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Newspaper
The Labor Argus
Location
Charleston, West Virginia, United States of America
Date
May 02, 1907
Page
5
The Labor Argus invites local union secretaries to mail news and notices. All copy for succeeding issues must arrive in the office no later than Tuesday each week and should be written on one side of the paper only.
The Argus reports union meetings and progress with the Musicians and Painters unions, praising Prof EE Melure for concert success and noting wage-scale signings by contractors. The Newsboys and Plasterers hold meetings, urging full attendance and subscriptions to support the paper as summer ads rise.
The piece debates whether Christ would join a labor union if alive today. It notes that opponents claim he would oppose organized labor due to perceived corruption, while others argue the church should align with workers. The discussion references church organization and the era’s social issues without graphic detail.
A columnist argues that Jesus would denounce hypocrisy in religious leaders yet preserve the church and would also oppose faults in organized labor. He says Christ would align with both institutions to purify them, urging readers to follow his example by reforming rather than discarding their institutions.
Contractors employing about 200 men refused to sign the eight hour day agreement and 150 are working. The local carpenters union will be backed by a strong national treasury. A prolonged, citywide dispute is likely as contractors sign up to avoid losing men to higher paying cities. Tonight, 360 carpenters are expected at the Local meeting.
The passage notes that those without work days oppose shortening other workers’ hours most strongly. It highlights a paradox where idle men push for keeping longer hours for others, reflecting attitudes toward labor, productivity, and fairness in the era.
In Charleston many working men own homes or are saving to buy one. The piece argues unions encourage economy and saving, noting weekly bank deposits and prudent living as paths to home ownership and financial stability for laborers. It frames home ownership as attainable through discipline and foresight, countering the view that workers have no future.
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