The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1884-10-16
A New Political Power.

A New Political Power.
New York Sun: There is decisive
element in this campaign that has not
yet been much spoken of, and this is
the political action of the various trade
associations. 1t is we'll known that the
membership of these associations num-
Der. many thousands of worklngmen.
Trade unonists stand at almost all the
work benches in our land, they swing
the heavy hammers in the FORCES, they
boil the iron that bubbles in the pud-
| ding furnaces. they stand at the rolls,
they charge the blast furnaces, they cut
the Goals used in the whole country,
! they conduct the transportation, they
build the houses, they weave the tex
tile fabrics. The labor in the mechan-
zeal, manufacturing, and mining indus
tries of this nation is performed almost
exclusively by men who are members
OF trade organizations.
In the hands of these men lies the
power to make Presidents. Hitherto
they have not used it. They have been
content to employ their trade associa-
tons to protect themselves against the
reduction of their wages, and to prevent
the curtailmcnt of their liberty of
personal action. The oppression of
! labor created the trade associations.
/ They are the outgrowsh of the natural
law OF self protection. They are in
tensely hostile to monopolies.
From associations Of workingmcn,
where nativity and color and religious
and political beliefs are ignored, and
where the only qualifications of MEM
bership are labor and loyalty, it needs
but I step onward for these associations
to become political. All intelligent men
i knew that this would come. All think
t ing mcn knew that under the stress of
hunger and poverty, engcndered by I'M
just and monopoly fostering laws,
these men would one day band togcth-
er in political organization.
: For years, as the workingmcn of the
nation have performed their daily toll,
B they have been thinking, and steadily
thinking. how to improve their con-
di;ion. For years talk has been cur
! rc:lt in TIE trade association rooms that
was unknown to the outside world.
The workingmen have been secretive,
hoe /f h,,, Il ~
not seek to antagcriZc their employers.
They did not wish to incur their hostil-
itv. They We're without able leaders.
They doubted tic loyalty of their COM
r;;!r>. They were poor They were
rot well organized. These conditions
have all changed. The associations
are now fairly we'll supplied with
money. Dj>!oEalty to union is al
most unknown among the white men,
hevs. and no b'acl; has ever been dis
loyal to the union he belonged to.
Hitherto the various trade associa-
tons have been prevented from acting
together in things political by the
weaknesses of human nature. There
has been an absence of the spirit of
sclf-sacrllicc. and the presence of petty,
selfish ambition and silly >clf-conccit
among the subordinate leaders Of the
labor movement. that efftctualiy pre-
! vented their acting together. In tho
past it has been impossible to weld
these trades unions into a compact
political body. The time mad not
come. !: was .ccessary that broad
minded statesman should first rise ND
Rs the champion Of labor. 1t was
necessary that this man should be pos
scsSct! Of 4 logical ard comprehensive
mind Of slch hi Oh order that the subor-
dinate officials of the various trade
organizations would willingly and
clecrfully acknowledge that they had
met = man of intellect superior to
theirs. If such man should appear
and place himself at the head
of the labor movement, it IVES
highly probable that they would form
into column behind him, and, guided
by..his political sagacity, would in due
time obtain political control of the
country.
4 leader of proved political sagacity,
and Of broad, original, aggressive
mind, of that rare order that grows
more and more luminous amid the
dangers arising from the unforeseen
contingencies of a period of political
transformation, has been found in Ben
jamin Franklin Butler. He has formed
the Peoples party. 1t has come to
stay. The ideas advocated by this
party canno: be suppressed. They are
questions that affect the happiness and
material welfare of more than half of
our people. 1t is highly probable that
this government will in the not dis
tant future be controlled by the work
ingmcn.
Judging from authentic information
IN our possession, we have no bosit,-
ton iii asserting that tlrcc-iifths Of tho
men belonging to the trade associations
are rcsolutc in their intention to vote
for Gen. Butler for President. The re.
n'alnin., two-ffths arc about equally
divided between Cleveland and Blaine
There are five weeks between now ,,d
election, and much will be accomplish
ed by the earnest Butler men dnrinp
TINS time. Their leader has sunnlie3
them with effective arguments. and
these Will b: used in the rooms and
halls where workingmen meet to dis.
cu ,r inc pollt'cai questions of the day.
o:, Ine 'otH on the trade associations is
silen1, ana this silent vote will be cast
against 1rover Cleveland. The work. .