Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1886-02-24
The sanger-rIall Meeting.

meeting Of businessmen held ~ omnger
Hall Monday night. To say the least
it was step towards solving a serious
problem which has been agitating the
public mind for some weeks, and has
given rise to great deal Of i'll feeling
between and elimination and recrimina-
ton on the part Of the two great ele-
ments in the community. hatproblem
was how could the interests OF labor and
capital be harmonized so as to protect
the rights Of and SECURE justice to both.
The spirit Of the Ssnger-IIsll meeting
emphasized what aad been made mani
fest at the conference Of the representa-
tives Of the merchants, the Typographi-
cal Union, and the Knights Of Labor at
the Chamber Of Commerce some days
before. In fact, it emphasized
what has been manifest almost
since the dawn Of civilization
certainly what has been fact
since equity has played q part in the
regulation of human affairs-viz., that
most differences are best bridged by
mutual understanding. The agreement
arrived at by the Chamber Of Com
merce conference was the work of
manly men. Each party to the con-
ference and agreement was representa-.
tive Of the element it claimed to rep
resent. Both sides had the cour-
age Of their convictions, and
maintained them in spirit that
derived force from the fact that 1t was
tempered with concession. Prejudice,
not to say bitterness, gave place to mu-
tual respect, and both parties estab-
lished claim to the thanks Of the pub
lie. That conference paved the way
for the meeting Of Monday night. At
the Senger-Hall meeting some things
were doubtless left unsaid that might
well have been said,s and some
things were said that might we'll
have been left unsaid. Therefore,
it is the spirit rather than
the letter Of the proceedings, which we
consider an encouraging sign. We have
great faith not only in the law-abiding
spirit, but in the intelligence and sense
of justice of the people of Richmond.
These characteristics distinguish the
workiDgmen, the capitalists, and the
businessmen of our city. The hot
heads are exceptions. We believe the
SgDger-Tiall meeting will set all classes
TO thinking. And that will be great
point gained for both the laboring-man
and the capitalist. We believe that it
will convince the conservative laboring-
man that the average businessman at
least desires to do what is right by
him. We believe it will convince a
good many businessmen who may have
seen but one. side Of the capital-and-
labor question that there are two sides
to it. We believe that it will convince
both that they are not so wide apart as
they had at first supposed. We do
not expect all to agree with what was
done and said at the S9nger-Hall meet
ing. There are rash workingmen and
rash businessmen in every commune
ty-fewer, we think, of each in Rich
mond than in almost any city Of its size
in the Union--but we do expect an
endorsement Of the general spirit Of the
meeting from majority of both the
workiDgmen and businessmen. We do
expect a recognition on the part Of good
citizens, whatever their occupation, Of
the fact that good beginning has been
made in the work of demonstrating the
community of interest that exists be-
tween capital and labor. If the policy
of mutual concession foreshadowed by
the meeting is carried out no interest
has reason to fear.