Workmen's advocate., December 13, 1890, Image 1

About Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891

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rrof Richard T Uy
WORKMEN'S wm ADVOCATE.
itau SovU, jatutda, lU'Ccmbcv K'., 1890
&lth iJcuv, Ho.
ti 3 ttxt
THE VOTE.
NEW YORK SOCIALISTS POLL
13,704 VOTES IN THE
STATE.
A Moral Victory-Enthusiasm through,
out the Country Reorganization
of the Tarty in New Vork - For
uiatlon oT n State Committee.
At lust the full Socialist vote in t lie
State is known; 13,701 ballotts were cast
fur Francis Gerau; hardly a county,
town or hamlet hut is represented on
the roll; besides in the State generally,
almost in every locality the requisite
percentage was polled, and the party is
now officially recognized. As a result,
improved methods for agitation and po
litical action have suggested themselves,
and have received prompt attention
from the party.
First among these, was the formation
of a State Commit tee, a matter upon
which the Sections of New York issued
a call, published thVec weeks ago in the
Workmen's Advocate, and asked for a
vote of the other Sections in the State.
The votes so far reported at Albany,
Brooklyn, Utica, Richmond County,
ButTalo, Troy, Oneida and Yonkers
show a substantial unanimity upon the
subject, and foreshadow the speedy
formation of the projected State central
body.
Furthermore, in the city of Ne v York
itself, the necessity was felt for a more
practical organization, a matter that
was promptly taken in hand by the
joint Sections of the city, and led to the
adoption, at the joint meeting of the
party on Friday evening, the 5th in t.,
the following plan of re organization:
1 There shall be a branch of the
party in every Assembly District of the
city, to consist of residents of the re
spective districts.
No one can be a member of the Sec.
tion New York, S. L. P., without previ.
ous membership in his or her respective
district.
The officers of the Assembly District
organization shall be: a Treasurer, a
Corresponding and a Recording Secre
tary. The same person may unite the
two last named offices.
Residents of districts that are not yet
organized may join provisionally the
nearest district organization in existence.
It shall be the duty of the Central
Committee, hereinafter provided, in
conjunction with the Assembly Dis
trict organizations, to cause appli
cants for membership, from districts
that are not yet organized, to join one
and the same district organization.
2 Resides the Assembly District
Branches, there shall be, according to
the requirements of the case, Language
Branch Organizations American (Eng
lish speaking), German, Skandinavian,
Jewish, Polish, etc. These Branches
shall have power to provide for their
own rules and regulations, and in spe
cial cases, to raise funds.
3 The administration of the whole
Section New York, shall be attended to
by a central body to be known by the
name of the "Central Committee of the
City and County of New York."
This body shall be composed of one
delegate from every Assembly District
organization; one delegate from every
Language Branch; and the officers,
which, according to the existing consti
tution of the S. L. P., are to be chosen
for the Section New York. These offi
cers are the Treasurer, the Correspond
ing and the ltecording Secretary, and
the Agent; they shall exercise their
functions as members of the Central
Committee; and they shall he elected
either by the vote of the Assembly Dis
tricts, or at a joint meeting properly an
nounced and called for the purpose.
4 The dues of the members shall be
20 cents per month, of which five cents
shall go to the treasury of the Assembly
Districts, and 15 cents of the Treasury
of the Centml Committee.
The Assembly District Treasurer, shall
render at least one account every month
to the Section Treasurer.
5 The admission of new members, as
well as the payment of dues, may take
place either in the Assembly District or
Language Branches. New members ad
mitted by the Language Branches shall
pay there their first fees, and receive a
provisional membership card assigning
them to their respective Assembly Dis
trict Branches, to which they will report
at the next regular day of meeting and
receive their regular membership card.
6 As a single exception to the aUive,
the 'Sozialistisclie Liedertafel" is to lie
considered as a separate Branch of the
Sections New York with rights and du
ties of other Branches.
It was furthermore resolved to urgent
ly recommend to the County Conference
of the Party and the Labor Organiza
tions affiliated therewith during the last
campaign, that it rais.', by voluntary
contribution, a fund for future cam
paigns; to provide for the discussion of
the events of the day, and the promotion
of Socialist thought; and distribute
among its members Socialist literature.
LABOR IN NEW JERSEY.
Violnl lout of t lie Vh lid Labor Act. N
lect of Sanitary uml Sufety Provision.
Miiiii'luil (lei ilU'tioim.
The annual Report of State Fact' ry
Inspector Fell of New Jersey for the year
ending October 31, is about complete.
It will show that there are in New Jer
sey between 7,000 and 8,000 factories,
shops and rooms in which men, women
and children are employed. About 1.200
children under age were ordered out of
factories during the year and sent to
school. Over 300 litt e boys and girls
were taken out of Newark lactones; and
sanitary, elevator, tire-escape, machi
nery, guards and other improvements,
which cost manufacturers from $500 to
$1,000 each, were ordered.
In Hudson County, which includes
Jersey and Hoboken, a large number of
small children were found at work in
factories. In the Standard Oil Compa
ny's establishment forty lads were em
ployed in the cooperage at 85 cents a
week to carry hoops and barrel staves.
Two boys were injured in a large thread
mill, and information was refused to
the deputy inspector. He then stopped
work in the mill until he was informed
that spinners, not the Company, em
ployed the lads in violation of the Child
Labor act.
In Paterson and Passaic, the deputy's
orders for safety elevators, tire-escapes,
separate closets and better methods of
ventilation were attended to by manu
facturers. In one of the Trenton pot
teries, little boys were employed by pot
ters who had contracts to do certain
lines of work, but the names were not
carried on the pay-rolls of the linns.
These boys were sent to school and the
potters warned against relating the
offense.
Safety checks have been put on old
and new elevators, and guards built
about the hatchways and machinery.
This was done to prevent the dresses of
girls and the jackets of boys from being
caught in the cogwheels. Many acci
dents are caused by a neglect of these
precautions. But the percentage of
accidents has been reduced. Out of 306
orders to make elevators secure, 290
were obeyed. Separate closets have been
built in many factories.
The Truancy act has not been gener
ally enforced throughout the State, and,
in fact, many municipalities have paid
no attention to the act. Newark, Orange,
Hoboken, Paterson and several towns in
South Jersey have enforced the law
more strictly and compelled the children
to go to school.
In Jersey City, however, owing large
ly to lack of school facilities, hundreds
of boys and girls cannot be kept out of
factories or streets. The legislature will
be asked to amend the act so as to make
the penalties severe for violations.
Mr. Fell will make a number of sug
gestions in his report. He will ask that
the law relating to theaters and all atnu
sement halls be amended so as to require
all plans of buildings to be submitted to
and approved by the Labor Bureau be
fore these places can be opened to the
public Ue will also suggest that the
satua rule be enforced as to all buildings
to be used as hotels, boarding houses,
shops, dance halls, or for any other
purpose of business or pleasure for the
public. The Massachusetts Bureau has
twenty-one deputies and costs 60,000 a
year; the New Jersey Bureau costs only
10,000.
The six districts into which Chief Fell
has divided New Jersey, with a deputy
inspector in charge of each, are as fol
lows: First District, E. R. White; Se
cond, JohnDarcy; third, Francis Sayre;
Fourth, J. S. Weinthal, Hudson County;
Fifth, Thomas Cogan; Sixth, Patrick
Callan, Essez County, which includes
Newark.
The Rev. Brigadier General Elliott F.
Shepard turned his eyts heavenward
during his sermon last Sunday, and
declared that railroad accidents were
judgment of the Lord upon railroad
officials for running Sunday trains. The
Rev. Colonel and His lord are evidently
tarred with the same stick. Upon the em
ployes and the people are to lie visited the
sins of the railn ad kings. If the latter
are to be admonished or punished, it is
over the backs of the people, and with
out molestation to the culprits.
The receipt of a sample copy of this
paper is an invitation to subscribe.
DETROIT.
LUCIEN SANIAL BEFORE THE
CONVENTION OFTHE AMER
ICAN FEDERATION OF
LABOR.
The Term "Party" Ddl lied -The Re
cord of Socialism in the Labor
M o v c m e it t 1' rese u ted Per t i ne n t
truest ions Asked and Fx plana
Hons Demanded.
The Convention of the American Fe
deration of Labor was called to order on
Monday, the 8th instant, by President
Gompers at 11 a. m., that is, one hour
later than the appointed time, the delay
being due, sad to say, to the circums
tance that the representatives of Organ
ized Labor had appealed to such politi
cians and representatives of Organized
Capital as the Governor of Michigan
and the Mayor of Detroit to extend their
benedictions to the Convention at its
opening, and to the delay of that gentry
in making their appearance. As it was,
the Convention had anyhow to open its
session without going through that de
grading ordeal.
After the introductory speeches had
been exhausted a Committee on Creden
tials was appointed, and the Convention
adjourntd to 2 p. in., fit w hich hour it
promptly reconvened, the matter of the
admission of Lucien Sanial, the delegate
from the New York Central Labor Fede
ration, upon which the committee was
expected to report, being anxiously
looked for by the delegates. Upon this
all absorbing matter, however, the Com
mittee reported it had not been able to
come to any definite conclusion, and
recommended that the Convention itself
act upon it.
This report set the ball rolling. Dele
gate McBride moved to refer the matter
to a special committee; delegate Morgan
moved an amendment that Lucien
Sanial, the delegate of the New York
C. L. ., be heard; and President Gom
pers ruled the amendment out of order.
A lively and protracted debate followed
thereupon during which delegates Daly,
Morgan, Lennon, McSweeny, and others
spoke insisting that Lucien Sanial be
heard in open meeting and the question
be decided then and there, while, on the
other hand, delegate Frank K. Foster
and others opposed the idea. Finally
the original motion itself to refer was
ruled out of order on the ground that
the report of the Committee on Creden
tials not having been yet adopted, tho
Convention was not properly organized
to transact business. The natural result
of this manu'uvre would have been
greatly to handicap the progressive ele
ment in the Convention in their Btrug
gle to secure the admission of Lucien
Sanial; and to prevent his being heard
in the Convention; but the move failed
of its effect. A motion was promptly
made that Lucien Sanial be heard then
and there, and, despite the previous
rulings, was carried with a rush by 49
votes against 33, and secured the floor
to the delegate of the New York C. L. F.
Lucien Sanial was received with ap
plause, and addressed the Convention at
length. He said in substance that the
charter granted to the Central Labor
Federation by the American Federa
tion ei Labor about a year ago had
never been officially surrendered to
the President of the A. F. of L. The
C. L. F, had never ceased to exist ; it
had merely suspended its meetings on
December 18, 1889; and that Trustee
Henry F. Emerich, who delivered the
charter to President Gompers, had done
so without authority, as the minutes of
the C. L. F. would show. As to the
objections raised on the ground .of a
Socialist Section of the Socialist Labor
party being represented in the C. L. F.,
the speaker maintained tha. the Socialist
Labor party was not a political party in
the sense in which the phrase was
understood by workingmen generally.
Surely, it was not so understood in Ger
many, where every trade-union was a
creation and a branch of the Socialist
Lalior party ; it was not so understood
in France, where the Syndicnt Ouvrinr
was a creation and a branch of the So
cialist party, and where the Socialists'
agitation bade fair to carry the eight
hour workday ; it was not so understood
in Switzerland, nor in Austria, nor in
England, where the Socialists had, in
twenty months, organized 117 trade
unions with a membership of over
! WOhiO wage-workers, and where thiy
! had conducted and won the most gi
gantic strikes. There was upon those
grounds alone a vast difference between
the old plutocratic parties and the So
1 cialist Labor party. The sjieaker in con
' elusion, cited the facts that the German
Section of the Socialist Labor party was j
represented in the Baltimore Federation i
of Labor which was part of the Ameri i
can Federation, and that Socialists were !
also represented in different central !
bodies out West to whom President
Gompers had granted charters, and he J
wished to know why President ( join pers
discriminated against the New York
Federation.
Delegate Morgan immediately there
upon moved Lucien Saniel's admission
as the representative of the C. L. F. of
New York. This motion and a series of
others to the same purport were suc
cessively ruled out of order by President
Gompers, until, forgetful of the decla
ration contained in the address he was
about to read, that he desired to submit
the matter to the decision of the Con
vention, President Gompers fairly lost
his temper, became greatly excited,
and proclaimed in a loud tone of voice
that he was ready to tight the question
out to the end. The motion, however,
finally prevailed to appoint a special
Committee to investigate the matter and
report at noon of the following day.
1'he Special Committee reported at
the Tuesday session adversely to the
st ating of Lucien Sanial, and in support
of the Executive Council in refusing a
clnrter to the C. L. F. Soon as some
preliminary business was disposed of,
the discussion broke out anew over the
matter of Lucien Sanial's admission,
only with inereised force, President
Gompers repeatedly giving up the chair
for the floor, and evincing a degree of
acrimony and excitedness that drove
him to the making of several
statements for which lie was brought
under the lash of several of the
better informed delegates, Delegate
John Morgan of Chicago, among others,
showing the irate President's crass igno
rance of the labor movement. Finally,
at5.15 p. m., after a nine hours' debate,
the motion to ado.it the Special Com
mittee's report prevailed by 81 votes
against 19. On the basis of representa
tion, as laid down in the Constitution,
the vote would stand 1,699 against and
535 for the seating of Lucien Sanial,
A meeting was forthwith called by the
Socialists to lay their eas before the
working people.
In his address to the convention,
President Gompers reviewed the general
condition of Labor ; he took up the
Eight Hour movement, dwelt upon its
victories, and referred to the Convention
the question as to what other trade, of
national character should take up the
cudgel next. lie then passed to the
growth of the organization ; the un
satisfactory condition on which were the
Eight Hour, Alien Contract Labor and
International Copyright Laws, and p.lso
the Bureaux of Labor Statistics. With
regards to the Labor Congress, President
Gompers says :
"Immediatly afttr the United States
Congress decided upon the city in which
the World's Fair should be held, in
compliance with the resolution of the
last Convention, I issued an invitation
to the organized wage workers of the
world to lie represented at an inter
national Lalor Congress, to he held at
Chicago in 1893. I urged that no other
International Labor Congress be held
that year, and asked for the appointment
of temporary committeemen for the
purpose of making the preliminary
arrangements. I cannot say that the
invitation has met with much en
couragement." Finally, these observations occur on
the subject of the Charter of the Central
Labor f ederation : "Some few, months
ago the Central Federation of Labor of
New York City made an application for
a certificate of affiliation. It was ac
companied by a list of the organizations
attached to that body. At the head of
the list was the name of the American
Section of the Socialist Labor Party.
The matter received my keenest thought
and bet judgment. I consulted the
constitution and saw there clearly
defined which organizations were en
titled to affiliation with the American
Federation of Labor. The Socialist La
bor party or any other party or section
of a party is not included among the
number. But, apart from any consti
tutional considerations, I believed then
and am convinced now that the Socialist
Labor party, as a jHirty, is not entitled
to representation in a purely trade union
organization.
I informed the Central Labor Fede
ration of the alve fact, and they de
clared their determination not to ask
the Socialist Labor Party to withdraw,
and renev "d their request for the
charter. I rei'.erated the opinion ex
pressed in my former letter and re
solved to refer the entire matter to this
convention to decide whether the po
sition I took was correct.
Since this matter was first broached,
a number of people, glad to clutch at
anything that promises something to
"talk aliout" and sow the seeds of
dissension, have ascritied to me all sorts
of opinions and motives. It has been
charged that I am trying to drive the
Statists out of the movement ; that I
am intolerant of others' opinions, and
other insinuations equally ridiculous
and untrue, and too numerous to men
tion. 1 desre to take this opportunity
of taying that I have ever held that the
i t'uhtiniietl on font th page.)
ORGANIZED LABOR.
WEEKLY MEETING OF THE
CENTRAL LABOR FEDERA
TION. Increased Attendance anil Interest
Petition from Rrookhn for n
('. L. V, Si hemes of Scabs Nailed
New Trades Organized The Pro
hibition Amendment Referred
Old Unions Strengthened Vic
tories of Labor.
Last Sunday's meeting of the C. L. F.
was will attended and (lie delegates met
promptly at 3 p. in. Delegate Keller, of
the United Machinists wielded the gavel,
and the delegate from the Piano Varnish
ers was chosen Vice-chairman.
Upon the report from tne German
Trades of Brooklyn and the discussion
that ensued, a committee was appointed
to co-operate with the Union Brewers
and the German Trades of Brooklyn
toward the continuance of the boycott
against pool beer.
The case of the boycott against the
India Wharf Brewing Co. was laid over
to next Sunday,
The matter of establishing a Central
Labor Federation in Brooklyn with the
assistance of ti e New York body, was
likewise laid over until the delegate
of the New York C. L. F. to Detroit
should have made his report.
Ale & Porter Union No, 1 submitted a
forged circular that had been published
by some unknown party, purporting to
establish a boycott upon the Tracy &
Russell ale brewery, while in fact there
is none upon that firm, and using an im
perfect imitation of the seal of the
C. L. F. The Union No. 1 also presented
another circular contradicting the state
ments of the forged circular nd offering
$50.00 reward to anyone who would give
information that would lead to the con
viction of the forgers. This circular
bore the signatures of the National
Union of the Brewers' Employes,
United German Trades of Brooklyn, and
the Central Labor Union of Hudson
County, N. J. The Central Labor Fed
eration added its signature and seal to
this circular and raised the reward to
$ 100.00.
The case of vest maker boss Solomon
was referred to the Committee on Non
Intercourse; and that of saloon-keeper
Swartz of Houston street was laid over
for three weeks.
The Building Trades Section reported
that it had postponed its application for
a charter to a time when the central
body itself shall be not struggling to
obtain one.
Delegates were received from Bakers'
Union No. 90, and speakers were pro
vided for a maas-nieetiiig of the Custom
Dress-makers.
A committee of the Waiters' Union
asked the C. L. F. to take the lead in
the pending campaign upon the Pro
hibition Amendment. Justus Schwab
was the spokesman of the committee,
and after his address a committee of
five was appointed to gather information
upon the subject.
The Committee on Organization re
ported that 90 new members joined the
Butchers' Union. The attempt to or
ganize an English branch of the Archi
tectural Iron Workers has so far failed.
On Thursday an organization will be
formed at the Lalor Lyceum, of the por
ters, packers, and elevator men belong
ing to the furniture trades.
The Committee upon Hohensee, the
delegate-elect of the Architectural Iron
Workers, reported that charges were
made against him by the United Machin
ists and Cloak-makers, and recommend
ed, without passing judgment upon the
charges, that the Architectural Iron
Workers' Union 1) requested to with
draw said Hohensee in order to preserve
harmony within the ranks of the Fed
eration. The floor was given to Hohen
see to defend himself, and a motion that
he be received was lost by a vote of 20
against 10.
The Beer Brewers reported the return
to the union of all the employes of the
Kniekertiocker Brewery, which had re
cently seceded and formed a K. of L.
local. Progress is made in this trade
and also in that of the machinists.
The Plush Cloak-makers reported that
during the next three months they will
hold regular meetings, debates and dis
cussions upon economic and political
questions.
The Piano Varnishers repoited on the
state of their struggle against the Stein
way combine and declared that from
last Monday on a shorter working day
was to btt established in 21 shop. Upon
motion of one of the delegates of the
Piano-makers' Union a committee of
live was chosen to arrange for a concert
for the benelit of the striking piano and
shoe makers.
The Vest-makers reported that boss
Nathan Wallack had signed the Federa
tion scales, and that his was now fully a
union shop.
T e Clonk-makers reported that Mayer
Joiuissen had given up the contract sys
tern. The firm will set up a shop on
the corner of Grand and Allen streets
and engage W)0 operators. At their re
quest a committee was appointed to
settle the Garside-Barondess controversy
at the next session of the union's execu
tive meeting.
The Brewers' Union reported that
scab beer was being sold at Military Hall
on the Bowery.
This long session closed at 8 p. in.
The Battle for Bread.
Jessie Adamson, 19 years old, a sales
girl, committed suicide by taking a dose
of bromide of potassium at Mrs. King's
boarding house, 124 East 113th street,
New York, early Tuesday morning.
JesHie Adamson was the daughter of
a designer on brass work, who lived in
Brooklyn until last summer. She had
worked as a sales girl in several dry goods
stores, but was taken sick, and lay for
many weeks in tke Presbyterian Hos
pital, crippled with rheumatism. While
she was there a position was offered her
father in Chicago, and the whole family
moved out there. Jessie came out of
the hospital to lind herself alone, thrown
upon her own resources. the secured
employment in Bloomingdale Bros.'
dry goods store, on Third avenue, as
hook keeper, but soon had a relapse and
went back to the hospital once more.
When she returned to the world, sick
ami discouraged, she found no one to
give her work.
She was searching early and late,
when her aunt took to her sick-bed, and
upon the eve of her admission to the
hospital gave Jessie all hr savings
$20 to take care of while she was gone.
That was in Hcptemlier. Jessie went on
with her search and her fight to keep
the wolf from the door. When she had
spent her aunt's money, as well as her
own, and was pressed for board and
knew the time had come when she must
choose starvation or dishonor, she gave
up.
This is hut one out of scores of
instances the press produces every day.
Suicide and drunkenness; despair and
riot such are the llowers that blossom
on the bed of Capitalism.
Postmaster General Wanamaker'a an
nual raport shows that the gross revenue
of the postal service is nearly f 5,000,000
larger than ever before. Nearly 5,000
new post offices, more than in any one
year liefore, have been established upon
tho Ktitionh of communities which
needed them. A decreasiug limit for
the extension of tho free-delivery system
has permitted the employment of letter
carriers in over fifty towns, and three
times as many sub stations and stamp
agencies were established as during the
previous year. The star-route mileage
has increased over 5,000,000 miles, and
the railroad mileage over 11,000,000
miles. The number of pieces usually
sent to the Dead Letter Office has been
reduced by 2,000,000, and the office ex
pects that, by encouraging postmasters
In free delivery cities to prepare supple
mentary directories and by general sug
gestions to the public through the news
papers to take greater care in the direc
tion of matter, its labors will be reduced
by at least one third.
What is said to he the largest locomo
tive in the world has just been turned
out at the Schenectady Works. The
locomotive is for the Michigan Central.
It is a ten-wheeler with six driving
wheels, each six feet and two inches in
diameter. The shell of its boiler is 68
inches in diameter and the locomotive
weighs 62 tons; with loaded tender, 102
tons. The locomotive is called a "com
pound," from a device by which there
are only two exhausts to a revolution,
instead of four as in ordinal y engines.
The Schenectady Works turn out nine
locomotives a week, the Baldwin Works,
twelve. The "improvement" to le de
rived from this whole matter is the
advance in the rate of manufacturing
locomotives. Twenty years ago it took
a "gang"' a mouth to turn out a locomo
tive; now the works turn out in a
month of 2i days. Time is saved, skilled
labor lias progressed immensely, capital
has been enlarged and workingmen
have to fight to maintain their rate of
wages.