The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1869-05-29


pushing it through the Senate. The bill is
in these words;
An Act 70 Aathories Mechanics, sourneymen,
and La1oTers, to fern Societies for their
Mutual Hid, BeaeFft and Protection.
storoN lst Il shall be lawful for any and
al classes Of mechanics, jeurneymen, trades
men, and laborers, TO form societies and asso-
Citations for their mutual aid, benefit, aud pro
lection, and peacesbly to meet, discuss, and es-
tabllsh all necessary rules and regulations to
carry out the same.
SEC. I'd The provisions Of snbdiYison 6, Of
section s Of chapter l. title 6. part 4, of the re-
yised statutes, shall net apply TO the members
Of any society or association formed in pursuance
0. Ibis act.
SK,. Sd. This act shall take effect lmmedia-
tev
The subdivision to which section 2 has
reference, changes a misdemeanor upon any
"two or more persons vio conspire to COM
nit any act injurious 70 the public health,
public morals, or to trade and commerce"
During the discussion which follows the in
PRODUCTION Of the bill, in the House, a Mr..
Mccullough, Of Clear6eld, moved to exempt
the counties Of CleArfield, Forrest, and Elk,
from the Opere''on Of the bill, stating in
support Of his motion that 40 men in those
counties were either in prison or on bail, for
an alleged violation Of the act deferred to in
its ID section. Mr.. Foy, fearing lest oppo-
sition to the amendment should endanger
the p..ssage Of his bill in any shape, allowed
the motion 10 prevail.
We have no knowledge Of this man Nc
Cullough, nor Of the case Of the 40 men re-
ferred to by him, but We can see no reason
why the legalizing act should hot have been
made universal in its spYl alton. If, Under
The operations =: the bill, their release
would have been effected, the crime Of which
they stand accused, can certainly not be Of
nature to merit punishment, and no ex-
ception, therefore, should have been made
ia their case The amendment was clearly
intended to cover an unjust persecution Of
The men, and probably for the mere exercise
Of a right Inherited in every freeman, the
right 70 dispose Of bis labor at such price,
and under such conditions as be and his fell
low craftsmen are convinced, will not iDure
to their detriment. This bill is not designed
to, nor will it, give immunity Of laws pre-
seribed for the punishment Of individual
crimes, to members Of Trades or Labor
Unions. 1t was asked for merely to protect
organizations of labor in the exercise of a
clearly defined, primary right, Our friends
in the counties named, should look to this
man Mccullough, and see that be be not al
lowed to duplicate the manifest misrepre
sentaiion Of the interest and wishes Of ais
constituents. Too many such men outrage
decency and justice in the various State leg
isatures, ana the sooner they are consigned
to their public graves, the better will it be
for the masses
Our error committed in prema- nrRlly an
nouncing the failure OF the bill, il aseriba
BE 70 the fact that it passed the Senate by
iLs number, and did not receive the govern
or's signature until a week subsequent to the
adjournment. 1t is intimated as probable
that the bill would not have received the
senatorial sanction, had its tenor been gen
orally understood in that body. In the low
er house it evoked much Of that species Of
opposition, assisted BY what is known a.
buttonhohng, res)rted to by many on the
members who were interested IN its defeat,
but who feared to place themselves upon
record as its opponents. It vas only BY de-
termned perseverance, that Mr.. Foy IF ct
ed its passage for which acs that gentleman
merits, and will 70 doubt receive The aPpro-
baton Of the rlasses. Until the National
Labor Union acquires sufficient strength TO
guarantee the presentation Of independent
candidates for official trusts, We would
recommend 10 al advocates Of reform the
support OF such men as Mr.. FOy If not
wholly, they partially identify themselves
with the interests Of labor, and in doing so
they present table Of merit not possessed
by those who either silently ignore or open
y oppose them.