St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-12-01
He APPEALS FOB AID.
General Master Workman Powderly Sends
An Address to the Knights
of Labor,
Telling Them That Their Locked Out
Brethren and Their Families
Are Starving,
And Commanding a Per Capita As
sessm ent of Twenty-Five
Cents.
The Order Said to be Mt the Most
Critical Point of It's
Existence

PHILADELPHIA. Nov. SO.-The Press to-
morrow will publish the following impor-
tant secret circular, issued by the general
officers of the Knights of Labor:
Noble Order of the Knights of Labor of
| America, Office OF the General Assembly,
Philadelphia, Pa, Nov. 29, lSS6.-To All the
Subordinate Assemblies of the Order. Greet
| ing: Previous to the session of the general
assembly at Richmond, an appeal was
issued to the order for funds to as
sist victimized and locked-out members
In various parts of the country.
The response to that appeal was not such as
| it should have been and only about $4,000
was received thereon. This. it is manifest to
every member. was entirely insufficient to
render the assistance needed and desired.
| Many thousand metnberS were thrown upon
| our hands by lockouts OF the employers who
acted in concert with the avowed purpose of
! driving their employees out of the ORDER
thereby crippling if not destroying it's power
| and usefulness. The order of the Knights of
! Labor has reached the
MOST CRITICAL PERIOD
in its history. 1t stands as a power for good
or for evil, but your general officers, while
they make no special claim to superiority in
purity of motives, have sworn that the order
shall be made power for right and right
only. That the laws shall be rigidly enforced
and the members shall receive the fullest
protection of their rights under the laws of
our country and our order. Without any
provocation except the exercise of the inher-
ent right of the freeman to belong to any or
ganizatlon he pieases not in conflict with the
laws OF the country, thousands of our men,
bers, men and women, without warning, have
been
THROWN OUT OF EMPLOYMENT.
They have gone to the door of the mill and
factory and to the mouth OF the mine where
but yesterday they were employed, only to
find staring them in the face the unchristian
and uuamerican mandate: "You cannot re-
turn to work here until you sign a contract to
leave the knights of Labor, and that you will
never become member of that any other
labor organization Every man who has
joined the Knights of Labor has pledged him
self to do his duty in the cause of mankind.
No oath binds him to any action
contrary to the duty he owes to
God or his country. But something more
sacred than his oath, his pledge of honor,
bends him to loyalty defend the principles Of
truth. honor, justice and citizenship! Two
alternatives present themselves-uncondi-
tiona surrender, CIR manly defense. Which
shall it be? The locked out members, in the<
enforced idleness, turn from suffering wives
and starving children IN pathetic appeal to
your general executive board TO AID them in
maintaining them in their manhood and their
fidelity to the order. The general as
semoy instructed your general executive
board to give them all the assistance in his
power. We can render that assistance only
in one way, and that through the cO-Opera-
ton of the earnest and loyal members of the
order. Words of sympathy, however kind
and grateful, will not supply the need OF
these Iocked-out members. We must have
that which is more substantial. We cannot
supply it ourselves. Therefore frankly
come to you. Having all these circumstances
in mind, anG deeply moved by sympathy for
those suffering mem berS and those dependent
upon them, your executive board has unani
mously resolved to
LEVY A ASSESSMENT
of 25 cents per member upon all the local
assemblies in the order the same to be paid
under the following regulations: All local
assemblies that respond to the appeal men,
toned above will be credited on the assess
ment with the amount donated. All local as
Semblies who can are requested to remit the
full amount of assessment not later than
Dec. 20, 1885. The assessment in this case
will be 20 cents for each member, as shown
bv the reports of the general secretary-treas-
urer for the quarter ending Oct l, 1885, Local
assemblies to pay the amount in inStalmentS
may pay 10 cents for each member, as shown
by the reports to Oct l. 1855, to be paid not
later than Dec. 20. 1886; 10 cents not later
than Jan. 20, 1887, and cents not later than
Feb. 20, 1887. for each member, as shown by
the reports for the quarter ending Jan. l,
1887. This assessment will be known the
special defense assessment and must be paid
to the general secretary, Charles II. Litch-
than the dvtes named. When the appeal was
issued in aid of the Southwest strike it re-
ceived most
PROMPT AND GENEROUS RESPONSE.
The need for that appeal. and the crisis to
be met, great though they were, did not
equal the grave emergency which cOmpels
this assessment. With the termination of
that struggle began the combination CT the
capitalists everywhere throughout the coun--
try. The OBJ ect OF that combination is now
made apparent. The lines are sharply drawn.
The contest is upon us and must be met to q
successful issue. You know for what pur-
pose we require the money. All we ask is that
before paying IL each member put himself in
the place of our locked-out friends, remem-
bering that he gives twice who gives quickly,
and act upon the golden rule, do unto others
as YOU would have them do unto YOU" Spe-
cial Notice-The above assessment must be
sent to the general secretary, Charles FL.
Litchman, lock box 6S5, Philadelphia. Pa.
7. Y. POwDERLY,
General Master Workman.
By order of general executive board.
Attest: