Address upon illegitimacy to the working men of Scotland / by John M. Strachan.

  • Strachan, John M.
Date:
[between 1870 and 1879?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Address upon illegitimacy to the working men of Scotland / by John M. Strachan. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    1/8
    ADDRESS UPON ILLEGITIMACY TO THE WORKING MEN OF SCOTLAND, BY JOHN M. STRACHAN, M.D. * DOLLAR. Ephes. y. 11.—“Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, hut rather reprove them.” Ephes. y. 5.—“No unclean person . . . hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” 1 Thess. iv. 7, 8.—“God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. He therefore that despiseth. despiseth not man hut God.” Allow me to begin this Address by saying a few words regarding myself, in explanation of my motives and objects. For thirty years I have been engaged in the practice of my profession, during which I have been neces¬ sarily brought into contact with all classes. I have had among my patients a few of the gentry, a considerable number of the middle or what may be called the genteel class, and a great many of the working community. I have thus acquired an intimate knowledge of the good qualities, as well as of the faults, of the different grades of society—more intimate, perhaps, and more extensive than could have been obtained by any but a medical man. In consequence of this knowledge of the good as well as the bad qualities of all classes, I have for many years been getting a stronger and stronger conviction of the absurdity of the different estimation in which various employments are held, some being looked up to as superior, while others are looked down upon. It is surprising how equally diffused are the highest and best qualities of man. Beligion, intellect, talent, belong to no particular class, although, perhaps, the wealthy may have better oppor¬ tunities of cultivating them; but even this is not necessarily so. I have more especially felt growing up in me a strong regard for what is called the working class, and a conviction of its importance to the com¬ munity—along with this a deep sense of the dignity of labour. I find it impossible to conceive of any reason why the labour of the hands should be less respected than that of the brain. It is true that, in this country, it is at present less highly paid, but this is merely accidental. In Australia, for instance, manual labour is more highly paid than brain work, and there the working man is the gentleman, looking down on those who can work only with their heads. But even in this country, I question if it be alto¬ gether true that labour with the hands is less highly remunerated than what are called genteel employments. Many shopmen, clerks, schoolmasters, and many belonging to the professions, would be very glad if they could steadily command the wages of skilled workmen. Certain it is that, as brain workers are becoming more abundant, their remuneration and the Price One Half-Penny,'] [Or, 3s. §d. per Hundred