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Baily Name JndIIgtrial Markt-VI
Published Daily except Sunday
Mr Nome Mine Workers’ Union, No. >40. Western federation of Miners.
Entered *b second class matter Marck 1, 1111, at tke post offlce at
Nome,'Alaska, under the Act of Marck t, 1871.
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“To secure to each laborer the whole product of his labor, or as
nearly as possible, la a worthy object of any good government-"—
Abraham Lincoln
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DISCONTENT.
People take a lopsided view of
many things and when they see
much opposition to any system or
policy that they favor, they blame
that upon the work of some agita
tors, leaders and the like.
They never lor one instant blame
the system or the policy pursued.
They persuade themselves that that
would be lovingly accepted were it
not for the opposition of some excit
ing the discontent of others.
Nothing could be further from a
correct view <of things. The great
est reason for agitation itself is not
anything personal existing in the
agitator, but in the exciting causes
thereto to which the system agi
tated against gives rise.
Most people were accustomed to
blame the advocacy of socialism
upon ihe propagandists of social
ism. And a good many propagand
ists aided that belief by placing an
almost childish faith in the virtues
of propaganda work. The fact that
when opposition arises to a system
It is for a well defined cause, and
that opposition will continue and
continue to increase until that
cause is removed, is entirely over
looked.
You may kill off every propa
gandist tomorrow engaged in ad
vocating radical ideas and the sys
tem breeding discontent among its
victims will continue to reproduce
the oppositoin that has merely been
temporarily destroyed.
Thus we observe that not all
the opposition in the world to labor
organization and radical associa
tions upon the part of the capitalists
class has been able to destroy them
permanently. Here and there they
have quite successfully extirpated
them for the time being, but they
come again, hardy perennials which
no power can destroy. The reason
for this is that the system itself
has excited its own destruction, and
it will continue to do so until the
system is finally destroyed by its
victims.
Today by the exercise of fore.;
and by the threat of armed violence
and by the use of all kinds of puni
tive measures certain obnoxious po
licies may be forced upon the peo
ple. And in jus'ifieatton for the
exertion of this tyrannical policy
and this despotism, it may be claim
ed that the conditions which are
sought to be suppressed are due to
useless agitators and to propagana
ists of discontent and disloyalty.
But not any of these things will
permanently be successful however
for a time they may effect theit
ends. The system which ' was re
garded as obnoxious, will despite
its armories excite opposition and
grow between the spaces of violence
with all the richer growth. It is
a remarkable fact that there has
nothing fertilized the soil of liberty
.,10 well as the blood of those wl*o
, wtere martyrs for the cause, and it
hat pens nine cases out of ten that
, the very repressive means used to
<uai.u:<jin or to foist an obnoxious
system upon the people, added to
the intensity with which It inspired
. opposition.
I® .the labor world propaganda
..•werfc for the labor cause has done
^ood in that it helped to rivet
the doctrines which had occurred to
those who accepted the propaganda
*s feasible and reasonable and judi
cious. But the main educator amt
the main agitator in this world is
the capitalist system itself: with its
persistent exploitation, its petty ty
rannies. its despotisms, its defiance
of rights personal and political, Its
general conception of things that
the many live for the advantage ot
the few, and that the advantage ot
the few should be the object of ex
istence for the many.
The job or the lack of the job
has made more socialists than Karl
Marx Capital which few know and
lew understand and few relatively
speaking even read. The failure to
make ends meet from low wages
teaches a simple theory of surplus
value all the academic talk in the
would and all the pamphleteering
and all the editorials from Heaven
to Breakfast could not fasten so
in the minds of the workers. The
persistent effort to crush unionism
through gunmen, lock outs, injunc
tions, trials and the like serve to
impress the facts of the class strug
gle in a way no agitator were he to
talk himself hoarse can do.
The lack of intelligence in mak
ing personal actions responsible for
social conditions, and it is not con
fined to the employing classes
simply ignores the fact that eco
nomic conditions under which men
live are the driving force which
give vitality to men's thought and in
spiration to men's actions.
It is true enough that continued
exploitation has a brutalizing effect,
it is true enough that continued ex
ploitation will often enough help
to produce a condition of servility
wherein the servile will hug their
chains. But just as often they will
excite a discontent which will not
do any such thing, which will grow
more and more rebellious and which
will finally organize and act.
The man who sits In an arm
chair may have all kinds of pipe
dreams, but the man who knows
that on the job he is overworked
and underpaid will have nothing ot
the kind. And he Is interested In
feeling out if his fellow worker is
similarly situated and similarly af
fected by conditions and they begin
to discuss the ways and means of
betterment. The educational effect
of the system is ceaseless; it drops
in with the fatigue from over
work, it creaks in the overstrained
Joints, it mumbles in the underfed
belly, it stiffens in the overworked
muscles, it throbs in the toil excited
heart and it deadens itself in the
jaded brain. It needs no agitation
for the victim of such a system,
producing wealth beyond any other
age, ani1. living in the positive bord
erland of starvation, to produce dis
content. It needs no agitation for
that discontent to ally itself with
others, and to organize to remove
what is instinctively felt to be a
means of oppression. Furthermore
if that instinct does not exist, it is
not likely to be called into being
by editorials, pamphlets, articles es
says, treatises, speeches, harrangues.
These roa> serve to promote a bet
ter understanding of instinctive im
pulses and to explain what has been
felt but nciet understood, but they
can do no more.
The complaint that is heard from ;
time to time that the masses are
losing their respect for men, institu
tions and things hitherto considered
venerable and respectful is in itselt
due to the failure to understand
upon the part of the other fellow
who experiences nothing of what
I they experience.
' It is easy enough for any person
sitting in a comfortable chair, sniok
ing fine cigars, having a fine dinner,
and a comfortable and secure liv
ing with the lightest kind of work |
to manifest fine notions of loyalty,
reverence and patriotism. All those
things are wrapped up in the man
ner of r:s living. Thtv are part and 1
parcel of his good dinner, of his «
comfortaole chair, of his pleasant
home, of hi.i good cigar, of his se
cure income and his easy way of
getting it. They are not necessary
concomitants of the workers mode
of life: hit. unsanitary quarters, his
meager wages, his job uncertainty,
his difficulty in making ends meet
for himself and his family if he
has one, in his forced denial of
needed tilings that help to ease the
labor of life and his utter weari
ness from exhausting high speed
toil. If he does feel any such thing
as patriotism, loyalty and reverence
and the like, it is because he has
some hazy hereditary or artificially1
cultivated idea that they are the
correct thing. Their hold over his
mind is not very tenacious and it is
part of the grinding effect upon his
mind and upon his mentality that
these shall be slowly eroded and re
moved in full fiom any influence
over his actions.
These facts are just as often
overlooked by the workers them
selves as by the employers. But
that they are facts is evidenced by
everything we see going on daily
and yearly around us.
That the realization of this would
lead to a kind of economic fatalism
may perhaps be somewhat within
the pale of possibil.ty. It might
be argued,, then, that no activity
upon the part of the workers is
necessary because the system will
do it all. On the contrary, the
system compels this individual ac
tivity whether we possess such fata
listic ideas or not. The system for
ces agitation and forces discontent
and forces organization and the
sooner this is realized the better for
all the workers. It will intensify
the impetus of the movement as
nothing c :te can, and it is part of the
effects of capitalism that it creates
the forces which will ultimately de
stroy it and It cannot help itself.
What other reason, in fact, when
we sift things down to fundament
als is there for socialism except ca
pitalism. It is its sole justification.
It must depend for its justification
upon being contrasted with capi
talism and found better in that
contrast. And all intelligent argu
ments against any agitation and
against the ends that this agitation
looks to, must be based upon proof
that the present conditions which
are sought to be removed are better
than the system that it is proposed
to make as a substitute for the
same. Obviously a good system
will do that automatically; obvi
ously capitalism in alt its ramifica
tions does nothing of the kind.
WHERE BILE GOT Oh'K.
Bill Sykes opened the office door
somewhat aggressively and aporouch
ed his employer with respect, yet
not limit!, and asked for a raise in
wages.
“Want more pay. do you?” said
the employer. “Have a seat. Take
this chair, it is more comortable.
Have a cigar."
“Now,” said his employer, “there
are 365 days in the year.”
Bill: “Yes".
Employer: “You spend one-third
of the time in sleep.”
Bill admitted that he did.
Employer: "That amounts to 122
days, which subtracted from 365
days, leaves 243. Very well. An
other one-third is spent in play, re
creation and amusement. That
is 122 days, which, substracted
from 243, leaves 121 days.”
Bill assented to the accuracy of
this deduction.
"Now,” continued, his employer,
“there are 52 Sundays. Deduct 52
from 121 and it leaves 69 days.”
Bill agreed.
“Then,” said his employer, “the
half holiday on Saturdays amounts
to 26 days, subtract that from 6 9
days and we get 43 days.”
Bill wiggled in his chair and ad
mitted solemnly to the fact.
Employer: “Now there are 13
holidays in the year, which, sub
tracted from 43 days, leaves 30
days.
Bill grunted.
Employer: “Then there is one
hour at noon, which, during the
year amounts to 15 days, and
which .substracted from 30 days,
leaves 15 days."
i Bill showed signs of uneasiness,
but could not dispute the truth of
his employer's deductions.
Employer: “Now you have two
weeks’ vacation. Fourteen days de
ducted from 15 leaves one day.”
Bill turned pale, but admitted the
accuracy of the figures.
Employer: “You remember that
at the time of the beginning of the
baseball season, you were absent
one day to assist in the obsequies
of your grandmother, which ac
counts for 365 days.”
“It seems to me, Bill that you
don’t work for me at all.
Exit Bill.—Ex.
SPRING TIME IS HERE
For the best work in tailoring see
us. We make alterations.
We do cleaning, pressing and re
paring for ladies and gentlemen.
We make suits to order.
First class workmanship, modern
method and prompt service.
We appreciate your patronage.
Yours to pleaes
NOME TAILORING CO.
Next doofc to Segerstrom & Hagen.
CITY BATH HOUSE
has the largest
and only 0 feet
Bath Tubs In Nome.
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ALASKA LIGHTERAGE 8 GOM’L 80.
Kent Transfer Oo.
General Transfer & Freighting
Goal & on
Phone Main 139.
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WHEN YOU PAY GOOD MONEY FOR Rl'BBBK GOODS
BE SURE YOU GET THEM THAT HAVE BEEN PROPERLY
CARED FOR, OUR LINE OF
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P. A. PETERSON SHOE €0.
laEMaugfaaaaBWMHeiaaa^^
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Arctic Bakery
THE HOME OF FRESH CANDIES, SALTED PEANUTS, PEA
NUT CANDIES, GOOD BREAD AND COOKIES AND GOOD
> f . *
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WB CAN DO IT.
For flr«l (lui work ana proa pi
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4 doz. (or 50. Every one
guarnteed
ARMOl’RS EVAPORATE!*
1 lhs. tin*. Use them in cook
ing, |ust as satisfactory as
fresh eggs. Try a can.
D. E. Crowley
INDEPENDENT
MEAT MARKET
W. H. Webb prop. Phone M.1S
BOARD OFTRADE
Restaurant
LUNCH* ROOM
George Modini,
Proprietor
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