New-York tribune., 1877-07-25
gHf CoMMUNE ~ THE United STATES.

JIF fGiiN iNE ~ INT tNiIi,D 81 n f>c'
Communists have undertaken to govern the
United states. Whether they will succeed ",
shall see. hat the disordcTly strikers arr
Communi>ts-cncmcs of al tights of property
and OF all law or government That defend
these nghtS-dOCs not need demonstration.
They begin by dcDying the right OF Capital 10
employ any labor, unless If employs them III
their own terms This involves violation OF
the right OF clhcr men who want To work a
the wages proposed. Ii involves warfare upon
MI those interests in ciety which depend
upon plomptneSs and regularity IN eXchang
of Goods il ends in wild rapine; in the mur-
der OF th0sc WHO defend public order III the
,acking of cars. GepotS and stores in the de
stIucion 10y fire OF property worth many mil
lions This is the Communist. Ills work IN Paris
is known. II is the blackc't page N the history
Of the nineteenth century. His work in the United
States we are beginning to know. In France
the struggle left only the form Of Il republic.
IN the United States seI-goycrumcnt must
quickly demonstrate its power to trampe ont
Communistic resistance to law, or, as in France.
those who have property to lose, those who
have the desire to accumulate property fOi
children, those who have the Intelligence {"
know that security and order are best Tor All
classes and necessary to the very existence OF
civilized society. will soon be found demand
ing IA government strong enough 10 protect
life and property. We are far from doubling
the disposition of the Federal Administration.
To what extent it has the power, crippled as
it has been by Democratic economy, and ham
pered, as il necessarily is, by constitutional
Limitations in the exercise of its power, we
have yet 10 learn. II is doing what 1t can.
But property worth two thousand millions hes
to-day useless, and, for present or sure future
use, practically worthless, until the authority
of the law can BE- restored.
The Communistic strikers are anxious to have
it believed that they were not responsible for
the rapine ard destruction Of property in Pitts
burg. 1t may be granted, withoHt helping their
ease in Che least, that they did not participate
in or instigate the robbery and burning which
disgraced that city. Accounts diier widely :;
probably the trnth Is that some of the strikers
did while Others did not cOuntenance or aiG
the destruction of railway property. Bat the
responsbity lies farther back. Every striker
made war upon all civilized society wien he
countenanced the stopping Of trains. He
robbed the railway company, which had "A right
to employ cheaper labor if II could He robbed
other laborcrs who had a right to sell their
services at the price offered if they pleased.
He violated the laws of the state undertook;
an armed revolution and necessarily cmbold-
ened all the dangerous and desperate classes to
ioin III the war against rights oil property. He
who fires a shot into Il crowd without author
ity il a murderer, though he may have had no
malice toward the person killed. He who in
stlgates riot or revolutionary outbreak Is not
less responsible for the excesscs and crimes
which will follow.
Public opinion slaughtered men and burned
buildings in Pittsburg-that Infamous and
cowardiy public opinion which encouraged
with sympathy w-deiying mob when it at
tempted to dictate terms TO company, and
then stood inactive IL long rs u mob destroyed
property of the company. Ii awoke too late
to a realization that civilized society cannot
tolerate mobs; when other property was stolen
or destroyed, then, and not till then, selfish
greed oyercamc pitiful cowardice, and citizens
! Of PittsbHrg began to organize for the restOra-
| ton of order. Fortunately, the city of Pitts
burg will have to pay the cost of its toleratOn
of riots. For every dollar lost by the railroad
company, or by any other corporation or indi-
vidual, the taxpayers of that city will have to
pay and the sum will reach millions Perhaps