THE SOCIALIST PRESS,
G. H. HENRY, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER.
Fubhstied at 20 Third Ave. POSTOFFICE BOX 630
Subscription Rates,
One year $5.00 Six months $3.00 I hreo months, $2.00, One month
$1.00.
Saturday. Mar. 27.
The Socialist Party will have a candidate in the
field for the Council and also one for School Director.
N. E. King, the candidate for the Council has been
a resident of this city for a number of years. Before co.
ming to Alaska and since his residence in this counntry he
has been a close student of the manner in which the mun
icipal affairs of Butte, Mont., and other cities where the
Socialists are in control and without doubt would make
good as one of the best council men Fairbanks ever had.
Mr. M. Tiiipale, the candidate for School Director
has lived in Fairbanks for eight years, is a man who has
a family, and for some years has conducted a jewelry bus
hies in this city. Ho is well qualified to fill the position of
school director if elected.
It is worthy of note that in any city where the So
cialists have gained control of municipal affairs with a
clear majority, the people of that city have never permit
ted them to lose that majority.
In the issue of the Sunday Times of March 21st ap
peared the following item of news that will in all probabi
lity come as a surprise to many of the miners of Alaska,
and ardent supporters of Delegate Wickersham who have
eon living and laboring under the delusion that their
ages were amply secured under the socalled Wickersham
’ vbor lien law.
“Judge Tucker of Nome1, has rendered a decision involving
■' Iie territorial lien law that is of interest to both emp overs and
employees. The ease is that of Nordstrom et al vs, Silvertson et
, the case being injunction proceedings and founded upon the
lien law of Judge Wickersham. Gold dus was seized by the mar
-,ul to satisfy debts of others than the laborers, incurred by the
•:,] verts on and Johnson dredge; the plaintiffs had alien against the
roperty under the Wicker?him act and sought an injunction a
yainst the marshal disposing of the gold. The court dissolved the
injunction, and practically decided that under this lien law the
orkers have no claim against the gold in the boxes. lie decided
nat the lien is restricted to gold bearing gravel in the form of a
imp.’’
After reading the above decision, will the loyal la
bor supporters of Mr. Wickersham in Alaska still persist
in their contention that “Our Jim” is the only person in
ti e territory qualified to represent them in Congress and
draft laws ior their protection by reason of his brilliant le
gal ability, or was P. T. Barnum really right when he de
clared that. “the American people dearly love to be hum
! eigged.” Six years ago while making his first campaign
•the delogateship of Alaska he declared on the public
platform in the auditorium at Fairbanks in his speech,
that there was no valid reason why an adequate labor lien
w, that would fully protect wage earners in the collection
f their wages cculd not le passed in Congress, and
pledged himself if elected to con
press, that he would never re-'
turn to the territory if he failed:
to secure the passage of such :
law. Has he redeemed his pledge'
The duplicity of this modern so
lon is from day to day becomini
more apparent. Mr. Wickersham
cannot consistently plead igno
ranee of the existing conditions
of laboring men, and the enor
mous amount of unpaid laboi
here, as an excuse for the abor
tive measure he has saddled on
the Alaskan workingmen, uridei
the name of a labor lien law.
From his experience as a fede
ral judge on the bench in Alas
ka, he was well aware of the in
security of wages under the ex
isting law-s in the territory; a:
many cases of unpaid labor wen
brought into his court. But when
elecied to congress and vestcc
with full power to secure reme
dial legislation through the enacl
ment of a proper lien law,he has
handed the workers the spurious
gold brick.
It will be seen by a careful
reading of the Wickersham lien
law, that Judge Tucker’s deci
sion in the Nome case is full}
borne out by the law itself. The
Wickersham lien law cannot b<
be construed to mean an\
*f§
thing else. It gives the laborer z
den on the dump only, anc
where there is no dump the Wick
ersham lien law has no effect.
To hold that it is applicable to
gold taken out of the ground b\
a dredge and deposited in sluice
boxes, or dirt hoisted out of i
mine into a dump box would bt
reading something out of the law
that it does not contain. It is not
the f unc ion of the judge to make
the law. I-Iis duty is to interpret
and enforce the law as it. reads.
Therefore no blame can rightful
ly be attached to Judge Tuckei
for his decision as it is evident
that it was in strict accordance
with the Wickersham lien law.
Hereafter the only safe and
sane way for a miner to do in 01
der to insure the full collection
of his wages when the gravel
is not put into a dump, is to fol
low the example of the landlords!
in town who rent houses where
they collect their rents a montl
in advance. Let the miner dc.
mand his wages before he per
forms the labor.
There is nothing that has been
handed ditto the workingn e ,
of Xanana Valley in such large
quantities and with such u n
grace as rank bunco and worth
less timed)ecus and both are 11
gal. Creek Contributor.
__
What the National and
Internationa! Stand For
1, For a single world power to be ad
ninisteredby an interns,ional congress
vith authority to investigate and to
iettle the questions involved in the pro
ent war, to disband all armies, and to
lismantle all forts and warships, to be
r permanent worid government to take
iver the ownership of the high seas, to
ldminister all protectorates, to decide
ill questions of .international controver
ly covering international trade and inter
lutional credit, and to maintain a suffi
:iont army and navy to police the seas
md to enforce its decisions and that
he United States should take the initia
ive in establishing such a w orld poweri
2, F_r the national ownership and ad
ministration of all industrial and com
■ ercial monopolies of every sort.
3, State,For a land system which will
jring into the most productive use all
latural ics urces and guarantee to all
occupiers of the land all values created
iy them and appropriate for public pur
loses ail values collectively created by
, • pe ople.
2, For state ownership and adminis
.ration of markets, collections trans
portatisn and delivery of goods direct
from producers to consumers without
the intervention of any private agency;
for the reclamation of arid and swan-i*
Iand3, for State building, improvement
and manufacturing enterprises to be
carried on only when there are mors
inen than jobs, and to be closed always
when there are more jobs than men.
3, For State medical aid, sanitation,
hospital care, industrial and education
al employment for the defective and
dependent, free education with provi
sions for seif supporting employment
and industrial training in all grades of
school work inejudi ;g university courses
pensions for the aged, deformed and
permanently disabled.
4, For municipal ownership ar.d admin
istration of the water, light, heat and
power, gas, markets, playgrounds, ci
vic centers and municipal dwelling
houses.
5, For establishing and administering
these things on an industrial, self gov
erning, democratic Lash to the end that
regular employment may lo provided
for all. Education and all else on a La
sts of equal opportunity.
Are You One Of The
Socialists who Says
Yos I am a socialist—Seen one for many years-always vo ,
the ticket—but 1 do not belong to the organization.” If you ar»
i that class, you should get out of it The only Socialists that
jount are the ones that pay their
little 25 cent dues per month, and
aid in the work of the party organi
sation. These are the fellows tnat
ire makiDg the Socialist I arly the
3reat force for the common good in
\merica. The capitalist class won’t
finance our party and wo don i
want them to. Its the twenty-five
cents per month from its thousand \
of real Socialist* that keep tin
wheels of the organization goi ig,
Come on in and find out how we
run things. You will have just as
much to say as another. We have
made it easy for you to take the
first step—below is a coupon which
you should
Out Out, Tear Off And Mail Today
To N. R. King, Fairbanks, or L. Westenvik,
Cleary City.
I am convir ced that I should be amember of the organis .tion you re
resent. Pleasa sen! some one to take my application,
A uli P-'s
1 ,»l’ !m. at h<"T>p