The Dillon tribune., 1886-03-13
TH.. KNIGHTS u. LABOR.

| The edic,> OF this Order are creating Il
! great deal of commo,:;,n in the country.
/ The knights of Labor claim that their or
saniza.ion is attempting the mas>n: of
all the wage earning interests Of the Tn.
ion. The strikes all over the land are
mainly due 70 the agitations and workings
OF the Order. The statement OF Grand
! Master Powderlv declaring that the labor
troubles are not the result of an organized
effort Of this secret organization does not
! look lihe], when strikes and talks Of
cases are organized and run by the Knights.
| Powderlv is reported as saving that the
| extensive strikes now convulsiny the land
are merely condolences and-to quote him
THAT there is no concerted action conten-
plated by the Order. as has been suggest
ed, the strikes being identical and, think,
chiefly owing to the fact tina! this is j:,st
the beginning OF spring trade and opening
Of prosperity in business" One thing is
patent and that is that the Knights arc
figuring conspicuously in most all oil the
strikes. These strikes, whether arising
from just causes or not, are injurious 10
both strikers and the business interests.
The powerful organization backing the
strikers. and, seemingly, under whose
auspices the strikes are instituted, and kept
alive. is blamed for the co,nmotion exist.
ing at present, and our leading newspapers
attribute the trouble, in great degree, to
a preponderance Of the foreign element in
the Order. Foreigners land on our shores
and before they are half:,nadc citizens they
want to run the political and social ina.
chinery Of the country. The ignorant
foreign element in our population is always
eager to strike to right some imaginary
wrong. N;ne.tenths Of the communists
and socialists Of the country are foreigners,
with the hair OF Il foreign country vet on
their teeth. and it is asserted, and not de.
MED, that large proportion OF the mem.
bership Of the Order is composed of this
class Of foreigners, whose sole claim to
American citizenship rests OH disclaiming
allegiance to some foreign prince or poten.
tate and going through the first stages at
naturalization. If this be true the Order
"f agitators will be- short lived, for Amer.
leans will rule America. II the strikers
are controlled by the foreign elemen. in
this Order they will not accomplish their
mission OF attempting 20 enforce submits
sion to their arbitrary demands or exact
s"bservisncy to what appears to be the
whi,ns Of a scmi.communistic rabble. II
the secret order is under American control
is behooves its members to make it known,
and to ai>avow at the same time the accu.
sation that the Order is the promoter of
unreasonable and unlimited striking. The
order is reported to be gaining largely in
membership, and so, to conclude, the his.
tory Of the foundation OF the Knights of
Labor is interesting. In 1869 Criah S.
Stevens, cloth.cntter in Philadelphia and
man OF uncommon intelligence and mas.
ter over his fellow. workmen. established
the present Order, though in most hum.
BILE way. Stevens was an agita,or and re.
former, and student of the conflicting
ambitions Of mankind. In his effort to
alleviate and strengthen the working neoplc
he founded the Knights Of Labor