Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-09-01
HARRISON ON LABOR.


| Since the publication IN The Herald OF
June % of an interview between The
Herald correspondent and Edwin F.
Gould. of the Indiana Knights of Labor,
touching upon the subject of Benjamin
Harrisons labor record. Mr. Gould has
been kept busy answering correspondence
on the subject.
A large portion of the letters received
are from prominent representatives of the
| order among them are many written by
delegates who met Mr. Gould at the Rich
mond and Minneapolis sessions, and all of
them indicate that "A vigorous fight is
being made by the laboring classes
against Mr.. Harrison
MR.. GoULD's FURTHER STATEMENT.
On n; --.'7--'7-..'i.NN1- '-v'otrru.
Does Mr. Harrison DENY these state
ments?''
| mo, he does not His friends do this
for him. To prove his attitude we will
go by the figures Conceding that actions
speak louder than words, he must admit
what has been charged to be absolutely
true, In 1873 the wages of yardmen
were Sl15; in 1877 they were down to
81 per day, having been cut three times
since 1873, cut of twenty five cents
each. These wages are shown by the
pay roll. The railroad companies did
not and do not now deny this fact. Mr..
Harrison, who was appointed upon a citi-
Zens committee to try and reconcile the
men and the railroad companies, was at
the time the regular salaried attorney
OF one of the principal roads in the CON
troversy. He had to work for the inter
est of the railroads against the men.
When these figures were shown him and
he saw that the paltrv sum of 81 Der day
was all that was allowed switch1nen, and
upon being urged BY the men and the re-
malnder OF the committee to stand BY the
strikers, he signifed his disapproval ~
the course they had pursued ana
them to break ranks and re- u urged
Was this not an admissi turn to work.
81 per day and Ion that he believed
he copd ,wO meals sufficient when
-uemned the men for quitting work
because they could not get more than 81
per day without any meals2 Indeed his
actions condemn him even more than his
assertions. But the worst part he played
In the controversy was the willing man
ner in which he deceived the citizens BY
accepting position at the head Of com
mittee appointed as q citizens committee,
while he himself was in the employ of the
railroads in the capacity of attorney, with
no other motive in view than to break the
strike in the interest of the railroad com
panies. The citizens did not know this
and trusted him He had solicited an
appointment on the committee in order
to be in better position to aid the rail
road companies and defeat the strikers"
But why was he SO anxious to defeat
the strikers? Was it part of his duty as
railroad attorney?
ut was, and he was as eager to defeat
| the men of one road as another, because
had the Bee line road given in, the road
| he represented would have to follow A
break in the ranks of the organized rail
roads would be followed in the same man
ner as would break in the ranks of the
organized strikers Hence Mr. Harrison
was soGcitous to cause break to be made
anywhere-it made no difference where
He had commanded troops long enough to
know that a break in the ranks near the
end was as disastrous as in the middle,
and once broken the entire forces of labor
would be compelled to return"
did he accomplish ths?'
yes. lie served his employers (the
railroadl faithfully. He did not 90 to the
railroads after the strike ended and do as
he agreed to do by endeavoring to secure
for them an advance in wages lie prose-
cuted the strikers, sent them up for
ninety days Sixteen of them were taken
to jail and divided up in four different
county jails. Judge Drummond was so
bitterly censured for having rendered
such a severe sentence upon innocent men
that The Sentinel was indicted for con-
tempt for having published the peoples
utterances concerning the indictment.
Mr. Harrison went still further on the
subject of wages in speech delivered at
Attica, in Fountain county. in which he
cautioned men never to strike, and said
rather than resort to strike men could
better afford to accept 10 cents day,
which would purchase two loaves of
bread, and water being free, starvation
would be prevented. Mr.. Harrison knows
that he uttered these words, and The In
dianapolis Journal knows it, and since the
charge has been made it fails to offer any
reward for the proof"
'Is any effort being made to prove the
statements you have nader"
There is no proof necessary; it is as
well established as though all had been
said yesterday and the entire people had
heard it. The proof is in the possession
Of The Journal-a cart load of 1t. 1t ap-
peared in its own columns in 1877. II it
did not, the editors cut it out of the re-
ports for political reasons. Engineers,
ex-city officers. brakemen, switchmen,
firemen and all classes of railroad men
heard his remarks, and over dozen have
been found who are now in the employ of
various roads who claim that to testify in
print would cause them to lose their jobs,
as Harrison is the railroad candidate"
care the labor organizations opposing
Mr.. Harrison?"
Yes, they are officially condemning
him by resolutions. Two years ago the
labor organizations all over the state Off
cially petitioned the legislature to defeat
him for the senatorship and officially Pc
.titioned for the election of Mr.. William
d. Bynnm. the congressman from this dis
trict, and over their protest the Harrison
party made him the caucus nominee A
/ copy of this resolution was shown the
Chicago convention, and the numerous
protests published in Chicago papers
|. during the convention ought to have been
snficient warning to the convention, but
haying1gnored the labor element in 1875,
1883 by placing Mr.. Harrison
~aole either for state, sena-
ii honors, the laboring
.ermined to make