The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-06-28
RIGHTS AND KNIGHTS.
Some Plain Facts to the Rights of Knights
and the Rights of Men.

Some Plain Facts as to the Rights of knights
and the Rights of Men.
DIR. j. III. Buckley. in New York Advocate.
We have maintained, in opposition 70 the opin-
ions of some, the right of workingmen to organ
ize. We wish to ascertain what they can ac-
complish by properly managed organizations.
Before doing so, 1t is necessary to see whether
Knights can have any rights that are not the
rights of man. What are the rights of mapl
Simply those mentioned in our famous Daciafsr
ton of Independence-namely, 1.-The right to life,
liberty and the pursuit of happincssH Under
these rights workingmen have the right Ia
work or not to work for the company
that employs them. They have no right
to demand employment from that OF any other
party, for the right to liberty belongs as much to
employers as to employees. The one has the
same right to choose whom he will have to do
his work as the other has to choose for whom he
will work, seeing that every human right is for
all, and not ne-sided. When man joins any
organization, it can give him no more rights
against persons not members of that orgauiza-
ton than he would have If ne stood alone. A
million men organized have no more right to
take a mans property, or enter his house, OF
stop him on the highway without his consent
than any one Of the million has-and that is no
right at ALL
Now, as no one man has the right to enter on
anothers place of business without his consent,
or obstruct his workmen or business, or to stop
another man from going to or from his work, or
yell at him, insult him, or assault him. so no
walking delegate" has any right to invade an
others premises, and no body of men have tfi6
right to interfere with others by means which
would be illegal in men not members of orders
Those who join such orders may give ND any
natural rights they see fit and submit to any
thing the order may infict (which does not In
volve a violation of the law an infection upon
outsiders.) They may quit work when there is
no good reason that they know of, and they may
quit work when they Go not wish to because
they do not desire or are afraid to incur tho
odium or embarrassment OF leaving the ORDER
but they cannot get any rights as against the
rights of employees or other workmen from the
organization.
Some write and speak as If they thought that
to be knight of Labor or member of SONS
other organization is to be endowed with rights
not common to man; that knight has a wider
liberty than q man, and that consequently he
has claims on his employers TO which he would
not pretend were he not member of his order.
Cannot all see that this is o mistake? No man
can justly claim for himself any right which
does not belong to any other man. Yet an inn
portant member OF the order, testfying before
the congressional committee. said that The de-
MED the right OF any man in crisis like this be.
tween labor and capital TO come in and scab
that Is, to work for any person or company
against whom the order has ordered strike!
Thus he was denying to others the right he
claimed for himself-to work for whom and when
he would
Inc great, the Iat0l errOr winch CERTAIN local
or district assemblies aud leaders OF Knights and
some other organizations have fallen into has
been to cherish and act on the notion that
Knights and the order of Knights can have
rights given to them by organization that do not
belong to men rs men. BY holding this notion
and acting upon it they saw off tho limb of the
tree on which they have been resting. BY deny.
ing to employers and to workmen not affiliated
with their organization those rights which they
demand for themselves they attack the uni
- = - A.. ~.
suit of happiness. Yet it is On the universality
of this principle, and on this only that free gov
ernments like ours are built. Once limited to
class democratic liberty dies, and is succeeded
by the rule OF an aristocracy or despotism. But
by practically limiting this principle they have
been training multitudes Of men to familiarity
with the dangerous theory that, not equal rights,
but organized might makes right
It Is a strange blindness on their part which
prevents them from seeing that they are bur
rowing beneath the foundations of the political
structure 70 which they owe their present liberty
and prosperity. They are advocating theory
of liberty which by it's attempted discrimination
between the rights of men and the rights OF
knights, is sure If ii succeeds, to return, like
boomerang to deal destruction among them.
selves. Does not all history demonstrate that
when the liberty of man as such Is abridged,
power sooner or later passes out OF the hands OF
democracy into those of the wealthy classesf
All history shows that no class is ever finally
benefited except by acting on the principles or
universal justice
BY joining organizations men may. IL they
wish, give up natural rights and may in some
cases derive advah tagcs by so doing but they
cannot get any new rights against others
In many of the late strikes the claim OF more
rights as Knights. than men have MS men. was
pushed so far to deprive thousands OF laborers.
not Knights, of their right to work for whom
they please, to cripple the commerce and manu-
features of the Nation, and to infiict losses too
large and too widely diffused to be estimated on
countless innocent people.
We do not charge this on all knights. Their
organization has great possibilities of good to it's
members and the community. But IL this fatal
error, born of its rapid growth aud the placing
OF power in the hands of irresponsible and in
discreet committees should not be checked, Ii
would become revolutionary tribunal which no
free government could safely permit
What labor organizations can do for thcir
members and the country must be postponed till