People's Pilot, Volume 5, Number 22, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 November 1895 — THE PASSING SHOW. [ARTICLE]

THE PASSING SHOW.

A Few Snap Shots at an Endless Precession. Jeffersonian simplicity is no longer ‘ good form” in America. Presidential etiquette is daily becoming more and more like that of the royal court of the little island which dictates the financial affairs of all the vast continents of the world. Our president has been guarded day and night by soldiers ever since the day that his election was announced. He is never seen walking outside of his castle. Detectives are by his side even when he condescends to allow the people who have him hired to shake his flabby fat hand in either private or public receptions. He and his cabinet have at their disposal free of expense all the vessels of the United States fleet, and right royally do they “spread it on," cruising about the lakes on government vessels. An ironclad battle-ship may yet be converted into their private use for a duck-shoot-ing excursion. * * * Sugar is now handled by wholesalers on commission only. No wholesaler can buy sugar. He takes it, pays for it, sells it at the price the trust dictates, sends in the money, and if he swears he has not cut the price, gets 3-16th cents a pound rebate at the end of the month. If he refuses to do this, he can’t get sugar at all. Coffee is also thus handled. O, we’ve lots of liberty in this land of “competition[’’--Appeal to Reason. * * * And now a mighty railroad pool has been formed to “carry out the purpose of the interstate commerce act” — even the railroads are going to protect the government, and help enforce the law. Yea, verily—they have just been joking when they worked so hard and so persistently for th.e repeal of this act. The fact of the matter is that this new pool is for the sole purpose of defying all law now in existence, and to work for a new law for the special promotion of railroad pools. Senator Chandler has written President Cleveland urging him to stop the deal. He says one word from the President to J. Pierpont Morgan would cause the whole conspiracy to stop. But the President will not speak the word. Senator Chandler says: “Will you act or will you take the responsibility of consenting, as you will by inaction, to conspire against a new law, which, within a few weeks, will raise the prices of food and fuel to all your beloved people?” The leaders of the conspiracy, say that they will go to congress with a petition for a pooling bill. However, the pool Is already in effect, and even though congress should grant them the privilege of pooling, it would come too late to cover the violations of the law already committed. * * * Washington, D. C., Oct. 20.—1 n his tenth annual report, devoted to strikes and lockouts, which has just been completed, Hon. Carroll D. Wright, commissioner of labor, computes that the loss to employes in establishments in which lockouts and strikes occurred during the thirteen and a half years ending June 30,1894, amounted to $190,493,382, and to employers to $94,825,837. The loss to employes on account of strikes was $163,807,866; and on account of lockouts, $26,685,516; to employers on account of strikes, $82,590,386, and on account of lockouts, $12,235,451. The number of establishments involved in strikes in this period was 69,167, and the number of persons thrown out of employment by reason of strikes 3,714,406, making an average loss to the employes of each establishment of $2,368, and to each person of $44. The number of establishments involved in lockouts was 6,067, and the number of persons locked out 366,690. These persons lost an average of $75 each. The assistance given to strikers and the subjects of lockouts during the period amounted, as far as ascertainable, to $13,438,704, or a little over 7 per cent of the total loss to employes. These figures are taken from an associate press report, and of course they are intended as an argument against strikes. It is true that the employes nearly always lose more money in a strike than the employers—but the millions of dollars lost every year by workingmen for not striking at the ballotbox are ten times greater. The strike may not appear on its face to be a success—but who knows how low wages might have been but for the efforts of organized labor. Perhaps millions of dollars have been gained in keeping up wages through strikes and other means. But a greater gain has been made in the education of laborers to the necessity of uniting at the ballot-box. Let us all strike together, and the contest of a thousand years will be settled.