Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1871-06-25
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To the Mechanics Of Knoxyille- 7

The undersigned, having been appoihteu
by the Mechanics Association TO prepsalre
an address to the mechanics at 8 noIv!l1e,
setting forth the character, object ana aims
of this organization, take pleasure Ell IN IN no"
This association was organjFedl oyer ene
year ago, under circumstances whleh we're
not of the most encouraging character.
Nothing of the sort had ever before ipeeni
ventured upon so far as we now. .kn0w,5 ~
was, therefore, an untried experiment, put
of sufficient promise to press thoselOn VINO
had so bravely undertaken the matter. Ihe
nucleus was formed and around it noble
few have rallied ever since: and but Tor
their tenacity and their ffirmness and .thelr
assiduous devotion to the great oplects
sought to be attained, ere this the instiGu-
tion would have been numbered Win the
useless rubbish of the past, AS result OF
their untiring exertions, it Is now enc 'el
the living institution of our city, ana titls
destined to sweep on in q grand career OF
unexampled usefulness. VilaHP 9al 2aif'.isaSs
Thus far in its progress, is has gone along
in quiet, unostentatious way, making ne
noise over its deeds, nor foolish promises
as to its achievements in the future. The
men composing it are; the sturdy men of
the city-those who WELD the heavy inn
plenent of material industry and VINO are
contributing to our wealth and TO o1r'sohd
advancement. But the one noble impulse
moves them, and that is to improve Their
mental, social and financial condition.
Guided by these imperishable copsideraT
tions, which are certainly more precieus
than gold, we find them in this organiza-
ton shoulder to shoulder in hearty en-
deavor and purpose to aid each other in
the fearful struggle of life. AS yet, moth
ing has occurred to mar or disturb their
peace. They are indeed, a band of BROTH
ers, united by the indissoluble bands, of
sympathy and of mutual regard and1affec-
ton. l3uI 5ae fgcr.o ...l} ,se..,,ai orr
We are exceedingly anxious, If indeed
such a misunderstanding exists among
you, to disabuse your minds asitoi the real
object and aims of this institution. Some
very inconsiderate persons, without any
knowledge of the facts, have reported that
our aim is to create anantagonism between
labor and capitalize submit our ultimatum
to employers aud require them to1yieid TO
our exacting demands. The absurdity of
this startling rumor is SO striking and finn
sy that we have not the patience to dignity
it with an elaborate notice. Such a pur-
pose has never, at any time, entered the
brain of one single member. In proof of
this we invite your attention to one signif-
icant fact. The Mechanics Association OF
this city, as now formed, and sagreeahly
to the constitution and bylaws under
which it works, is made up both of
employers and employees, and up to-
the present moment there has never
been the most distant allusion to this dell 1
cate subject. .Andfwel further state that
no member would dare introduce such a
question Reconsideration at the peril of
his reputable standing in the body. j
We have higher ends III view than all
this, as we will now proceed to show, As
already intimated, the aim is to promote
the mental, social and financial prosperity
and elevation of its members. Thatyex-
plainsth whole thing ina nutshell Those
who inaugurated the movement, as well
as those who have since identified them
selves with it, felt that there was, a most
| urgent and pressing demand upon them
| to contribute their mite, humble and un-
pretending as may be, to ameliorate the so-
cial, intellectual and ,pecuniary condition
of their brethren. Actuated by'this gem
erous spirit, they had no hesitationor mis-
givings as to their proud duties in the
premises. dBTTIH 8aTMq
They feltth theirsocial statusshoulds be
raised that their mental attafnme tssh ould
be stimulated, and that they should devise
more efficient ways and means to eceno-
mfze and dispose Of their surplus earfiings.
Hence their laudable effort of, gathering
the fifteen hundred mechanics or more of
our city into just such an dOrganizatlon as
the one in question, Was not this most
praiseworthy undertaking? Is there me-
chanic in Knoxville, or anywhere else,
who would pronounce otherwise? !? ssg.as
Let us now look little into the pracu-
cal workings of this organization We
want YOU to understand them and to ap-
preeiate them. If we can make out "a
clear case, then you should no longer hesl-
tate as to your duties i'm the premises. We
tify yourselves with US, that you may as
sist in improving and elevating the ,condi-
tien of the different trades in our midst.
AS our aim. is, in the first place, to ac-
quire knowledge, and thus to improve our
minds, we have taken active, and vigorous
steps to establish a library and q reading
room. We have inaugurated nolafhe and
childish measures in this direction. We
regard the enterprise as possessing large
and growing proportions, and therefore do
not propose to grapple with it on snail
scale. Indeed, we are looking forward 10
the time when we shall have library OF
which we may all feel proud, and which
will be an honor to this city. Already have
we commenced the work. y Many valuable
volumes have been added, and many more
are promised. We are striving to make
good selections, such as we feel will be of
service to the mechanics and to their farn-
lilies. These books will be let out free OF
cost to every member of the Association.
Now it is work of supererogation for us
to dwell upon the incaleulable advantagess .ss
of this thing, and hence we leave IL Win
sVB But we S,ia are iiaaboring for Another end no
less striking and significant. We wish
through this organization to develop some
plan whereby the smechaI,icso may find
some safe and suitable enterprise IN when
to invest their surplus earnings. TO &C
complish this committee. OF geneelansI ga ~
have been appointed g dIa% s,, W ,;s anu ond -
T'Sare Taev are now | At work, and will soon bring
to our attention the results of their laboIs q, =
and investigations. q That they twni . d
successful, we have no reason 10 ques't.Itn tt,a.
We are all well aware OF one Iac,, sas