Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-07-30

Persons tearing the city for the s,ma.
mer can order the DAILY LEDGER
al 75c per month, Or tioo dollars Joi
three months, in Advance, NTH the
privilege Of changing postobiee.
THE GREAT STRIKE ON THE wANE.
The wonderful ebullition of dis
content among the laboring and
unemployed people of the North
has subsidized almost as rapidly and
surprisingly as it made its appear
ance. The real workingmen en-
ployed by railroads had their gricy-
ances and were entitled 70 q re-
spcctful hearing, but no sooner had
they raised their banners in a
strike, a most doubtful and uncer-
tain mode of redress, than they were
joined by hordeS of tramps, yag-
rants and oilers, rufiians, agrarians
and communists, who led extreme
movements against capital, property
and law, order, decency and even
labor itself. The workingmen were
swallowed up by frenzied MODS,
who were as ready to demolish a
statue Of Washington or the God
dess of Liberty on her pedestal as
the Paris commune was to destroy
the Column Vendome. The excuses
committedin this the first year after
the Centennial, in which We invited
the nations of the earthto view our
prosperity and the triumphs Of re-
publican institutions in a state OF
high development, will ever remain
a stigma upon our civilization. All
this occurred, too, in the section Of
the Union which has attributed to
itself all the cardinal virtues and
heroic qualities that make a people
powerful, loyal and c~ontented at
home and respected. feared and
admired abroad. Looking over
the field we see that not less
than one hundred lives were lost
and two hundred people wounded.
Many Of these were men, women
and children who were mere spec
tators looking on by accident or
common curiosity. The destruc-
ton of property and losses other
wise, including wages of men,
freights destroyed and business in
jured, will not be less than ten mil
lions of dollars, possibly half as
much more. Ten or twelve thou
sand Federal troops have been en-
ployed to suppress these disorders,
but without the results usually ar
rived at in European countries, be-
cause the troops and the people
were rather homogeneous. With
the militia this was even
more apparent. The only excep-
ton was at Pittsburg, where two
regiments Of Philadelphia militia
were sent TO quell a riot which the
citizens quietly encouraged for twc
days. The rivalry between thesc
two cities was such chat when the
sheriff of the county led thesC
troops against u mob he was shoI
down, the troops were routed, be.
sieged in a round. house, smoked
out aud finally dispersed like ;
flock of sheep, leaving here AM
there one of their number weller
ing in his blood. At other place.
the militia fraternized with tn,
rioters, got drunk with them
stacked their arms and Join
ed in the general crusad
against all organized society. Thi
was VIGOROUSLY the case at Reat
ing. One of the first acts of Coy
Hartranft on his return from tn
West was to disband for insubord.
nation, cowardice and surrenderin
their arms to the rioters the Con
shOhocken company that irate
nized and got drunk with the mo
at Reading. These noble wa.
iiors we're tired when the
got there and adopted this couri
as the safest and most pleasal
way to get out of a difficulty
which somebody was likely to G
hurt. They deserted in a bod
hung up their bruised arms an
went on a glorious spree But Il
strike has exhausted itself; the rev
luton is at an end. Some Of Il
railroads yielded to the deman,