Samuel Gompers

A fascinating and eclectic anthology of writings from diverse times, places, and cultures - from ancient Rome and China to present-day America - spanning many genres, including short fiction, essays, poetry, letters, and history. And the authors all share one trait: their initials are "S.G." An anthology must have a theme. So what happens when the theme is essentially meaningless? The anthology becomes a game to play, and a puzzle to solve. A scavenger hunt and jigsaw puzzle, with the pieces scattered all over the world, and the final picture unknown until it is finished. An adventure of discovery for both the anthologist and the reader. These are all short works, or short excerpts from longer works, compiled and edited by Sean Gleeson, with a brief introduction to each piece. Here are some of the great reads you'll discover: The incredible Stephen Glass story "Hack Heaven" as seen in the movie Shattered Glass. The scandalous article that destroyed Glass's career, and marked the ascendancy of online journalism. The funny short story "Freckles M'Grath" by Susan Glaspell. "Why You Can't Have Saint Paul's Head," an actual letter written in 594 A.D. from Saint Gregory to Empress Constantina explaining, well, why she can't have Saint Paul's head. "No More unto My Thoughts Appear" by Cavalier poet Sidney Godolphin. "Penmanship Wisdom" by Sun Guoting, excerpted from his preface to his Treatise on Calligraphy. The famous essay "What Does Labor Want?" by Samuel Gompers, founder of the American Federation of Labor. "Deeds of Erik Shrewd-Spoken" by Saxo Grammaticus, entertaining tales of a crafty hero excerpted from Volume Five of his Deeds of the Danes. "Hotel and Tea-House Girls of Japan" by Sidney Gulick, excerpted from his book Working Women of Japan. The science fiction short story "Breakaway" by Stanley Gimble. "The Camel and the Thief" by Sarath Ghosh, a detective story excerpted from his book The Wonders of the Jungle. "Leo Learns His Lesson" by Sean Gleeson, in which a man wishes for a world without beer. This is a quality print edition, with great care taken to ensure a gorgeous and error-free book.

Striking for Life - labor's side of the labor question: the right of the workingman to a fair living is an unchanged, high-quality reprint of the original edition of 1894. Hansebooks is editor of the literature on different topic areas such as research and science, travel and expeditions, cooking and nutrition, medicine, and other genres. As a publisher we focus on the preservation of historical literature. Many works of historical writers and scientists are available today as antiques only. Hansebooks newly publishes these books and contributes to the preservation of literature which has become rare and historical knowledge for the future.

Samuel Gompers (1850–1924) devoted his life to improving the conditions of American workers through better wages, shorter workdays, and safer workplaces, achieved through common effort, democratic organization, and practical action. His objective was betterment, or, as he often said, "more." His moral vision was grounded in a commitment to social justice and a passion for service. A cigar maker by trade, he became the American Federation of Labor's first president in 1886 and, except for one year, remained its president until his death, guiding it through prosperity and recession, war and peacetime. By the time Gompers died, the AFL was a major force on the national scene and had claimed over four million members. Gompers was a tireless writer and impassioned speaker, and he left behind an immense archive of articles and editorials, addresses and testimony before a variety of audiences, and extensive correspondence with allies and adversaries alike. His correspondents included trade unionists and political leaders, reformers and radicals, captains of industry defending their positions, and workers asking for help or advice. The twelve volumes of The Samuel Gompers Papers, edited by Stuart B. Kaufman, Peter J. Albert, and Grace Palladino, for the first time make Gompers' wide-ranging and complex documentary legacy accessible to scholars, students, historians, and serious readers in the labor movement and among the public at large. This invaluable comprehensive index provides a key to the Gompers volumes. It not only allows quick reference to individual documents but permits scholars to see at a glance the contours and emphases in subject matter and locate the substantive annotations of key individuals and unions, strikes and lockouts, conferences and meetings, and legislation and key concepts in the history of the Gompers era.

Still working hard in his seventies, Samuel Gompers gave no thought to retiring. But he faced a world of challenges in his final years as president of the American Federation of Labor. Ascendant Republicans were hostile. Conflicts over tactics and strategies divided the labor movement. And continuing unemployment kept the work force in check. Despite all this, Gompers "kept the faith," helping revitalize the AFL's nonpartisan political efforts, launching a campaign to organize women workers, and strengthening the Pan-American Federation of Labor. At the same time, he challenged government agencies like the Railroad Labor Board and continued his efforts to abolish child labor and fight labor injunctions. Although historians often assess these years as the most conservative and least productive period of Gompers' life, this final volume of the Samuel Gompers Papers demonstrates that even in this tumultuous time he continued his forward-looking leadership of the labor movement and retained his keen sense of judgment.

Volume 11 of the Samuel Gompers Papers documents a pivotal moment in labor history, when the wartime promise of industrial democracy gave way to business as usual in the postwar world. Spanning a turbulent period of wildcat strikes, racial unrest, and political experimentation, this volume presents the efforts of Gompers and the AFL to defend collective bargaining, protect hard-won wartime gains, and advance labor's role as a partner in economic prosperity and social progress.This indispensable volume includes such episodes as the Seattle General Strike, the 1919 coal and steel strikes, the rise of the "American" open-shop plan, and John L. Lewis's unsuccessful campaign to replace Gompers as AFL president. It also covers Gompers's participation in the Versailles Peace Conference, his involvement with anti-immigration legislation, the founding of the AFL's Nonpartisan Political Campaign Committee, and the demands of black and women workers in the postwar era.

Volume 10 of the Samuel Gompers Papers focuses on the AFL's struggle to serve the nation and the labor movement during the critical period when American neutrality gave way to war. Beginning with Gompers' last minute effort to persuade German workers to avoid war with the United States, it follows the labor movement's internal debate over the meaning of American participation and the Executive Council's pragmatic--and in some cases reluctant--pledge of support, offered just weeks before war was declared. This volume also charts the evolution of a new relation between organized labor and the federal government: Acknowledging organized labor's vital role in the war effort, government now supported labor-adjustment boards that upheld the eight-hour day, equal pay for equal work, and labor's right to organize and bargain collectively with employers. As organized labor's main spokesman in Washington, Gompers played a central role in the development of wartime labor policies, with an eye to increasing production, reducing industrial conflict, and advancing labor's wage and hour standards.

Looking around him in 1906, Samuel Gompers saw a labor movement beset by opponents who, he said, "represent neither conscience nor humanity, but rather greed and avarice." This installment in the multivolume documentary history of the nation's premier labor leader spotlights a pivotal period in the AFL's development. "The editors have done their job well, succeeding admirably in their aim of presenting a multidimensional portrait of Gompers and his era." -- Bernard Elbaum, Journal of Economic History "A distinguished and invaluable collection." -- Bruce Laurie, Industrial and Labor Relations Review Supported by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission and the University of Maryland at College Park

The saga of the nation's premier labor leader continues as this multi-volume documentary history moves, with Volume 6, into the early years of the twentieth century. Fully annotated and thoroughly indexed, The American Federation of Labor and the Rise of Progressivism, 1902-1906 provides the historical context often missing in other works about that era. From early reviews: "This collection belongs on the shelf of anyone teaching American labor history, but it also should prove useful to scholars with related interests." -- James Grossman, Illinois Historical Review

The years 1898-1902 were prosperous for the U.S., marked by economic growth and industrial expansion, a rising material standard of living, and low unemployment. The period was one of unprecedented growth for the American Federation of Labor (AFL), and it found Samuel Gompers continuing to advocate the organization of all workers and focusing his efforts on establishment of local and national trade unions, central labor bodies, and state federations, and on the affiliation of these organizations with the AFL. From reviews of earlier volumes "This collection belongs on the shelf of anyone teaching American labor history, but it also should prove useful to scholars with related interests." -- James Grossman, Illinois Historical Journal "Distinguished and invaluable. . . . Labor historians would be well advised to clear shelf space for it." -- Bruce Laurie, Industrial and Labor Relations Review

"This collection belongs on the shelf of anyone teaching American labor history, but it also should prove useful to scholars with related interests." -- Illinois Historical Journal

"This collection belongs on the shelf of anyone teaching American labor history, but it also should prove useful to scholars with related interests." -- Illinois Historical Journal

"This collection belongs on the shelf of anyone teaching American labor history, but it also should prove useful to scholars with related interests." -- Illinois Historical Journal