NO. VI.
From various sources we learn that there is beginning to be a manifest interest in all the different States and Congressional districts regarding the next elections. The representatives of labor seem to begin to realize the great importance of special attention to all that belongs to primary organization, and to perceive that heretofore they have been obliged to throw their strength away or waste it in unprofitable directions, from the very fact that they did not give the necessary attention to the first steps in the process of determining who should be set up for them to choose between. It does not seem possible that any should be returned to office who entertain opinions antagonistic to the general interests of labor. Three-fourths of the entire population of the country are in this interest, and whether they be artisans in mechanics or nature—whether they be by the anvil or the plow—whether they be printers or writers—their interests are all the same; it only requires that they should all understand this to consolidate them into a power that would control every movement of government. Should this unity once be found practical, and should it be recognized by capital as consummated, its representatives would be compelled to come to those, who now look to them, for the granting of ameliorating conditions. It is most probable that when such a unity shall be attained both the capitalist and the laborer will, for the first time, discover that whatever really militates against the true interests of one, is equally antagonistic to the best interests of the other.
Some who have thought this might be so, have endeavored to devise methods by which harmonious action could be secured. Various schemes of co-operation have been suggested, many of them tried and found faulty and then discarded, until it has come to be pretty thoroughly understood that there is no level upon which they can meet and part in mutuality of interest. It is true that no perfect method can be suggested or instituted that will from the first give complete results; but the principle must be sought that governs the relations between the separate interests and applied, at first, with imperfect results, which must afterward be improved as the interests grow into a true comprehension of each other’s character.
The principle is this, that labor and capital are equally interested in the productions that flow from their joint operations; that is, the capital that gives employment to one hundred laborers is entitled to an equal interest with the laborers in what is produced. But here is an inequality to begin with. The capital may only represent one individual, while the laborers are one hundred; still, this is the relation, and the final result of its operation will be a complete equality in this wise: The one hundred laborers perform their regular duties, receiving therefor such regular wages as are proper; and also their respective proportions of the profits of their productions. In, say, five years, these one hundred laborers will have accumulated a sufficient capital with which to transact the business on their own account; and here is where a system of equality is reached, which again would be followed by another degree of progress for the laborer. The capitalist, finding himself left out of the count by the operation of this method, would come forward and offer his capital to labor organizations at a reasonable rate of interest, and in this way a common interest would be the only possible result. The entire profits of the labor would then be divided among the producers, while the capitalist would have to be satisfied with the moderate interest he would realize, in place of the extraordinary sums now sometimes acquired from the sweat and muscle of the laborer. There is one point, however, in the first instance, that modifies the inequality mentioned in a very material degree. The capitalist, while enjoying as much profit as all the laborers, is also liable for all losses, in which the laborer has no interest.
Following the results of the co-operation above mentioned would be various modifications in society and in the locality of populations. People engaged in the same pursuits would naturally gravitate to each other and into distinct localities, while the various interests they represented would gravitate to those localities that should offer the most inducement to their respective trades. One of the results of this would be that all raw material would, in all cases—where all the requirements were present—be manufactured in the locality of its production, thereby saving vast amounts of transportation; and this again would be illustrative of another department of general economy, in the light of which protection to special manufacturing interests would be seen in its true colors.
We have thus briefly endeavored to point out the practical results that would flow from the adoption, generally, of the true principle of co-operation for the specific purpose of assisting the labor interest in selecting candidates for their representatives, both State and national. They should be those who understand these relations, and what would naturally follow them, and who would at all times, and under all circumstances, advocate their adoption, and, in the first instance, such policies as would most materially assist in their development, and lead to their introduction and practice on the part of all who compose both interests. Labor is the basis upon which all society rests, and nothing is entitled to so much consideration at the hands of legislation. Nothing heretofore has been so grossly neglected, insulted and imposed upon.
New York, August 20, 1870
PAPERS ON LABOR AND CAPITAL.
NO. VII.
PRIORITY OF RIGHT—THEIR POSITION IN THE PROCESSES OF SOCIETY—THE EARTH BELONGS TO MAN AT LARGE—INDIVIDUAL CLAIMS, PURE ASSUMPTION—PRINCIPLES, PRACTICE, REMEDIES AND CURE.
Capital, primarily, is the product of labor, but labor, in the abstract, could produce nothing of itself. It must have something upon which to apply itself. It cannot create anything; it can only alter, readjust or rearrange the materials which nature offers, and by bringing them into new relations with each other make it possible for them to subserve other and better purposes than when, in the constitution assigned them by the operation of natural laws, they are unmodified by the touch of mind. Therefore, while capital is the direct result of labor, labor would not be possible without the free gifts of nature. Absolute originality, then, or absolute priority of right, as between labor and capital, cannot be claimed by or for either.
The formula of the operation, beginning with nature and ending in the ultimate use of its productions, in contributing to the happiness of the race, is this: Nature is made up of the elements of the universe, which, compounded into forms, are offered to man to be modified into other forms and to combine in new relations which may best contribute to the needs of the human family. In this view, and in view of the inharmonious relations that exist between capital and its co-equal labor, it becomes necessary to give the whole matter a complete analysis, in order to discover, if possible, where the primary fault lies, and to find the proper solution of all differences.
The human race exists upon the earth. At a past period no human being existed upon it. At a later day the human race arose. Before man, nothing claimed the ownership of any part of the earth’s surface. When man presented himself he began to make use of various parts of it for his own ends, but to the land thus appropriated he acquired no permanent title or right of ownership. It was his to obtain from it all that his genius and strength made possible. So much as he could thus extract he could possess, but further than this his title was valueless.
The races of men that now inhabit the earth are scattered over the greater part of its surface, drawing what it spontaneously yields and what they can force it to yield. From these premises it would seem unquestionable that each individual of the human family had an equal right to its benefits. The only difference that ought to exist should be that limited and bounded by the capacity of each to produce. No person could therefore ever acquire, under the rule of universal justice, an absolute ownership to any part or portion of the earth’s surface. If the chain of title to any claimed ownership is followed backward sufficiently, it will be found to have originated in an assumption in the first instance of ownership to something that belonged to men in common.
We can now acquire landed property from the government, and this creates the most absolute ownership that can exist; but here again comes the question whether governments can do what is impossible to individuals? Can a system organized by a people perform acts not in the power of the people themselves to perform? Can a government by the mere fact of having been organized to preserve harmony among a people acquire an absolute title to the earth that is contained within its jurisdiction? If an individual cannot go into an unclaimed territory and take absolute possession of a certain portion of it, then no number of persons, nor can any government they may establish, do so. And here exists one cause of discord between labor which produces and capital which monopolizes.
All monopolies arise from landed monopolies. Were there no inequalities between men in claims to certain areas of the earth’s surface, no other monopolies would find a basis for existence. Every individual should have a right to the use of a certain quantity of the real estate of the country, and the right to all improvements he might make upon it. Here would be a basis of equity which would forever prevent the accumulation in the hands of any few persons, of vast quantities of real estate, which is the real basis of all securities. It is such a basis because everything is produced from it. All manufacturers must rely upon it for their raw material, and, therefore, a practical equality in the occupation and use of the public domain would insure a certain degree of equality in all things that might spring from it. It was the perception of this principle that caused Lycurgus to divide the lands of Lacedemon equally among all the people; and a general recognition of it should now take place.
While these are the principles that underlie the workings of society, and which must be practiced before a general equality can exist, it is not to be expected that they can be immediately introduced. There are too few who understand the real rights of man, and too many who do not wish to understand them. While this condition of ignorance and perverseness keeps the world inharmonious and subjected to suffering, we should avail ourselves of all the alleviatory methods that can be suggested in our present system. Between two evils choose the least; but in the pursuit of remedies, the root of the disease should never be lost sight of. Nor should the spirit that is exhibited in many so-called Labor and Workingmen’s Journals be encouraged. Strife and animosity will never accomplish half so much as calmness, reason and persuasion. “Come, let us reason together,” was never more judiciously proposed than it could now be by capitalists and workingmen. The latter must remember that they cannot compel capitalists to their terms, and capitalists must not forget that if there are real causes of dissatisfaction growing out of injustice, the sooner justice is done the less serious will be the reckoning with the laborer. Instead of strife let us have co-operation; instead of war let us have peace; instead of the process of fermentation let us have that of mutual understanding.
New York, August 27, 1870.
PAPERS ON LABOR AND CAPITAL.
NO. VIII.
THE CINCINNATI CONVENTION—NEW PARTIES AND NEW ISSUES—PEOPLE’S EYES OPEN—DETERMINATION TO TAKE MATTERS INTO THEIR OWN HANDS—WILL THEY MAKE JUDICIOUS MOVEMENTS?—THE RIGHTS OF LABOR—SHALL THEY BE IGNORED?—OUR POSITION REGARDING THE LABOR MOVEMENT.
The National Labor Convention lately held in Cincinnati was called for the special purpose of beginning an organization having in view the next Presidential canvass. It had taken the means of obtaining the views of a number of the most prominent public men, letters enunciating which views were duly presented before the convention. That of Governor Geary, of Pennsylvania, appears to have occupied the position of most prominency, and to have been regarded with peculiar and unanimous favor. The views presented by him are such as were sure to find favor with the representatives of labor, and so far he stands A No. 1 as the prospective candidate for the Presidency of the National Labor party.
It has been very evident for the last year that the old parties had lost their power of inspiration over the people. The Democratic party sold itself out to slavery and virtually died when slavery died. A party may exist called Democratic, but it will be upon new issues and must take new departures. The hard conservatism that attaches to it from its former practices does not suit the spirit of the eighth decade of the nineteenth century. The rank and file that have so long blindly followed wherever their leaders commanded are becoming imbued with this spirit, and they begin to realize that they have been mere automatons that have been moved with no acquiescent will of their own. Newspapers have become too commonly read. That the blind should be led necessitates the continuous condition of blindness. So, too, with, the understanding. What have the masses known of the essence of the issues that have formed the platform of the political parties for the last fifty years? When war came, as the result of a blind course on the part of politicians, the masses began to open their eyes to the fact that they had been unwittingly betrayed into a most dangerous and fearful condition, wherein it became necessary to cut each other’s throats. Since the close of the war they have not only kept their eyes open to the full extent the war opened them, but they have also opened their understanding and for the first time fully realize that they are indeed freemen; and to become conscious that heretofore they have been so only in name. Awaking as they have from the delusion so long hugged to their hearts, it will not be strange if they do some inconsiderate and short-sighted things.
It is the duty of all who have the true interest of the whole people at heart to warn them of all the extremes they are likely to contend for, and to suggest permanent practical methods, which shall spring from principles that will apply at all times to all men—and women. The Republican party being composed of somewhat different elements is disintegrated from different action of the same causes; with the destruction of slavery and the reconstruction of the country its strength was expended. All people who were opposed to slavery had concentrated in the Republican party, because of the similarity of sentiment upon this single question; this settled, they find themselves without a common rallying idea; they differ as widely upon the old and common topics among themselves as they differ from those who do not belong to the party and never did. Place and power are the sole things that hold the Republican party together at all; these gone it will be gone.
It is just at this time that new parties are demanded, and they are sure to arise. The conditions are all favorable. It remains for wise counsels to prevail in the formation and departure of these, to insure them something more than death with the accomplishment of one of their central ideas, which destiny fell to the lot of the Republican party. Unquestionably there will be a Labor party in the next canvass. We are sorry it is denominated the Labor party, because it should be something more than a Labor party, and because this is a direct challenge to capital, and it will very probably result in arraying these two interests in an antagonism which will be but a repetition of the slavery antagonism. No party built upon a specific idea, looking in a single direction, can ever attain to even the promise of permanency; and it is for this reason we say we are sorry to see a party sectionalizing itself at the very outset of its attempting a general movement toward organization.
It seems, also, a little premature that an organization calling itself a Labor organization, should at the outset put itself upon the record against the freedom of labor, let it come from whence it may, and be of whatever nature it may. This policy is short-sighted, and will prove a stumbling-block to the party, though for the time Chinese emigration may serve for a rallying-cry. All assertions that the Chinese emigrants can be reduced to a system of slavery among us are humbuggery of the first water. There is no law to prevent a person contracting with a hundred American workmen at the best terms he can. It is quite certain there is no law to prevent him from employing Irishmen, Germans or even Chinese upon the same terms. And if it is done, and labor is thereby obtained cheaper than the citizens of this country desire to furnish it, the laboring class must not lay the charge to the capitalist who accomplishes it, but to the imperfections of our social and financial systems which make such resorts possible. Then, instead of committing this new national organization against any form of legal labor, its managers should have proposed remedies for the existing imperfections in our systems.
We are no special advocate of the introduction of Chinese or any other labor into this country; neither are we desirous of advocating any policy that will conflict with the interests of any laborer, but we are advocates, and always expect to be, of justice and equity to all people everywhere, because the time has come in the ages when we must begin to remember that we are all brothers under the sun, and that he or she who does not recognize and act upon this universal truth will, sooner or later, be obliged to learn it at the cost of dear experience. We expect to be found advocating very many of the principles laid down in the platform of the Labor party, and could wish that we may find nothing there adverse to the principles which are of general application. We desire to see the Labor interest advanced to the right and position of equality with capital, and we shall put forth our best endeavors to assist in this most just movement. At the same time we shall not commit ourselves to sustain or advocate anything that we conceive will be ultimately injurious to the true interests of humanity, or any part of it, therefore we shall at all times point out what we regard as errors in whatsoever this new party may endeavor to carry out. At the same time we shall, perhaps, be among its firmest and truest advocates. The best friends are those who show us our faults and sustain us in the right.
New York, September 3, 1870.
PAPERS ON LABOR AND CAPITAL.