Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-12-18
the comnUNE OF NEW YonK.

INST. More than four thousand people
assembled at Cooper Institute to ex-
press their grievances and to take mea-
sures for their redress. They found
the walls of the immense hall decked off
with placards, having such significant
inscriptions as the following: "No more
salaries over S5,000;" 10000 home
less men and women in our streets"
"One hundred and ten thousand, of all
classes, idle" "Man's wealth must be
limited" Give us this day our daily
bread" and many others. The COM
mittee on ''the number and condition
of the unemployed" made a lengthy re-
port, setting forth the facts stated IN
the above inscriptions, together with
many affecting details of the suffering
that has already set in. The COM
mittee on ''ways and means" also made
lengthy report, proposing some extra
ordinary if not extravagent measures
to alleviate the burdens Of the
idle and needy. 1t recommends,
among other things, that the
city resume its public work
and employ. as many artisans as posi-
BILE for this purpose; and that the Leg
islature of New York place legal linn
it to the accumulation of wealth. An
almost revolutionary address to the
people of the entire country was read,
and called forth frequent and tremen-
GUS applause. In this address we find
such passages as the following:
"Our watchword is, The interest of
one is the interest of all The imme-
date cause that has drawn us together
at this time is the suffering of hun
dreds Of thousands of men and women,
who have either lost their money, been
thrown out Of business, or cut off from
work by the late panic" y eff
the individual owes allegiance and
support to the Government, the Gov
eminent also owes care and protec-
ton to the individual. And when
the Government failsto protect the indi-
vidual it fails to perform its mutual
part of a sacred obligation, and should
be set aside or overthrow, even as the
Government would set aside or punish
the individual who should fail in his al
legiance. Tonight thousands Of hard
working, sober, industrious men and
women are walking our streets without
homes. without shelter, without food,
because without work. And our first
demand is that food and shelter be CIV
en- to these, now, by the Government,
and not given to them as objects of
charity, but given to them as their in
alienable right, which they cannot
forfeit. y We denounce
no man. for our fight to-
day is not with men, but with the evils
that Cypress all classes of men. Al
though we are well aware that those III
Office even to-day have made such use
of our money that, if the punishment
which they laVe melted Out to their
brother officials be just, they themselves
would soon be inside the walls of
penitentiary X Now, in order
to remedy this evil which lies at the
root of all cur financial difficulties, we
demand: First, that law shall be I'M
mediately enacted which shall prevent
any law being enforced until it has
been submitted to the people and sane
toned by the people; second, that no
individual shall be allowed TO hold,
either directly or Indirectly, a sum of
money, or property represented by
money, greater than 100000, or any
sum which the people themselves shall
determine upon
A series of resolutions were unani-
mously adopted, embodying the ex-
IRENE views maintained in this address,
and the meeting closed with a number
Qf iHAammotary speeches. The spirit
Of moderation Hhich INDUCED the Coun-
Gil to reject these extravagant proceed
ings, is a credit to that tribunal. 1t
will check the futile clamOrs and the
inordinate demands of shat pitiahle
populace, made furious with hunger
and priyation. Their suffer
ing calls for our sympathy,
but we cannot approve
Of their measures Of redress. Labor
can be as tyrannical and oppressive as
capital, and it; intolerance is equally
odious. The spirit of extreme Radical
ism which moved the workmen at the
meeting in New York, if allowed to
rsrge uncontrolled, would sooner sub
vert the welfare OF lie country than
anything else that we can imagine.
The workmen succeeded admirably in
giving expression to their grievances;
but as for measures Of redress, they
made q preposrous failure. We caE
see no good III stopping to argue
with them. Their ways and means will
be almost universally condemned. The
proceedings Of the meeting, violent and
clamorous as they were, can apparent
ly lead to no evil consequences. but
it is certainly no fault of the agitators
themselves says the Neao York Times,
eff their influence is likely to be rather
contemplate than formidable. Apart
from their staggering pretension to
speak in the name of the people, which
is simply ludicrous, their attempt to
draE q broad line of distinction be-
tween the interests Of republican
Government, and the people whose
agent and creation that Government
Is, belongs to the most pernicious order
Of demagogism, The idea that the ad-
ministrative machine, which we call a
Government, has incurred "a sdcred
obligation to feed, clothe, and sustain
any individual citizen who requires
such aid, is one of those imported fall
lacies that only needs to be stated to
supply its own refutation in a demo-
cratic republic. To get such an idea |
into the heads of any considerable |
body of the people would be the quick
est way to prepare the downfall of re-
Dunlican institutions " So violent and |