The Cedarville Herald, Volume 70, Numbers 27-52

Page Four CompleteText (Continued from Page One) It is especially fitting that La­ bor Day he a day o f annual cele­ bration here in Cedarville, for it was this community which gave to the world the greatest states­ man—James H. Kyle, United States Senator from South Da­ kota—who drafted and sponsored the legislation which has made this day a national holiday, in honor o f those who labor and of their great accomplishments.; James H. Kyle was born here in this beautiful village of Cedat- vilie, Ohio, on the 24th day of February, 1854. He died on July 1st, 1901. Into his forty-seven years of life he crowded many activities. His entire mature life was dedicated to serving his fel­ low men. Ten years of this time were spent in the United States Senate, as the Senator from South Dak/jta, where he served ably and well. He was recognized as one of the real leaders in the Ameri­ can Congress of his day. Senator Kyle died during his second term as United States Senator, when in the very prime o f life. Who can tell what might have been in store fo r him, in the way o f poli­ tical preferment, had he not been called to his Fathers at such an early age. James II. Kyle was o f Scotch- Irish ancestry. His great grand­ father and six o f his uncles were soldiers in the Revolution. His own father served in the Civil War. ‘While not a member of Presi- staunchly supported the McKinley dent McKinley's P a r t y , he Administration and its war pol­ icy during the Spanish-American War. Spending his early boyhood in Cedarville, Senator Kyle, at the age of eleven years, moved with his father and family to Cham­ paign, Illinois, where he graduated from the Urbana High School and for a while attended the Uni­ versity of Illinois. In order to obtain tbe special instruction be desired he left Illinois and return­ ed to Ohio to attend Oberlin ^Col­ lege, from where he graduated in 1878, after paying his own way through that institution, by working on farms, teaching coun­ try school and doing almost any and all of the odd jobs which were available. While at Oberlin College young Kyle reached the conclusion that he should take up the ministry as his life’s work, and so from Oberlin he went to Western Theological Seminary at Allcghanny, Pennsylvania, where he studied religion. He graduated in 1882 with a degree in Theology. The year before he graduated and was ordained as ihinister, he se­ lected for his bride an Ohio girl —Anna Isabelle Dugot, o f Cin­ cinnati—whom he married in 1881. His first ministerial assign­ ment was at Mt. Pleasant, Utah. There he found the climate was injurious to his wife’ s health, and he accepted the Pastorate of the Congregational Church at Ipswich, South Dakota, where he served four years. From Ipswich he was called to ministerial ser­ vice at Aberdeen, South Dakota, and it was while there that he attracted the attention of politi­ cal leaders by becoming a substi­ tute speaker at a Fourth o f July celebration. In those days there was considerable social unrest throughout the nation, especially in the Midwest. In .a speech on the issues o f the day, Kyle at­ tracted attention o f the indepen­ dent voters* o f all South Dakota, which had just become a State. The discontended o f both poli­ tical parties formed an indepen­ dent party, and a few days after Kyle’s Fourth of July address at Aberdeen he was offered the nomination for State Senator, which he reluctantly accepted. To his surprise the young Congrega­ tional preacher, was elected to the South Dakota State Senate at the following election, in Nov­ ember of 1890, by a majority of just fifty votes. The State Senate was closely divided on partisan issues. Usual­ ly the votes would stand twenty- two to twenty-one, with Kyle in the minority group. He had no political experience or ambitions, but somehow or other the tall, good looking, sincere, young min­ ister soon became recognized as a real leader in the South Dakota legislature where he took an especial interest in legislation dealing with education, charitable and penal institutions, public lands and immigration matters. So it was not to be expected that, when a dead-lock came in the legislature over the election o f a United States Senator from South Dakota, after battling for twenty- seven legislative 'days, Kyle be­ gan to emerge on the thirty-sev- netli ballot as a real contender. His election to the Senate follow­ ed on the forty-sixth ballot. A great ovation was given him. Soon after the last ballot was completed Kyle’s nature and character were revealed when he said to his colleagues in a few simple words—“ I thank the As­ sembly from the bottom o f my heart for the honop which has been conferred upon me. I declare to you that I will represent neith­ e r Republicans, Democrats nor Independents in the Senate o f the United States, but I will do my best to represent all the people o f South Dakota.” When Kyle entered the Senate o f the United-States he announced himself as an Independent, but aligned himself on most issues with the Democrats o f that body. He soon became Chairman o f the Senate Committeet on Education and Labor, in which capacity he served with great distinction and honor. Always a man o f high per­ sonal and political character, James II. Kyle worked and fought for the rights of the individual, and for the betterment o f man­ kind while in the Senate o f the United States, just as he had previously done in the ministry and in the State Senate of South Dakota. To understand Senator Kyle’s life and his service in the Senate, one must remember that his greatest national activity took place at the very time the greed o f big business and great wealth was at its fullest. It was during the period when another great public servant—Senator Sherman o f Ohio—-was putting through Congress the Sherman Anti-Trust Act to prevent business abuses. Senator Kyle was reelected to the Senate by the people o f South Dakota, but before his second term had ended he passed away while attending to his official duties. ft A n o t h e r Southern Ohioian, Senator^Joseph Benson Foraker, born and reared not more than fifty miles from Cedarville—a staunch and stalwart Republican —paid the Senate’s official tri­ bute to Senator Kyle at the mem­ orial service held in the Capital at Washington. It was in the soul and mind of Senator James H. Kyle, native son of Cedarville, that Labor Day was conceived. He guided the legislation through C o n g r e s s which made this a national legal holiday. His memory should al­ ways be honored, not only by the people of Cedarville, but by every working man in the nation. I f I could say one thing that would reach the ears o f every worker in this country today, and especially the ears of the labor leaders of this nation, I would say—“Do not forget that it was a United States Senator from a small city in South Dakota—a typically agricultural State—w gave those who work and toil of­ ficial recognition, and this nation­ al holiday—Labor Day.” I would say to them—“Do not forget that it was a country boy bom in the little village o f Cedarville, Ohio, who fought your battles back in Hie days when it took strong character and real courage to speak out againsi the vested in­ terests in behalf of the worker.” Back in the time when Senator Kyle was serving in, the Congress o f the United States Big Business was in the saddle. Big Business rode hard, and gave hat little thought to xhe rights o f the workers or to the welfare o f the general public. As a result sin­ cere and strong legislators o f that day found it necessary to sponsor and support, legislation, to curb the power o f Big Busi­ ness. The fight was not easily won, but in ‘time the pendulum of public opinion swung so fa r that B ig Business was no longer a threat or a danger. As the years passed more and more legislation was enacted to protect the workers o f the nation, and labor organizations were given additional rights, more privileges and greater power. Organized Labor grew with such great rapidity that it finally be­ came the strongest single force in our American, life. The great power which came to organized labor biought with it many a- buses, as could have been ex­ pected, fo r not all men are qual­ ified to possess or properly wield great power. Some o f the leaders o f organ­ ized labor have in, recent years become arrogant and selfish. Ib ey have failed to properly use the legal rights and privileges given to them and their organi­ zations for* the benefit o f the workers they represent. Instead, in some instances at least, they have misused the power they have possessed to the great de­ triment o f the very workers they were supposed to serve. Too often too many o f them have also dis­ regarded the rights o f the general public. Strikes and work stop­ pages became so frequent in the last few years that an outraged American public d e m a n d e d changes and safeguards be writ­ ten into the laws governing La­ bor-Management relations. Many workers, both organized and un­ organized, joined in this demand fo r remedical legislation. The law o f the pendulum is one o f the truest laws o f science. In labor relations, back in the nineties and the early nineteen hundreds, the pendulum had swung so far to the side o f Big Business and the employers that the rights o f both the workers and of the general public were forgotten or disregarded. Then when the pendulum swung back, perhaps it swung too far. In the effort to protect the worker and the public from 'Big Business and heartless employers, so much power and advantage were given to organized labor that it finally became necessary to enact new legislation to give proper pro­ tection to both the workers and the general public from some of the leaders of labor. The 80tji Congress, in its ses­ sion whieh closed a little over a month ajro, enacted a new com­ prehensive Labor Relations Act. It was designed fo r the protection o f the individual worker, and fo r the benefit of the general public, I believe the new law is a good law. Perhaps it is not perfect, hut it is certainly entitled to a fair trial. If it develops it needs Build a HOME Get ready to build that home you have dreamed about by buying bonds regularly, putting them away to meet the necessary down payment when changes in restrictions, priorities, etc., allow private home build­ ing in this area. Buy a FARM We have money to loan on farms at attractive interest rates with easy repayments. I f you own a farm and desire financing or refinancing we will' be glad to consider your needs. BUY Y O U R S E L F A H O M E Finance your home, buying through our easy pay­ ments just like rent with monthly reducing plan. BUT BONDS HERE HOME FEDERAL Savings & Loan Assn. OF XENIA, OHIO 4-6 N. Detroit St. All Accounts Insured Up to $5,000 Friday, September 5, 1947. The Cedarville, O. Herald any changes or amendments, then we should have . them. However, lam . certain thisgebcnal approach to our present day5Labor relations problems is the priiper one. The new law in-no way inter­ feres with the rights of workers to orgampe, to'-bargain collec­ tively, or to strike fo r any and all legitimate’ proposes. It does give, however, .-.tihe individual worker—whether ,‘he- belongs to a labor union or not—protection from both his employer and his union officials. I f the worker be­ longs to a labor union it guarani tees him certain, rights, such as the right to select his own union officer^, at regular intervals, in fairly conducted elections; the right to decide, by majority vote o f his uqion, what: dues or fees he shall pay; the right to receive a full and detailed report of all o f the financial activities of the union to which he belongs; the right to decide, by majority vote o f the membership o f his union, as to whether or not he will go out on strike. It gives the indi- viual worker the full protection o f his Government against both his employer and his union lead­ ers, and establishes a National Labor Relations Board- to guard his interests and sets up a concil­ iation service which shall have the prime responsibility of re­ ducing work stoppages thru pre­ venting differences, or working out settlements, between Labor and Management. There has been much misinfor­ mation put out about this new labor legislation. It has been cal­ led “ slave labor law” and “ a legal monstrosity.” Neither statement is true. Collective bargaining has continued to work just as fairly and efficiently, or even more so, under the new law as under the old one, No unfair advantage has been given to any one under the provisions of the new Labor Re­ lations Act. Certainly John L. % I b and his mine unions proved this'/ when, shortly after the law was enacted, the coal miners and the mine operators negotiated one of the mojt favorable con­ tracts ever given any group of workers in the history of the la­ bor movement. But when I want to emphasize today is that it is the duty of every American to abide by the law. Frankly I do not like some . o f the talk I hear from a few men in high places in the labor movement. I do not like their advice that the law should he dis­ regarded, circumvented or evad­ ed. I do not believe the average Amex-ican worker will go along with such ideas. Here in America we are law-abiding citizens. We believe in livinj; according to the law of tbe land. I f some law does .not please or satisfy us, we go out, and by every decent and legitimate method, try to amend or repeal it, but we obey it while it is still on the statute books. So, on this Labor Day, let me -say to the workers o f the nation that as good American citizens it is your duty and your responsi­ bility to accept the new Labor Relations Act as one of our Fed­ eral laws which is to be lived up to the same as any other law. While it is my opinion that the individual worker. will find the provisions of this new law .very much to his benefit, if it should develop there is any pro­ vision which is unfair to the worker, the public, the employer, or to labor leaders, for that mat­ ter, I am certain'the Congress of the United States will amend the the law in an effort to make it as perfect an instrument to bring about fair labor relations prac­ tices as we all want it to be, I can appreciate, of course, that some o f our labor leaders do riot like to have any o f the unusual personal powers they have possessed and exercised under the old law taken away from them. -Yet I do want to point out that there is not a single labor practice now requir­ ed under the new law that has not already been carried on for years by many of the more pro­ gressive labor organizations of the nation. This new law simply gives to all Americans workers the rights and protection which many of the more liberal and pro­ gressive union leaders and-labor organizations have already been granting their union members. Therefore, the new law will not in any way interfere with +he usual operations and procedures of many labor organizations. It will interfere only with those union leaders and labor organi­ zations which have ^ot been giv­ ing proper rights, privileges and protection to tbe workers under their jurisdiction. Certainly if there is one thing we do need in this old country of ours right now it is the proper kind of Labor-Management rela­ tions. We need the combined ef­ fort of both Labor and Manage­ ment if we are to efficiently pro­ duce the eqjnmoditk | we must have to meet our own require­ ments, and to serve tbe needs of a war devastated workk America has long lead the world in efficient mass production of goods. We must invent new tools and discover new methods to produce even more, for the moi’e cheaply we can produce the good things of life, the more the people can buy, and the higher their plane of living becomes. Labor must never forget-the interests of the consuming public —for it is the workers and their families who make up the great­ est portion of that consuming public. This old world o f ours is not in good shape. No one knows just what the future holds fo r any o f us. The only certain thing o f to­ day seems to be the uncertainty of tomorrow. However, there are some things we do know. For in­ stance we do kno^ £hat war is destructive. Millions o f human lives were sacrificed in the great wars which were concluded two years ago. Wealth and property valued at hundreds o f billions— yes, perhaps even thousands of billions—of dollars were de­ stroyed in the holocanst o f war. We can not bring the dead back to l:fe. The halt and the blind can not be made to walk or see again. But the material destruc­ tion of war can eventually be pi used. Cities and nations can be rebuilded. New wealth can be created to take the place o f that which has been destroyed. The hungry can he fed and the naked clothed. To do all this will take the toil, the sweat, the faith and the courage of hundreds o f mil­ lions o f human beings. Certainly if we are to make our own future reasonably secure, both in an eco­ nomic and military way, then we must keep America sound and strong. We can do that only by working together fo r the common good. These days o f crisis call for national unity. Our very fu­ ture existence depends upon our learning to live and to work to­ gether, and with the rest o f the world. Since my boyhood days I can see great improvement in our American life. Few, i f any, o f ns would be willing to return to that plane o f living whieh pertained fifty years ago, when Senator Kyle was serving in the Senate of the United States. Since his day we, here in America, have made great progress toward bet­ ter living, due to the productivity and efficiency o f Labor and the ingenuity and ability o f Manage­ ment. Because o f our form o f free enterprise and representa­ tive Government, w{j in America are today enjoying more o f the good things o f life than any other people in all human history. All o f us—Labor, Management and Capital—have prospered thru out the years, while most o f the hther peoples of the world live under much more difficult circum­ stances. In many lands hunger, pesti­ lence and oppression reign today, as human beings pick and burrow in the rubble and ruins which were once their homes. We vay think war troubles here in Amer­ ica are many, hut our difficulties are as nothing in compaiisori with theirs. So, on this Labor Day, let us he thankful to the good God above fo r having spared our country tbe devastation which has been visit­ ed upon other lands, and saved our families from the suffering others have endured. Let us al\ whether we he farmer, factors worker, business man or capital­ ist, he grateful that we live in be­ loved America, where each and every one o f us enjoys personal liberty and freedom; the right to speak as we please; to worship as we please; to rea and to write as we please; to read and to write feyences, of course", but after all they are but minor differences. Let us settle them in the true A - merican way—through a full and free discussion in our public for­ ums and legislative halls, then let us go forth united, to meet our destiny as the greatest notion on the face of the earth—the land of personal-liberty and human free­ dom—an everlasting inspiratiol to all mankind. into it. These safety features have been given gruelling tests, they have been 't * W j i .1 * * » • • . » yfr k XT* maintenance and handling are up, to you. Safe driving depends upon the efficient operation of these factors.! Watch your steering gear for excessive play—keep your brakes in trim, inspect tires forjveaknesses that may result in blowouts. Be sure all lights * are working, “one-eyed” cars are dangerous. Check your mirror for clear rear-vision. Be sure your, homeworks— but don’t abuse its use.. Do your windshield wipers wipe?? Remember, no matter how good the safety features of your car—they are only as good as your ability to control them. I f you are overtired from driving strain—stop, rest, drink a cup of coffee., I f you are mentally or nervously upset, let someone else drive.. If you’ve been drinking, stay off the road. Keep your'ear—and yourself—always in condition for safe motoring,'