Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1888-03-07
POWDERLY'S MANIFESTO.


The following letter was furnished to
the Associated Press on the 28th:
SCRANTON, Pa, Feb. ga reporter
comes to me this evening and asks what
my opinion is concerning the strike of
the engineers on the Chicago, Burling-
ton q Quincy railroad. Expression of
opinion is required as to whether | fav-
or the taking Of the places OF the
Brotherhood men by the Knights
of Labor. [ have nothing to say
concerning the matter of the strike on
the road in question for [ do not know
the particulars, but if it is true that the
men are making an effort to do away
with the European custom of grading
men up ard down, regardless of merit,
then they are i'll the right in making the
fight for equality. My opinion of man
who takes the place of another who is
struggling for his rights is that he de-
serves the contempt and scorn of every
man who loves justice. 1t is true
that members of the Brotherhood
have on repeated occasions taken
the places of members of the
away back in the early days of the
seventies, the Brotherhood men did the.
same thing with the machinists and
blacksmiths at the command of their
chief. 1t is true that the Brotherhood
men stabbed the knights of Labor in
the back on the Southwestern system,
not only by taking their places but by
urging them to strike with the proffer
of assistance if they would do so. It is
true the Knights were used as cats
paws by the Brotherhood men in that
struggle, and it is true that many
engineers were burned in raking out
chestnuts for others. 1t is true that
Brotherhood men did take the places.
of the Reading men in the strike on that
road. The merits Of the various cases
herein mentioned have nothing to do
with the principle of honor which is in
volved in all of them. It is to the
eternal shame Of the Brotherhood men
that they stopped t. such acts of mean
ness, treachery and unmanly conduct.
The man who takes the place of another
when that other is engaged in a struggle
with corporation Is a scab, whether he
be member of the Knights of Labor or
Of the Brotherhood of Locomotive En-
gineers.
"When Charles Wilson ordered the
members Of the Brotherhood to take
the places of members of the Machin-
lists and Blacksmiths' union in 1872 and
1873 he did an unmanly, coWardly act.
When Arthur allowed the members of
the Brotherhood, over which he exer-
clses such discipline, to tamper with the
rights of the striking employees Of the
Missouri Pacific and Wabash system two
years ago, he too violated that principle
of honor which should restrain a man
when about to do wrong. It mattered
not that the strikes in question were not
ordered by the chief officers of the
Knights of Labor. If men who were in
terested felt that they were right and
took up the fight as employees regardless
of what organization they belonged to
and on their own responsibility, they
had the right to do so, and under the
laws of the land the members of the
Brotherhood were not obliged to make
cravens of themselves as many of them
did, both on the Southwest system
of the mems places was mean and
dastardly. If these actions were taken
with the sanction of the chief of the
Brotherhood, he too, is mean and das-
tardly, but, two wrongs never make
right, and what is mean and dastardly
in member of the Brotherhood of En-
gineers cannot become grand and noble
in a member of the order of Knights Of
Labor. No Knight Of Labor should be-
little his manhood by STOPPING to such
dirty work. If it is the habit Of the
taking strikers places, in heavens name
let them have monopoly Of it.
knights of Labor, If you take my
advice, you will stand back and allow
this struggle to go on. Let the Brother
hood demonstrate its power to stand
alone without any entangling alliances
with those of other trades. Let the
past be forgotten in this strike. No
matter how bitter you may feel toward
these men remember they have not
stepped out of the rut of selfshness yet,
and it is bestto teach them what man
hood means by keeping hands off the
The spectacle presented by men of Ia
Dor who belong to different trade organi-
cations rushing at each others Threats
whenever a strike takes place must be a
gratifying thing for the employers Of la
Dor to look at. 1t must indeed give sat
isfaction to corporations to know that
neither Knights of Labor or Brother
hood men dare i'll the future ask fol bet
ter treatment with any assurance of re-
ceiving it. 1t must be consoling
thought to the monopolist to know that
his power is not half so dangerous to
labor organization as the possibility that
another labor organization will espouse
his cause through revenge. Labor will
be forever bound hand and foot at the
feet of capital so long as the working
men can be pitted against each other.
mo strike should be entered into I'M
til the court of last resort has been
reached, until the last effort consistent
with manhood has been made, until the
heads of the opposing forces on both
sides have been consulted and their YER
dict given, until the last bridge has
burned between them. Then if it was
determined that the last thing possible
had been done to avert trouble, every
detachment of labor's army, horse, foot
and artillery, should be wheeled into line
in defending the rights of the men in
the breach. I have never seen such
strike and never expect to, until the
narrow prejudices of the past are buried,
until the principles OF knighthood are
properly understood. Then we will
have no strikes.
knights of Labor from Maine to
California, stand back. Keep your
hands off; let the law of retaliation be