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Show PDjEDEflT PRAISED: BY... . ENGLISH LABOR LEADER William Abraham, M, P., Says His Message Is One of the Grandest Documents Erer Written. Two of the most famous of Great Britain's leaders of organized labor were the guests of the Utah Federation of Labor at Federation hall Wednesday night. They were the Hon. William Abraham, member of Parliament, and James Wignall, national organizer of British dockers, or longshoremen. They are on their way home after having attended the sessions of the twenty-fourth annual convention of the American Federation of Labor, held recently re-cently in San Francisco, where they were sent as fraternal delegates by the British Trades Council. ' Several hundred labor men attended the reception, and the big hall was filled with a capacity audience, representative repre-sentative of every class of organized labor In the city. Many members of the local Wel6h colony were also in attendance at-tendance In honor of the guests. John James .and Miss Millie Williams sang and were enthusiastically praised by the visitors. H. B. Cromar, president of-the Utah Federation of Labor, was chairman of the evening and introduced J. T. Lav-ery Lav-ery of the Structural Iron7Workers who In turn Introduced Mr. Abraham and Mr. WignalL In his address Mr. Abraham said that all classes of society are becoming interested in-terested in the organised labor movement. move-ment. He had just read the message of President Roosevelt to Congress and he said that he had read nothing for years j that had given him as much satisfaction satisfac-tion as had that document. ; "We have in our own way been trying try-ing to give Justification for the labor movement," he said, "but that is no longer necessary. Tour President gives ample Justification for that movement. A poet, we say in Wales, must have an eye to see, a head to feel, and a language lan-guage to express the feelings of the heart. All of these qualities were shown in that great message from that great man to this gTeat people. - He has an eye to see, a heart ,to feel, and a noble way of expressing what he feels with regard to the needs of labor In America." Amer-ica." He then read several excerpts from the message. . "I know what it means to rear a family of eight to manhood and womanhood," he said. "In all my experience ex-perience as a labor leader there has not been a question of more sacred interest inter-est nor of greater Importance than that of the family life. Roosevelt's message is the greatest message to the working-man working-man that ever Issued from the pen of a statesman or a ruler. ' The President says that labor has the right to organize for the protection of its rights. He says that labor organizations organi-zations are effective agents for good citizenship. He not only Justifies their existence for securing the .necessities of life, 'but he Justifies them for the good they have done in raising the standard Of citizenship. He asks for legislation affecting organized labor, giving organized or-ganized labor the right not to work with non-union labor if it so desires. "Conditions have Improved since the organization of the laboring men into unions. New standards have been raised. Minimum wages are greater by 30 per cent than before the organization of labor. , We stand for good work, but we stand first for good wages. I know nothing that will better a community, and Improve it more quickly than high wages. Poverty causes sin. "Trades unions stand for good wages, and they also stand for good work. We agree to give a good day's work for a good day's wages. We stand for better bet-ter protection of life and limb for the. workers. We stand for reduction of the hours af labor for the men who are employed In dangerous avocations. The President particularly mentions the reduction re-duction of the hours of work on the railroads. rail-roads. This means that he agrees with all that I have said. "President Roosevelt advises a more strict enforcement of the employers' liability act. It has heretofore been a failure here and abroad. "Labor can get what It wants and what it needs in the matter of legislation legisla-tion if it will elect labor -legislators, as we have done in Great Britain. All of the labor reforms that have been brought about In Great Britain have been carried through by the representatives represen-tatives of labor In Parliament. Labor's representatives succeeded after a hard fight In getting the passage of the Worklngmen's compensation act. Now if a laborer is hurt at his toll, his family gets not more than a pound a week, after he has been disabled for two weeks. If a laborer Is killed, his family gets 300 Insurance." James Wignall was then introduced and spoke at length on child labor and the legislation that has Improved conditions con-ditions so greatly in England and the British Isles during the last few years. |
