The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-08-04
THE BRAIpWOop MINERS.

| at least so Tar rs BfalQWOOu Is concerned
there can he no harm in taking a brief glance
at the cause of the troubles in that quarter
Bsaidwood is a town of above $500 people To-
Gated in the southwest corner Of VIII county
about 90 miles from Joliet It's not more than
eight or ten years ago that it began to attract
attention as coal region. That coal was there
| in abundance was well known, but ii was not
until the lands underlaid by it were monopo-
| LIKED by company that efforts were made to
mine it in large quantities. To induce mi
ners'to come there the company offered each
one with family an acre of ground and en-
Outraged them to build houses on such lots.
the inhabitants being miners and their tami-
tlies-the other fourth mechanics, traders, pro
| fessonals &c.
Having the large body Of the miners thus
permanently stohed down, the company rcAt
commenced the experiment of cutting down
wages. Nov there isaminer's union that en-
braces nearly oil the miners in the state, and
when such attempts are made, not only the
miners Immediately interested, but the entire
union must be consulted. The reductions at
Braidwood and elsewhere were always at first
resisted but gradually submitted to, Il few pen
MES at u time, until from about Sl,2j per ton,
the present wages are reduced to about 10cts,
For three months or over the miners at Braid
wood refused to submit to the last reduction
and have been out of work, their only means
of support being their little oncacrc garden
patches Meantime the coal company, finding
no white men willing to take the places Of
the striking miners, imported about 400 ne
grOcs and put them into the mines. The old
miners contend that they did not offer iorcibIc
opposition to this movement until they found
that the negroes had not only robbed them Of
their places in the shaft, but most Of them hay
| ing families to support, they obtain the larger
lpart Of their provisions by proving around at
night and pundcring the gardens, honroosts
and pig-pcns Of the old miners. 1t was main
lly on this account Il Braidwoodcr will tell you,
that they rose up Indignantly two weeks ago
and ordered the niggcIs to leave And the net
pIOtS u'lUdlN wv lNhN'N h'iti INV
there from Chicago last week brought them
back again.
These Braidwood miners are about all for
lcigncrs-clannisl in their ways, and largelyim-
bucd with ideas that they bring with them
from Europe of the necessity Of strikes and vi
olencc to maintain their rights" Deceniy
trcacd--as they understand it--thcy are sober,
industrious, quiet and tractable,--but mposi-
ton real or imagined, they are ready torescnt
with uncomfortable fury
The raid on them by Gen. Ducat last week
with his 1900 militia was attended with ri
diculous incidents hardly adapted to inspire
high respect for the law. The town the day
the troops arrived was as quiet rs Sleepy llol-
low, and had been for II week. The puissant
General, however dscmbark nd his TO- "
,nnc NOM tUnr, ana drew them mp IN line Of
battle Perhaps five hundred pcople--men, wo,
men and children,- came out to see the show
as they would have turned out to see an ap.
proaching circus The General pompously or.
dcred the crowd TO disperse, which they did
prccipitately in great terror And thcrcupon
Il windy dispatch was sent TO Chicago that the
riot Mt Braidwood had been quclcd, happily
without boolshedl
We think the miners are in fiNMc now to
stand Il little talking to, and scrac missionary
they have confidence in ought to instruct them
that the public is far from being without sym
pathy in their behalf, but can be of no help 10
them while they show areadincss to resort to
lawlcssness and trades union tyranny. Indeed
the whole idea Of strikes is erroneous. 1t is n
foreign notion fostcred by our democratic i'm
stiutions, and liccntious freedom; but should
our large coal, railroad or other companies lie
compelled to yield 10 it, they would all be
hankrupted and fall to pieces in q month
While the operatives may say il is with them
question of starvation, the companies with
equal truth say it is with them question OF
life or death, and with the law--as they near.
| " always take care 10 have-on their side, la.
Dor in such contest must ever he worstcd.