ON LABOR

Brandeis Shows Right to Orgaoize is Not Recognized. THE PLATFORM IS SILENT. Noted Lawyer Exposes the Flimsiness of Promises Made to Workingmen by Perkins and His Candidate, Who Stands For Private Monopoly.

“The new party pledges Itself, to social and industrial justice and specifically to ’work unceasingly for effective legislation looking to the prevention of occupational diseases, overwork. Invol untary unemployment and other in furious effects incident to modern In dustry, * * * p ut nowhere in that long and comprehensive platform • * * can there be fpund one word approving the fundamental right of labor to organize or even recognizing this right without which all other grants and concessions f6r improvement of the condition of the working-! man are futile The platform promises social and industrial justice, but does not promise industrial democracy The Justice which it offers is that which the benevolent anti wise corporation is proue to administer through its welfare department There is no promise of that justice which free American workingmen are striving to secure for themselves through organization In deed, the industrial policy advocated by the uew party would result in the denial of labor's right to organize. “The uew party stands for the per l>etuntion and extension of private monopoly in industry—that private monopoly from which the few have ever profited at the expense of the many and for the dethronement of which the people have, in the past, fought so many valiant battles That cursed product of despotism, the uew party, proposes to domesticate in our republic, proclaiming. We do not fear commercial power.’ Certainly organized labor has had experience with the great trusts which should teach all men that commercial power may be so great that it is the part of wisdom to fear it.” The above declaration was made by Louis D. Brandeis before the conven tion of the American Federation of Labor. Massachusetts state branch, at Fitchburg, Sept 18. Of Supreme Importance. He urges a careful study of the new party platform, particularly its effect upon labor, noting not only WHAT IT CONTAINS, but WHAT IT OMITS, adding. “When yon make that exami nation you Will find that there is a significant omission and that this skillfully devised platform TAKES FROM LABOR MORE THAN IT GIVES.” Labor Record of Trusts. Mr. Brandeis then lays bare the labor record of the trusts, declaring that trusts—the steel trust, the stig ar trust the beef trust, the tobacco trust, the smelter trust and a whole troop of lesser trusts—have made the extermination of organized labor from their factories the very foundation stone of their labor policy. The abili ty to defeat labor's right to combine seems to have been regarded by the trust magnates as a proper test of the efficiency of their capitalistic combination.”

Mr. Brandeis shows that in 181)9, during the Colorado smelters' strike, the American Smelting and Refining company closed its mills where the strikers had been employed and trans ferred the work to other mills, thus breaking the strike. The United States Steel corporation had similar success in 1901 with the Amalgamated Assn elation of Iron, and Steel Workers Had the association t>eeD dealing with competing employers the result would have been different The United States Steel trust was prompt in introducing this plan. June 17, 1901. six weeks after it began its operation, its execu tive committee passed this vote, which was offered by Charles Steele, a part ner of George W Perkins In the firm of J. P. Morgan & Co.: “That we are unalterably opposed to any extension of unioD inbor and ad vise subsidiary companies to take firm position when these questions come up and say that they are not going to rec ognize It—that Is. any extension of un ion in mills where they do not now exist.”

Union Men Not Wanted.

The result was that the balk of American union laboring men In the iron and steel industry were made to understand that they were not wanted at the works of the United States Steel corporation Places once filled by American laborers loyal to their union were given to others, and. as the Stan ley committee found. “Hordes of la borers from southern Europe pointed into the United States.” * * » Hence about 80 per cent of the un skilled laborers in the iron and steel business are foreigners of these classes, the profits going to the steel corpora tlon. Mr Brandeis declared that “the Immediate and continuing result of the steel trust’s triumph over organ ized labor has been an extensive svs tem of espionage and repression.’’

There has been no disturbance of business Interests during this presiden tial campaign Why? Confidence in the Integrity of the Democratic noml neea and right purposes of the party.