The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1873-01-11

tHc AlSh AdNSAlilS IAlN auDiAAie'V" ~ 80
trict No. I, on the expiration Of the ISSUE
in present use.
The delegate from District NJ | sub
mitted a question for the consideration Of
the Council, As follows That District No
| Is in favor OF admitting men, not miners
~ paying IA initiation Zee " $50 The
President declared the subject uncpn-
stItutional
1t wns r.ovcd and seconded that com
mittee be appointed from this Council to
draft memorial addressed to the Miners
Of Illinois, Indiana and Missouri, asking
them to contribute to a fund for the pur-
pose Of preparing books, etc, ami sustain
ing man "a supervise the organization
aud the disseminating If the principals uf
the Union
The motion prevailed, and MIR John
James, the Secretary submitted the frl-
lowing appeal to the miners Of the West
crn States, ~ the Council for their arpro-
baton
noticed 10y a careful examination Of our
constitution and bylaws, is not, a. has
been charged BY sulu,, for the purpose of
fomentlng dlscord or lnfusing u spirit Of
strife into It's members, 10y urging cnntin-
ual warfare against capital, anu sustaining
the idle aud the vagrant on the slightest
pretence. No Just man can study this
chart which We have laid down for our
H.. ~. ~
conveying the most distant hint at such
thing, or that We look upon such things up
preclatively 50 far from this beng sane
uoned or encouraged by us, every clause
and every article from the beginning to the
end, Is testimony to the contrary, and
everything therein contained shows a spirit
at once hostile 10 strikes, and concilliatorv
N their tendencies when these evils are ia
evItable OUr Association Las rather for
/ Its object the organization of our miners IT
the Northwest for mutual beneht and pro-
lection. We are aware there are many EN-
| plOyers, lndIN dual and corporate, Who con
sider 1t SIN the most gross on the part az
! the Workmen If they attempt a union. or
unite at all. II is, however, no SIN III
/ them to do this which they forbid their en-
/ pioyees To do. They have their organiza-
tlons themselves, that they might carry on
| IT. III business protitahly, by acting h4rmo-
| muusly and uniformly 50 TAR possible.
I Insurance companies have their organize
/ tiuus that they might msintsin rates and
make their Institutions pay Steamship
| companies have their unions. and would
! Just ask those Vho object to the miners
( having theirs, 70 ONT nc out any class If
business that have not arrangements mutu-
( ally agreed Ia which governs them III their
4 transactions. They clam our ideas and
aims are eXtr5vagant and chimerical We
\ look upon them differently, and believe
the same arguments which justify their
combinations VIII justify ours | shrink
not from and acknowledge the fact that the
I same motive Impels Us to cleaVe together
which moves them 1t il thu common
lever-self interest. We Join together III
the bonds Of Unionhuod for the purpose u
mutually benetting each other and not for
the purpose Of mJuring any other We
want to be controlled and melted in our
demands only by our reasons and our abil-
| iJy to prove them just to the outside
world, so far a. the demands Of other men
and other business are proven Just We
believe We heed organization that We
action, that which We have demonstrated
TO be right, and Which We know by individ-
ual effort We could never accomplish 1t
is known to all IF US how Intellectual our
resistance to wrongs inflicted is when made
single handed and alone, but when firmly
knit together-hke the story If the bundle
Of wands Of old cannot be bent, much
less broken. That wrongs are done midi
viduals. sometimes unintentionally. many
times Intentionally, none will attempt To-
deny. We know this is true. | 30 not
think the employers believe they are doing
the workmen wrong when they do many
things which We know Is a positive inius-
tIce. When we are not united and there
by unable "a talk to them IN equal terms.
they Gan easily reason themselves into the
belief that their act Is not an act of uppres-
sion, because they think it will result to
their benefit and they can have it so.
Their pleasing themselves by their own
solace does not take the sting ont Ot our
souls, who feel we have been wrOnged. but
are pOweress IN our present disunlted and
severed condition. Our organization.
then, is not for the purpose Of aggression,
but for the purpose Of defense to en-
conditions to disturb the relations of
capital and labor, but to harmonic them
not to exercise our power for evil, but for
good.
The primary aims and objects Of the
Society, as set forth in Article / | Of our
Constitution, is for the purpose Of raising
funds from each other for the assistance of
each other when unable from accident to
assist themselves providing such accident
shall happen while the member is about his
usual occupation, or On business of the
Association also to assist the unwary and
dlssiPated in their attempts to reform. by
throwing around them the influence Of
moral associations, and to protect the in
terests of the coal miners and laborers con
nected with the coal mines of this State.
and | would add the whole country. We
have code Of rules laid down to assist rs
in carrying out these objects, and making
our members feel that such are the objects
Of the Society Those rules are good, ev-
cry one OF them. do not know one that
could call supertluous, Or say il was IN
reasonable or unjust IN its requirements
do not know one that | could say was
unnecessary all are needed tu enable Us
to carry out the programme given inthe ar
ticle just quoted But while 7 admit The
perfection Of these, at the presen time, it
occurs to me and has been revolving itself
in my mind for months past, that there is
something more wanted to establish our
Association among our men and make it .
practical thing with them, through and in
every mining district in this and the sister
States. There are here and there, it is
true, large numbers Of US joined together
in the bands Of union, and working under
our constitution, our rules and bylaws.
These are reaplng the benefits it affords in
local way, and that, no doubt, is great.
Much good is enjoyed by members thus
linked, one to the other, by community
| of interests and a wish r. benefit and he