Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-05-07
PLACING The BLAME.

mittce appointed by the House OF REPRE-
sentatives to investigate the b diff
| culties in the Southwest commenced opera
tions yesterday at Washington with the
testimony of T. V. Powderly. Mr.. Pow
| derby said that the opinion which prevailed
| that the strike on the Missouri Pacific road
was caused by the discharge OF a man
named Hall was erroneous. The real cause
| was the payment of low wages, long hours
| OF service, etc, as set forth i'll the
bll OF grievances recently made
| public by the knights Of Labor at st.
| Louis. When asked for redress by the men,
| the officials OF the company had refused Il
| conference. An other cause was stated to
br that OF the practice OF the company OF
compelling their men along the Iron Mount
ain road, and along some roads in Texas,
to purchase food and other necessilrles OF
life from stores owned by the COM
pany. Still another was the en-
pleyment by several branches OF
thr Missouri Pacific road OF ~convicts,
who were placed at repairing tracks, the
sight being often witnessed OF a convict in
his prison stripes and another man clothed
in the garb OF an honest lnborer working
side by side. Against such 81 leveling OF
conditions the honest workman naturally,
and with pardonable indignation revoted.
Mr.. Pc wderly, in reply to Il question. said
that the organization OF knights
of Labor had for its object
tho protection of labor against
the c%xactions OF employers. Its aims were
to secure, if possible by honorable means,
a peaceful settlement of all difficulties. 1t
would ever be found as ready to punish
wrong Us it was to aid m redressing it. A
settlement by arbitration OF all troubles
was it's chief aim. 1t had never legislated
on b%ovcotting but once, and that was to
restrain it. AT the request OF the commit
tee Mr.. Powderly promised to lay before it
at some future time his views as to that
might be lone by way OF statute or con-
stitutional amendment.
WAsnINGToN, April 22.-Mr. William O
Mcdowell, of the Knights of Labor, was
questioned yesterday by the committee ap-
pointed by the House to investigate the
causes of the strike OH the Gould roads. In
reply to questions he described the objects
Of the knights of Labor organization in
terms similar to those used by Mr.. Powder
ly Tuesday. He then detailed the efforts
made to settle the strike by arbitration,
and related the interviews between MI.
Powderly and himself on one side IL MI.
Gould on the other.
Mr.. Burns asked the witness if lie had
any information that Mr.. Could had issued
any instructions to Mr.. Hoxie which were
inconsistent with the representations MI.
Gould had made to the knights of Labor
representatives in New York.
The witness replied that while the
knights of Labor representatives were on
their way to st. Louis to carry out the ur-
engagements for arbitration T. Rockwell,
| general roadmaster of the Missouri Pacific,
issued an order declaring that no man would
be employed or retained in the employ
of the company as foreman of section men
who was a member of the knights of La
Dor, and notifying those employed that
they must give up their Knight of Labor
cards. The witness thought Mr.. Gould IL
his subordinates had i'll various ways acted
in bad faith with the representatives of the
knights of Labor in this controversy.
MI. Mcdowell was asked if he thought
Jay Gould was fairly disposed during his
interviews IL dealings with Mr.. Powder
ly. He thought Gould meant to be fair at
the start, but it seemed to the witness that
when Mr.. Gould found him rebellious on
the agreement to arbitrate, in place OF
making it a positive order, he turned round
and split hairs with the committee. In
fact, it appeared to the witness that Mr..
Gould was in d measure controlled by MI.
HoXle. 1t was his impression that to Mr..
Hoxie belongs the responsibility of the
strike.
Nh. Grain asked witness what was the
original cause of the strike, nj Mr.. Nc
| AAt@AS - 4oAAS otCtCLlClU, l u
the difference between the principles Of
day work and piece work, and quoted
Gould as saying that by making a change
OF that sort i'll the Western Union Tele-
graph Company he had effected a saving
general cause of this strike and of recent
strikes all over the country had been
the successful strike on the horse
car Lines in New York last Feb
ruary. They had commanded such univer-
| col ,,,,l1io cr,, 40 $l,- tl,,t x-o-1-,,. ~-l..
over they had a grievance or wrong, joined
together and made applications to form
assemblies of Knights of Labor. This was
so general that the order had increased
more in the month of February last than
it had in the prior eight years. AS an ad-
system of watering railroad stock, which
made it necessary for railroad managers
to screw down the rates of labor as much
as possible.
suggest for that. Witness replied that the
remedy was to enforce the law. The law
Of every State required that dollar
for dollar should be paid for rail-
road stock; but that provision of
law was evaded by the railroad managers
Mobilier or construction company and is
suing to themselves 500 worth of Stock for
every dollar or ten dollars of work. He did
not think the system Of pooling earnings OF
IdllioauS Hau anytnlnS TO 40 with 1T.
Neither was it, in his opinion, attributable
to the competition in labor. Asked for his
views on the subject of labor COMPETE
ton, MI. Mcdowell said thai it had
been suggested that a conference should
take place between representative men
from The laber organizations and repre-.
sentative men from trade organizations:
that they should meet and thoroughly dis
cuss the whole subject. Such a discussion
as that would be approached by railroad
men i'll a different spirit from that which
they would manifest i'll u discussion with
ins~ibordjnate brakcmen. In this way there
would be gathered the wisdom of able men
who had been thinking over the subject.
Mr.. Powderly was then recalled and
gave a history of the origin of the knights
OF Labor. The organization was intended,
he said, to take in not on.y the man she
worked at the bench OF the mine. but
every man who toiled, by hand OF
brain, in any honest occupation. "We
left out enc or two honest occupa.
lions lawyers and bankers because
we felt that they were fully capable of
taking care of themselves" lie said. Sa.
loon.keepers were Ineligible as members,
and if a member should enter the liquor
business after becoming associated with
the organization, he was forced to with
draw from the order. In brief it was a so.
ciety for the protection of all kinds of peo.
pie who toll, regardless of sex, creed, color
or religion, and entirely within the law
Its present membership was about 500, 900
Women are members of the organization