The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-05-08
PROTECTIVE LABOR ORGANIZATIONS
From the N. Y Times.

PROTECTIVE LABOR ORGANIZATIONS.
From the N. Y. Times.
The laborers in the Pennsylvania coal
mines have at last thrown off the yoke i'm
posed upon them by few leaders in the
organization known as the ''Laborers' aud
Miners Benevolent Association" and have
reasserted the natural right of every Ameri-
can freeman to earn living for himself and
family, independently of the dictation of any
individual or association of individuals what
soever. This is a very important event in
the history of labor organizations in this
country, and it we'll becomes the leaders and
promoters of these organizations to give it
seasonable attention, and to comprehend its
full significance There is a growing dissatis-
faction among the more intelligent and can
did members of the ''trades-unions" and
other protective associations against the
tyranny which they have assumed to exer-
else of late years, and it will require but
a few more arbitrary acts on the part
of the leaders to produce general revolt.
1t is already a mooted question with many
whether the combined efforts of labor to pro-
tect itself against capital have not, thus far,
proved, on the whole, damaging to labor pc
cuniarily, to say nothing of the sacrifice of
personal Independence on the part of labor
ers, and the i'll feeling engendered between
employers and employed. The loss of time
and wages resulting from the numberless
''strikes" dictated by the leaders of these
organizations will be found to more than
counterbalance any temporary increase of
pay which they may have secured. Take
these Pennsylvania miners, for example
they have been kept out of employment
more than five months of the past year, dur
ing which time they have been forced to
live on the charity of their associated brsth-
rem in other parts of the country, have con-
tracted habits of idleness and dependence,
frequently been melted to crime, and finally
have been compelled to resume work on the
same wages they could have received all
along, without interruption, if they had been
allowed to make their own terms with their
employers, untrammelled by the association
to which they belonged.
So long as protective associations of labor
ers, mechanics, or artisans confined them
selves to legitimate ground, and had for
their object mutual aid and assistance, and
the protection of the rights of skilled as
against unskillsd workers, they were entirely
proper, and may have been beneficial; but
when they assumed to dictate both to en-
ployers and employed, and to compel, by
threats and intimidation-often by personal
| violence-evsry man of their craft to Join
their associations against his will, or be re-
| fused permission to earn living for himself
and family, they took upon themselves au.
thority which neither the law of the land,
the personal rights Of individuals, or even
the sense of common justice, ought for one
moment to tolerate. The whole theory OF
their action was contrary to the spirit oi
American institutions, and repugnant tc
those ideas of personal Independence and
freedom which every American citizen il
supposed to entertain. Hence we find tha
by far the larger portion of members of thes,
organizations are persons of foreign birth
But even they are beginning to learn that tn,
tyranny imposed by these combinations anC
associations is oftentimes more odious thar
that of the capital against which they seek Il
protect themselves; and, unless there is
radical change in their management, we ma!
look ere long for a general disruption o
their ranks, like that which has just occurre'
in Pennsylvania.