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Show A FEW WORDS TO THE LABOR UNIONS OF OGDEfN. One of tho gieatest demonstrations on record, against the liquor traffic was that held in Toronto, Canada in November, 190D at the International Convention of the Federation of Labor. La-bor. There was opposition on tho part of the dolegates, yet four thousand men mot in a great auditorium, and after hours or dlHcussion, participated in by the world's bcs.t known labor leadora, b re'olutlon Joined with tho temporancc workers of tho world against the open -dram shop," declaring de-claring it to be labor"s worst enemy' In lr.s desperate fight for existence, tho liquor traffic has gone the extreme limit of Its power, in an effort to hoodwink labor into the support of the saloon. It cashes the laborer's checks and thereby gets the first "blta'" out of it, and too often, that "bite" meaqs. the entire week's earn-lpgH, earn-lpgH, sending the poor laboring man home to his family with empty pock-eta pock-eta and an aching hoad. The saloon clalmH to be the real friend of labor, when In reality It is Bis sworn enemy Again wo quote from John R. Lon- non, treasurer of tho AMERICAN FEDERATION OF LABOR, who Bays: "We should protect WOMEN, and 1 keep tbem Outside the factory, so that 'they may becomb the mothers and, "lionVkeoper.s xf tho arion. Will -any-ma dare' tn say that tlic liquor busl-j ness has not driven couihIosb women"1 to the factory, the mill and (ho wash, tub? Tho saloon drives tho boys and tho girl's from the schools to the factories, fac-tories, to supply tho toll of the saloon keeper taken from the father, whou he goes to his 'poor man's club' to got his check cashed." Again, sayn Mr. Lennon 'As orio trado-unlonlst. I am unalterably against the business that has such, tendencies. 1 am against the Ealoon. without any qualifications, because I am a trados-unlonlst That Is my primary reason. Tho unions mako every possible effort to increase wages. The stream of influence that runs from a saloon continuously tends to decrease wages, for the reason, that every cent tho union man spends In a saloon, Is an absolute waste, and consequently, his real wnges aro reduced re-duced by every amount tho saloon gets from him. It takos his money and gives him nothing of value in return. re-turn. Tho union, therefore. Is on one side of this question and the snloon is on the other" John F. Cunneen, union machinist, and one of Chicago's leading Labor Union advocatos, writes at length, and among other things he says "Work-lngmen, "Work-lngmen, vote against your worst enemy, ene-my, the saloon. When tho working-men working-men down the Whiskey Trust and the Beer Trust then they will bo able to get their rights. Facts prove that the saloon is an enormous financial loss, as well as a moral degradation, for a community to maintain it." Another paragraph from John Mitchell, whom none will deny as one of tho greatest labor leaders of our timo: "When a man comoB home mentally and physically exhausted, ho is more likely to seek a stimulant In the saloon. Nothing has done more to bring misery on innocent women and children than money spent in the saloon. Money spent In tho saloon is not surplus money. The pay of workmen work-men Is seldom sufficient to leave a surplus. It Is true, that every scandal, few as they havp boon in organised labor, can be traced to some connection connec-tion with the saloon." As a result of experience gained in the lato street car strike the Central Labor Council of Philadelphia, by a vote of S2 to 34 has adopted a resolution resolu-tion that union worklngmen shoujd "agitate and votp for local option at every opportunity " It was found that tho saloon made trouble for the worklngmen. work-lngmen. by Inciting the hoodlums to riotous action, for which the workmen work-men wore blamed, and by their corrupt cor-rupt Influence in city politics which prevented a fair deal by the city administration. ad-ministration. Men who produce nothing which contributes to the comfort and well-being well-being of the people of a country, aro burdens on labor and Industry. Eighty per cent of this burden Is caused by the liquor traffic: those engaged In the business produce nothing of value to society; they are leaches; labor and Industry should not carry their burden. Then It Is self evident, If our reasoning is correct that prohibition prohibi-tion of the liquor traffic will go a long way toward the solution of the labor problem The lapor leaders say Vote out the saloon. Yet the saloon writer asks if they say a word for prohibition. Well, wn'are not able to draw the distinction distinc-tion between voting out the saloop and prohibiting the saloon from disposing dis-posing of its wares. They are synon-omous, synon-omous, and when the leaders agitato a vote aeainst the saloon they endorse en-dorse prohibition. |