Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1886-04-15
KNIGHTS OF LABOR.
An Appeal to Laboring Men-Jay Gould
Denounced in Strong
Language.

The Joint Executive Board of District
Assemblies 10l, 80, and II of the Knights
of Labor have issued at st. Louis an earn
est appeal to theif brother laborers for sup
port in their contest with jay Gould. The
text of the address is as follows:
To the workingmen OF the World
Friends and brothers. hear us, for We plead
for our rights Men OF equity look upon us, for
we struggle against giants Of wrong Mad with
the frenzy OF pride and selfaduation, begotten as
il is of the success OF outrage and infamy, there
stands before us giant OF aggre ated and in
corporated wellth, every dollar OF which is
built upon blood, injustice, and outrage. That
giant OF corporate wealth has eshtralized lts
power i'm and is unprecedented by the eager hend
who goats as he grinds the life out OF his fellows
men, and grimaces and dances as they writhe
upon his instruments Of torture. Oh, ye work;
in, men of America who love your liberty and
your native land ye great creators OF wealth,
who stand rs the foundation OF all national
good, lo6k upon your brothers to-day.
Gould, the giant tiend, Gould, the money
monarch, is dancing as he claims, over the
| grave of our order-over the ruin OF our homes
| and the blight of our lives. Before him the
| world has smiled i'm beauty, but his wake is
graveyard of hopes, a cyclones path OF devasta-
| ton and death. Our strong arms have grown
weary in building the tower OF strength, aud yet
| he bids us build on or die. Our young lives
I unrequited, cons'ant toll. Uur loved ONES M
| home ara hollo y-cheeked and pale with long
and weary waiting for Eetter days 10 come.
Nay, more than this, the graveyards are hiding
| his victims from our longing eyes.
Brother workmen, this monster mend has com %
pelled some Of us TO toll in cold and rain for nVe
and fifty cents n day. Others have been COM
! peled to yield their time to him for seventeen
and thirty.six weary hours ior the plI.anee t ot
| their manhood and rebel against his tyranny are
black listed and boycotted all over the land. He
has male solemn coDra:ts with the highest s au,
| thorty in our order, and then has basely refused
| TO fulfill his pledge.
He lives under and enjoys all the benefits OF
our republican form OF government ana yet t.u. ad.
| vocates aud perpetuates thu most debasing 10 m
| of white slavery. He roSs the rich and poor the
! high and low with ruthless hand, and then ap-
| peals t6 corrupt and purchased courts 20 heIp
him take our little hcmes away. He breaks our
limbs and mains our bodies and then demands
that we shall release him from every claim Tor
damages or be black-listed forever. He goes to
our Procers and persua1es them not to give us
credit, because we refuse to be ground IN his
| human mill. He turns upon us horde OF law
less thugs, who shoot among our wives ana emil
dren with deady intent, and then he howls for
Government help when he gets his pay IN hko
coin.
His giant power must be broken, or you ana
must be slaves forever. The Knights nj Isaooa
alone have dared TO be David 70 TINS uoiasn . ",
| to-morrow-but for the trooping generations III
the coming ages Of the world, for our children
and our childrens children lis tne gIea' 9ues aes
be a nation OF freemen or a nation OF slaves
The question must be decided now. The chains
| are already forged tnhJ are " Dlhu us
| we wait until they are riveted upon our limbs
Nay God forbid. Workmen Of the world, mar
| shal Yourselves upon the battleheldl Work
men OF every trPde and cline, on to tn
frayl Gould and his m. nopoles mus
90 down or your children must d.
Slaves. Think OF the little olive plants aroun'
I your hearthstones that will be blighted by hi
curse. Think OF the little home he is seeking Y
rob you Of Think of the wife from whose eye
| he has wruug floods OF tears, and from who's
{ heart he has tortured drops OF blood. Who ca
3 look calmly upon his perhdy, his outrage, an
:. his crimeP For he has sought to incite ielon
among our rank and file he has bought th
perfidy OF vile men to entrap the unwary tina
!, he might stain our fair name and glont over ou
I misfortunes Once for all fellow-workmel
s | arouse Let every hand that tolls be lifted
( Heaven and swear by Him that liveth forevt
a that these outrages must cease. Let ever
n heart and brow be turned toward our commo
foe and let man grow weary until, hk
= | Goliath our giant is dead ut our feet -
| EXECUTIVE BOARDS d. A. lOl, 9J, II.