The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-05-20
P0WDERLY AGAIN.
The General Master Workman Is
sues Another Secret Circular,
In Which He Talks POintedIy and Plainly
of Abuses Which Have Crept Into
the Order, and Which Must lie
at Once Corrected.

publishes the following JnlS mOrnlDS'
The following secret circular has been
received by the Knights of Labor of Chi
cago, and will be read in the various as
semblies during the coming week:
NOBLE ORDER OF THE KNIGHTS OF LAD
PHMADELPHIA, May 3, 1885, }
To THE ORDER, EVERYWHERE, GREETING:
The response to the secret circular issued
on March Il, has been so generous and the
Endorsement OF the sentiments contained in
1t has been so unanimous, that feel en-
couraged and strengthened in the W ork.
Nearly four Thousand assemblies have
pledged themselves to act on the advice
contained in the circular of the 18th ut L
feel that it only requires the coming to the
front of the real men of our order
TO set right before the world
We have been losing ground so far as pub
tic opinion is concerned for some time. One
of the causes is that we have allowed things
TO be done under the name of the Knights OF
Labor for which the organization was in no
way responsible. ask of our memners to
Keep Jealous eye upon the doings OF the
labor men who never labor, and when they
charge anything 20 order In your To-
caity, set the seal of your condemnation
upon It at once by denying IL.
II paper criticises the Knights OF Labor
Or its officers do not boycott 1t, and II you
have any such boYcotts on remove them
Journal not long since made some uncOm-
plimentary illusions to the General Master
Workman OF the Knights OF Labor and at tho
next meeting OF the nearest asSe nbly 4 mo-
tIon was cast to boycott the paper; not that
alone, but every person who advertised In
the columns of the paper. / wrote to the
assembly asking that they remove the boy
colt and it was done. Wemust bear in mind
that our General Master Workman is only
man and il not ABOVE criticism. We demand
OrOurselv esjthe right off free speech. We'can
not consistently deny it to others. We must
tolerate fair, open criticism. If reply Is
necessary. make it in gentlemaniy dignl-
fed manner. II we are criticised or abused
by blaek&uari sheet. treat IL as you would
the blackguari himselt-in silence.
That our aims and objects are good Is no
reason why our members should be re-
CARRIED as being OF superior build or ma
terial. We are no more the salt OF the earth
than the millions of unknown tOilers who
do the work OF the world. In our dealings
with laborer- and capitalists we must deaf
Justly and fairly by them IL we would have
equity done to US We IN turn must 40
equity to others. That is the aim of the
knights of Labor and must not be lost
sight of IN future.
Let mo direct your attention to few lit
tie abuses; l find that wherever 4 strike
occurs appeals for aid arc scattered broad
cast among the assemblies. DO not pay one
cent for such purposes in future unless the
appeal comes from your own district assem-
blY or the General Assembly.
If boycott notices are sent to you burn
them. l have in in my possession over four
hundred boycott notices which wete sent to
assemblies with n request that they be acted
Let me mention some OF theIh. Amen
Der is editing paper. He fears rival, ana
proceeds to get INTO an alteration with MIN.
boycott him, then asks the order TO carry il
out. \ certain paper il infiuen tial In one or
the other political parties. Members OF the
opposing party conceive tho idea of getting
ril of the paper and they invoke the aid OF
the Knights of Labor, first taking the pre-
canton to have the paper III question say
something uncOmplrm rntary of the Knights
of Labor. In ia, {, our order has been used
as tail for a hundred different kites, and in
failure il must soar alott from all of them.
j hate the word boycott. | was boycotted
ten wears ago and could not get work at my
trade for months. 1t isa bad practice 1t has
been handed TO us by the capitalists. have
no Use for it only when everything else
fails
vertisements OF every kind are scattered
everywhere Throughout the order. / copy
letter Which comes to me on the subject: "a
large part of our time has been spent In
reading boycott notices and appeals for aid,
kecDing us until twelve O'Clock. We were
led to believe the Knights of Labor to be an
educational Institution. but this kind of ed
ucation j. not productive OF good. We have
no time for instruction. What do you ad-
wise us to do?
advised them TO either burn or table
these matters. and now ask of the secretary OF
each assembly to do the same. IL your jour
nal were not boycotted by our members 1t
could be made the medium of communica-
tjon between the general officers and the or
der but the journal Is not read by one quar-
ter of the assemblies. Some assem- blies send
out documents in envelopes addressed to
..SccrctarV OF Assembly No. -" In many
places the secretaries have been discharged
because of this practice No member has
the right to address another in that way, and
il is ever praCticcd again the offender VIII
be punished.
In future the general executive board
must not he interfered with in the perform
auce OF its duty. II You have confidence In
them. sustain and obey them; II not, ask for
their resisnations. While the board was en-
deavoring to settle the Southwest trouble
assem- blies In some places with the best of
intentions no doubt, were passing and pub
fishing resolutions condemnetory of Jay
f.nvl1 These thinnQ did good. the
contrary they were injurious In the settle |
nent OF troubles 1t becomes the duty OF tn
executive board to meet everybody and go |
everywhere. While they are doing this |
they must not he hampered by the ac
tions OF those who do not know what their |
task is.
Keen duiet; let your officers do their best, |
and IL you can not find a way to aid them, do |
not retsrd their progress Resolutions do |
not prevent land stealing, stock watSring or |
gambling in the nece-ssries of life. If had |
my mind made up to rob 4 bank at N idnight |
n string of resolutions az long as the moral
law protesting against my contemplated ac-
ton would not influence me particle. but il |
some interested party W Ould take the trouble |
to study up tie questions and would inform |
himself as to my right to rob the bank, and |
would stand guard at the door OF the vault, |
would not rob it at midnight IL rs did his |
duty. What we want from every member Is |
not gush or windy resolutions about our |
rights. We know we have rights without |
passing resOluti 1ns. Men who think, study |
and act are required.
The General Assembly will meet in special |
session on the 18th OF May. in the city of |
Cleveland. From the receipt of this letter |
Won must not address any communication |
TO me- nor need you expect an answer II you |
do. 1 have thousands of letters piled up |
around me now, and they never can be |
read, much less answered, by one man.
During and since my illness the mail de- |
Iivered at my house has exceeded four hum |
dred letters a day. They come from every |
body and everywhere. must play the part \
of wheel horse instead of leader of a great |
movement, and our members are re-
nal that no one send letters to me. am /
told by some to get help. II had fifty as |
sistants IL would do no good, for IL /
of the letters and in the middle OF my work /
j am waited on by some committee, |
who generally misrepresent me after they |
Ieave-for every member OF the committee |
will tell different story. From now until /
the General Assembly meets l VIII receive I
no committees, answer no letters. L must |
formulate a plan for the future and will |
not be interfered with. Let me repeat, L |
will receive no committees, answer no let |
tiers. nor Will go anywhere at the request |
of members of assemblies. This is impera-
tive. must have a chance TO do something
OF benefit forthe order, and can not do it IL
am to sit for eighteen hours a day residing |
letters which have been answered aud rean-
swered in the journal and constitution.
What will say to the General Assembly will !
be said TO the entire order and you must |
give me time TO prepare it.
we have had some trouble from drink ing
members and from men who talk about buy
ing guns and dynamite. Ii the men W no |
possess money enouah TO buy guns and !
dynamite would Invest it in the purchase of /
some weIl-selected work on labor, they /
would nut the money to good use. They will /
never need the gun or dynamite in this |
country. 1t is my opinion tnat the man who |
does not study the politics OF the Nation and
the wants of our people would make but |
little use of a rife The man who can not \
vote inteIIigently and who will not watch /
the man he votes for after he is elected, can /
not be depended upon to use either gun or |