International May Day and American Labor Day: A Holiday Expressing Working Class Emancipation Versus a Holiday Exalting Labor's ChainsReinstein, Boris
History
International May Day and American Labor Day: A Holiday Expressing Working Class Emancipation Versus a Holiday Exalting Labor's Chains
Reinstein, Boris
Labor Day; May Day (Labor holiday); Socialism; Working class -- Political activity
Finally the Democratic capitalist Governor Sulzer of New York, believing
that such virtuous men must be rewarded properly, and anxious to boost
his own political stock by demonstrating his appreciation of the
services of the Labor Leaders, took upon himself to champion the cause
of John Mitchell’s career. There is in New York State a good paying
political office known as Commissioner of Labor. Its chief and real
function is to act as peacemaker whenever Brother Capital and Brother
Labor are engaged in any of their interminable scraps. When the Tammany
Hall politician Dix was Governor he gave that job to a “labor”
politician Williams, who boasts of carrying in his pocket the membership
card of the Carpenters’ Union. Williams’ term recently expired, and
Governor Sulzer, Dix’s successor, seized the opportunity for playing
“labor politics.” He appointed John Mitchell to the position of
Commissioner of Labor at an increased salary, bringing it up to $8,000 a
year. But here he struck a snag. Such a fat job was bound to make the
mouth water not of Mitchell alone. Mitchell is not the only Labor Leader
on the political market. There are other politicians, among Labor
Leaders and otherwise, who would be glad to get hold of such a job, and
besides, these others are more partisan Democrats than Mitchell is, and,
consequently, enjoy the support of the more strictly Democratic partisan
members of the Senate of the State of New York, who must ratify Governor
Sulzer’s appointments. Accordingly the Senate refused to ratify the
appointment of Mitchell to the position. Sulzer sent to the Senate for
the second time the appointment of Mitchell to the same position. The
Senate again refused to ratify and thereupon the legislature adjourned
for the summer. Here, thought Sulzer and Mitchell, was their chance to
put through their deal. Since the term of Commissioner Williams had
expired, and he was only holding over awaiting the appointment of his
successor, Sulzer, Mitchell, and Williams put their heads together and
hatched out a nice little scheme. Williams put in his resignation from
the office to take place immediately. Governor Sulzer accepted it and,
since a vacancy was thus created and the Legislature was not in session,
he, as a “matter of emergency,” immediately appointed Mitchell to fill
the vacancy at a salary of $8,000 a year. Mitchell, on the spot, took
the oath of office. He then turned around and appointed Williams to act
as his first Deputy Commissioner of Labor, at a salary of $5,000 a year.
Everything appeared to be smooth sailing. Mitchell was already planning
how he would distribute among his labor leader friends the many other
jobs at his disposal, but—“there is many a slip ‘twixt the cup and the
lip,” as poor Sulzer and Mitchell learned to their sorrow.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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