The Labor enquirer., 1884-04-26

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skin beautifer, 25,. cents per bottle.
Wholesale agents, ]. J. Reithmann & Go.
The Lever of Secret Societies.
From John Swinton's Paper.
p Your correspondent, Mr.. N. E. Badgley,
seems to think came near hitting the
nail on the head" with the proposition
concerning the society" that should be
formed by the workers, of whom l am
one and he another; but he would not
have that society a secret one. All right
for him but if he lives till an open So
ciety ever accompllshes anything for the
good of the workers, he will live to an
age compared with which Methuselah's
would be called very youthful indeed.
l believe in secret societies for the
prosecution of any set purpose of vital
Importance; but the trouble in this coun-
try is, every sovereign" lays the fatter-
ing JUNCTION to his soul that he is eligible
to the presidency, and won't give up his
individuality and become a mere unit
in a grand unity, even temporarily and
for grand results. Every man wants to
have his "say" which, in this secret So
ciety, he could not have, and should not
have, the SAY" coming from the Head
Center. In open societies-well, we all
know how ambitious second fddles" Sc
cede and form rival societies, neither of
which will follow where the other leads.
Open societies cannot be handled sue
cessfully, secret ones can be. Mr.. Badg-
ley calls secret societies cowardly in this
republic of ours. Well, if this republic
were grand and beautiful fabric-a be-
nefcent government for the masses-1
would take no exception to the charge
but, as look upon it as governmental
fraud of the first water, nothing can be
cowardly that will bring about certain
desired results; if so, then hurrah for
cowardice, and the grand secret society Of
millions that sh all move this part of the
earth, II no part OF heaven
This ideal secret society of mine could
move its millions as one man. The oaths
to bind the millions should be the
strongest which the mind of man could
conceive. The penalties for infractions
of its rules, such as the reading of which
would make mems hair curl. With this
society the ballot would be a thing all
powerful, instead of being, as now, q
thing of false pretense-a mockery We
all know what the ballot is worth to-day
how it is worked by rich c0rruptionists
for their benefit; how it will be worked
as long as the republic lasts-were it
what it should be, would it might last
| forever. AS it is, let the sham go by the
board, the quicker the BETTER for my
society is an impracticable thing, where
the millions who might will not unite
too many being of the mould of those
aspiring spirits who would rather rule in
hell than serve in heaven!
| Talk about an open society large enough
TO stem the tide of corruption at the
polls. Why, no man, no demi-god, or set
of demi-gods, could hold it together
There would be offshoots and offshoots.
The one would become a dozen very
shortly, pulling dozen different WAYS
Would it be so with my secret society
Not so. The member who concluded to
pull his way would be pulled"
Talk about the efficacy of the ballot,
as it is worked to- day by politicians in
the interest of millionaires and bloated
corporations, for righting the wrongs of
the oppressed masses-why, it would be
laughable, if it were not sickening, to
hear the talk. As in this republic worked,
the ballot to day is the biggest thing ever
invented by man for mans bamboozle-
ment and the devil might laugh-not in
his sleeve, but openly-and exclaim
after the manner of Puck: what fools
these men of the United States are p
No; what is wanted is the secret soci-
ETY. that can move its millions as one
man on the polls and do decisive work +;
but, for reasons given, this society cannot
be brought up to the required number of
members in country where every man
is bound to get his oar in and 50 we
shall go on until the republic goes up. in
smoke-no, till it sinks in a sea of fblood,
compared with whose volume that in
which sunk the southern eonfederacy
would make but fish-pond
Many millions now here will yet look
upon this spectacle, and wonder why
the food was 80 long delayed. / ~
r. s.s ST. SLoKUM.