第 14 节
作者:爱之冰点      更新:2021-02-19 17:04      字数:9320
  ENGLISH   RACE。〃   It   would   seem   that   England;   fronted   by   the   hostile
  Continental   Union   and   flanked   by  the   great American   scab;   has   nothing
  left   but   to   join   with   the   scab   and   play   the   historic   labor   role   of   armed
  Pinkerton。 Granting the words of Cecil Rhodes; the United States would
  be enabled to scab without let or hindrance on Europe; while England; as
  professional strike…breaker and policeman; destroyed the unions and kept
  order。
  All this may appear fantastic and erroneous; but there is in it a soul of
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  truth    vastly   more    significant    than   it  may    seem。    Civilization     may    be
  expressed      today   in   terms   of  trade…unionism。       Individual    struggles    have
  largely   passed   away;   but   group…struggles   increase   prodigiously。 And   the
  things for which the groups struggle are the same as of old。 Shorn of all
  subtleties   and   complexities;   the   chief   struggle   of   men;   and   of   groups   of
  men; is for food and shelter。 And; as of old they struggled with tooth and
  nail; so today they struggle with teeth and nails elongated into armies and
  navies; machines; and economic advantages。
  Under the definition that a scab is ONE WHO GIVES MORE VALUE
  FOR THE SAME PRICE THAN ANOTHER; it would seem that society
  can   be   generally   divided   into   the   two   classes   of   the   scabs   and   the   non…
  scabs。 But on closer investigation; however; it will be seen that the non…
  scab   is   a   vanishing   quantity。   In   the   social   jungle;   everybody   is   preying
  upon everybody else。 As in the case of Mr。 Rockefeller; he who was a scab
  yesterday is a non…scab today; and tomorrow may be a scab again。
  The   woman   stenographer   or   book…keeper   who   receives   forty   dollars
  per   month   where   a   man   was   receiving   seventy…five   is   a   scab。   So   is   the
  woman who does a man's work at a weaving…machine; and the child who
  goes into the mill or factory。 And the father; who is scabbed out of work
  by the wives and children of other men; sends his own wife and children
  to scab in order to save himself。
  When a publisher offers an author better royalties than other publishers
  have   been   paying   him;   he   is   scabbing      on   those   other   publishers。   The
  reporter on a newspaper; who feels he should be receiving a larger salary
  for his work; says so; and is shown the door; is replaced by a reporter who
  is a scab; whereupon; when the belly…need presses; the displaced reporter
  goes   to   another   paper   and   scabs   himself。   The   minister   who   hardens   his
  heart to a call; and waits for a certain congregation to offer him say 500 a
  year    more;    often    finds   himself    scabbed     upon     by   another    and   more
  impecunious   minister;   and   the   next   time   it   is   HIS   turn   to   scab   while   a
  brother minister is hardening his heart to a call。 The scab is everywhere。
  The professional strike…breakers; who as a class receive large wages; will
  scab    on   one    another;   while    scab   unions    are   even    formed    to   prevent
  scabbing upon scabs。
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  There are non…scabs; but they are usually born so; and are protected by
  the whole might of society in the possession of their food and shelter。 King
  Edward is such a type; as are all individuals who receive hereditary food…
  and…shelter privileges;such as the present Duke of Bedford; for instance;
  who   yearly   receives   75;000   from   the   good   people   of   London   because
  some former king gave some former ancestor of his the market privileges
  of Covent Garden。 The irresponsible rich are likewise non…scabs;and by
  them   is   meant   that   coupon…clipping   class   which   hires   its   managers   and
  brains to invest the money usually left it by its ancestors。
  Outside   these   lucky   creatures;   all   the   rest;   at   one   time   or   another   in
  their lives; are scabs; at one time or another are engaged in giving more for
  a certain   price than   any one   else。 The   meek professor   in some   endowed
  institution; by his meek suppression of his convictions; is giving more for
  his salary than gave the other and more outspoken professor whose chair
  he occupies。 And when a political party dangles a full dinner…pail in the
  eyes of the toiling masses; it is offering more for a vote than the dubious
  dollar of the opposing party。 Even a money…lender is not above taking a
  slightly lower rate of interest and saying nothing about it。
  Such   is   the   tangle   of   conflicting   interests   in   a   tooth…and…nail   society
  that   people   cannot   avoid   being   scabs;   are   often   made   so   against   their
  desires;   and   are   often   unconsciously   made   so。  When   several   trades   in   a
  certain     locality   demand       and   receive     an   advance     in   wages;    they    are
  unwittingly making scabs of their fellow…laborers in that district who have
  received   no   advance   in   wages。   In   San   Francisco   the   barbers;   laundry…
  workers;   and   milk…wagon          drivers   received   such      an   advance   in   wages。
  Their employers promptly added the amount of this advance to the selling
  price of their wares。 The price of shaves; of washing; and of milk went up。
  This   reduced   the   purchasing   power   of   the   unorganized   laborers;   and;   in
  point of fact; reduced their wages and made them greater scabs。
  Because the British laborer is disinclined to scab;that is; because he
  restricts his output in order to give less for the wage he receives;it is to a
  certain   extent   made   possible   for   the American   capitalist;   who   receives   a
  less   restricted   output   from   his   laborers;   to   play   the   scab   on   the   English
  capitalist。 As a result of this; (of course combined with other causes); the
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  American capitalist and the American laborer are striking at the food and
  shelter of the English capitalist and laborer。
  The English laborer is starving today because; among other things; he
  is not a scab。 He practises the policy of 〃ca' canny;〃 which may be defined
  as 〃go easy。〃 In order to get most for least; in many trades he performs but
  from one…fourth to one…sixth of the labor he is well able to perform。 An
  instance   of   this   is   found   in   the   building   of   the   Westinghouse   Electric
  Works at Manchester。 The British limit per man was 400 bricks per day。
  The   Westinghouse   Company   imported   a   〃driving〃   American   contractor;
  aided     by   half   a  dozen     〃driving〃     American      foremen;      and   the   British
  bricklayer   swiftly   attained       an   average   of   1800     bricks   per   day;   with   a
  maximum of 2500 bricks for the plainest work。
  But;   the   British    laborer's   policy   of   〃ca'   canny;〃   which      is   the  very
  honorable one of giving least for most; and which is likewise the policy of
  the    English     capitalist;   is   nevertheless      frowned     upon     by   the   English
  capitalist;   whose   business   existence   is   threatened   by  the   great American
  scab。   From   the   rise   of   the   factory   system;   the   English   capitalist   gladly
  embraced the opportunity; wherever he found it; of giving least for most。
  He did it all over the world whenever he enjoyed a market monopoly; and
  he did it at home with the laborers employed in his mills; destroying them
  like flies till prevented; within limits; by the passage of the Factory Acts。
  Some of the proudest fortunes of England today may trace their origin to
  the giving of least for most to the miserable slaves of the factory towns。
  But   at   the   present    time   the   English   capitalist   is   outraged     because     his
  laborers are employing against him precisely the same policy he employed
  against   them;   and   which   he   would   employ  again   did   the   chance   present
  itself。
  Yet 〃ca' canny〃 is a disastrous thing to the British laborer。 It has driven
  ship…building from  England   to   Scotland; bottle…making   from  Scotland   to
  Belgium;       flint…glass…making       from     England     to   Germany;      and    today    is
  steadily driving industry after industry to other countries。 A correspondent
  from   Northampton   wrote   not   long   ago:   〃Factories   are   working   half   and
  third   time。  。   。  。