The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1884-03-07
Workingmen Must Arouse.

1t is beginning to be plainly under.
stood th't if the working GLASS III th,s
country wish to save tl,ems Ives from
being reduced to a condition of servi
tode equivalent to the so.called pauper
labor of Europe, II mus: be by taking
a more active interest in shaping legis.
lation affecting their interests and re
sisting the encroschment of overgrown
wealth and corporate monopoly. In
the past they have made spasmodc ef
forts in this line, but they were lily or.
ganized, aud failed, mainly from not
selecting proper representatives, aud
then watching the actions Of the latter
wnen entrusted with power. Aud while
tney have been supine aud careless, the
influence we have alluded to has ever
been on the alert TO seize every advan-
tsge, legislative and otherwise. Hence,
during the Congressional and legisla-
tive sessions they always have agents
aud attorneys on hand To watch each
days proceedings to crush out any
measure calculated to circumscribe
their power and forward others which
enable them TO trench on the rights,
liberties and prerogatives OF the mass
es. IL was by such means most Of the
public lands were stolen from the peo-
pile aud diverted to building up eolos-
sal fortunes for few individuals.
Iu tue same way the people of this
State have been robbed of their rights
But few years ago the anthracite
coal lands were owned by thousands of
individual operators. To-day, few
monster railroad companies control all
this vast interest aud are now almost
law unto themselves. Backed by mil
lions of capital they have gobbled up
the most valuable coal lands, forcing
the private operator out of the field by
crppling his operation through the CO.
lossal power they exerted aud forced
him to sell out at their own terms to
save himself from bankruptcy. And
they stopped not here; the owner of ev-
cry machine shop, foundry, &C., in
their pathway was obliged TO do the
same or find the source of his prosperi-
ty dried up and he was obliged to
remove from the region. This is no
overdrawn picture, but stern reality, as
all will admit who understand the situ-
alton in the Lackawanna and Schuyl
kill coal regions.
All this might have been prevented
had the working class been more alive
to their own interest. AT the date of
the passage of the bills named, the wri-
ter was member of the lower House,
aud he and others, as the Record of the
proceedings will show, warned the in.
dividual operators and operatives of
those regions of the insiduOus aud dam
gerous character of both of these meas
ures aud endeavored to arouse public
sentiment so as to compel the House to
defeat them. But it was useless; the peo-
pie looked on seemingly Indifferent,
and both bills passed and with the
votes of some OF the men sent from the
region most directly affected
AS we have said, such legislation is
most pernicuous. 1t is an Invasion of
private right and not in keeping with
the principles of our form of govern
ment and if continued much longer
will make the people complete slaves
to a soulless money oligarchy. Unless
the class most iujuriously affected. the
workmen, the producers of wealth,
take measures toward organization
with determined resolution TO resist
the further encroachment of this grasp
ing power, they may have liberty in
name but all its essence will have de.
parted.-Danvile LntelHgencer