Love stories; Miners -- Fiction; Mines and mineral resources -- Colorado -- Fiction; Strikes and lockouts -- Fiction
"Then there's another point. A man has some rights of his own, if he
does work for $3 a day. The old man is all the time posting notices at
the mine and at the mill. He tells men what days they can get their pay,
and what days they can't. If a man quits, he's got to take a time-check
that isn't worth face, till pay-day. Now what I want to know is this:
Haven't the men just as good a right to post notices as the company
has?" Morrison was industriously addressing Pierre, but talking at Luna.
Pierre made no response, so Luna spoke instead.
"I've been thinking the same thing."
Morrison turned to Luna.
"Well, I'll tell you. You fellows don't know your rights. When you work
eight hours the company owes you three dollars. You have a right to your
full pay any time you want to ask for it. Do you get it? Not much. The
company says pay-day is the 15th of every month. You have nothing to say
about it. You begin to work the first of one month. At the end of the
month the company makes up the payroll. On the 15th you get pay for last
month's work. The 15th, suppose you want to quit. You ask for your time.
Do you get your pay for the fifteen days? Not much. They give you a
time-check. If you'll wait thirty days you'll get a bank-check or cash,
just as they choose. Suppose you want your money right away, do you get
it?" Morrison looked fixedly at Luna.
Luna shook his head in reply.
"Of course not. What do you do? Why, you go to a bank, and if the
company's good the bank will discount your check--one, two, three, or
five per cent. Your time amounts to $60, less board. The bank gives you,
instead of $60, $57, which means that you put in one hard day's work to
get what's your due."
"The law's done away with time-checks," objected Luna.
"Oh, yes, so it has. Says you must be paid in full." Morrison called on
all his sarcasm to add emphasis to his words. "So the company complies
with the law. It writes out a bank-check for $60, but dates it thirty
days ahead, so the bank gets in its work, just the same."
Luna glanced cunningly from Morrison to Pierre.
"It strikes me that the Blue Goose isn't giving the bank a fair show. I
never cashed in at the bank."
"What time ze bank open, eh?" Pierre asked, languidly.
"Ten to four." Luna looked a trifle puzzled.
"_Bien!_ Sunday an' ze holiday?" pursued Pierre.
"'Tain't open at all."
"_Très bien!_ Ze Blue Goose, she mek open hall ze time, day, night,
Sunday, holiday."
"Well, you get paid for it," answered Luna, doggedly.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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