The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1886-10-06
Powdsrly's Address.

RICHMOND, October 5.-Grand Master
Workman Powderly's annual address
will be presented to the convention, it is
expected, tomorrow afternoon. 1t has
already been made public. The follow
ing is an abstract:
Reviewing the work Of the year, he
declares that it was the most eyentful
aud trying one in the existence of the
order. "If we are guided by the ex-
! perienCe of the past" says Mr..
| PoWderly, land act accordingly, we can
| place the order upon a footing so safe
and sound that no assault from It's
enemies can injure it. If we are not
guided by that experience, if we fail to
read right the signs of the time, We
/ fail to properly represent those who
sent us here" He cites tuat in one
year more than 1000 new assemblies
| had been organized. He says that
! quite few have entered the order,
/ and at once plunged into rash
| strikes contrary to the policy of the
order. He speaks of the Southwestern
| Railway strike at great length. He says
| he did not approve OF that strike, but it
was only when the threat was made 10
| stop every wheel in the United States
| that he raised his voice against it. He
did that in defense of the order, and
| the country. That tie Southwestern
| strikers had suffered great wrongs was
;rue, and it Was his 6rm belief that the
railway companies, with a full knoWl-
| edge of what those grievances Were,
| precipitated a fight themselves at
the time to make it appear to
the world that the strike was
an insignificant cause. The eight-hour
strike vas not successful because
neither the workmen nor employers
we're ready for it. A reduction of hours
of labor was a necessity, and sooner or
| later must be had, but the Knights
| must not forget that in may places
he ten-hour plan was not yet adopted.
MIR. POwderly says the proposed reduc-
| ton of the working hours caused mil
| lions of dollars worth of work 70 be left
unfinished and undone because of the
uncertainty in regard to taking con-
| tracts Never was it more clearly DEM
Onstrated that injury TO one was the
| concern of all, than in the movement
| he mentioned. The move was in the
/ right direction, but the time and cir
! cumStanceS were not suitable. A plan
should be adopted. as some sug-
| gested at the Cley Gland meeting,
/ W LlCh w TIC CO-ODEIdLiOAl VI LAC WI
/ ingmen's organizations and manufac-
turers' associations could be put into
practice without a strike or unSettling
! business. He declares before the short
| hour system would be any benefit, the
relation which WOrkmen bore to labor
! saving machinery must undergo radical
| change. The machine must become
/ slave of man instead of man subordinate
| to the machine. he plan OF Co
Operation through which the work
men may control the machine
must supersede the present sys-
| tenn. Referring TO child labor,
he remarks that it should be the duty
of every assembly to see that all children
! should attend school. The opposition
to child labor was to insure that he
should acquire an education to equip
him for the duties which would fall up
on him as man and citizen. He asks
that a special committee on education
be appointed to prepare and recon-
mend a plan for the better education OF
the American youth. He closes by
treating of the relations between the
Knights and the trades unions and re-
cOmmends cooperation. He declares
that lie had been unable to reply TO 9
tenth OF the letters addressed to him.
He says that he had refrained from re-
plying to criticism, and while he had
| been accused of q lack of nerve for sc
large a movement, sill a million men
and women of nerve and common sense
had sustained him in carrying the ban
ner OF the order. He says they would
act according TO his wish If they selected
another 10 fill his place, and he asked
them to vOCe without sentiment for the
best man in their judgment to guide the
order.