The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1888-03-02

Their Chief-A Bitter Attack Chief
Arthur and the Observation-Disclosures Acc
ton in Previous Strikes Denounced,
but the knights Are Urged TO Forego
Retaliative Measures-Progress of tho
Strike.
PHILADELPHIA, Feb 90 = The following
letter is furnished the Associated Press:
SCRANTON, Pa, Feb. ga reporter comes
to me this morning and asks what my opinion is
concerning the strike of the engineers on the
Chicago, Burlington s. Quincy railway. The
expression of opinion is required as to
whether favor the taking of the places
OF Brotherhood men by Knights of
Labor. have nothing to say concerning the
matter of the strike on the road in question,
for I do not know the particulars, but if the
men are making an effort to do away with the
European custom of grading men up and down,
regardless of merit, then they are right for
making the fight for equality. My opinion of
the man who takes the place of another
who is struggling for his rights is that
he deserves 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 the knights of Labor. 1t is true that away
back in the early days of the '70s 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 Southwest system, not only by
taking their places but by urging
them to strike with the proffer OF assist
ance if they would do so. 1t is true that the
knights were used as cats paws by the
Brotherhood men in that struggle and it is
true that many engineers were burned in rak-
ing out chestnuts for others. 1t is true that
Brotherhood men did take the places Of Read
ing men in the strike on that road. The merits
of the various eases herein mentioned have
nothing to do with the principle of honor which
is involved in oil of them Es
1t is to the eternal shame of the Brother
hood men that they stopped to such acts of
| meanness and treachery and unmanly conduct
The man who takes the place of another when
that other is engaged in struggle with cor
poration is scab, whether he be a member of
the Knights OF Labor or member of the
Brotherhood OF Locomotive Engineers.
When Charles Wilson ordered members
of the Brotherhood to take the places
of members of the Machinists and Blacksmiths'
Union in 1872 and 1878 he did an unmanly, cow
ardly act. When Arthur allowed the members
OF the Brotherhood, over which he exercised
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 man when about to do wrong.
1t mattered not that the strike in
question were not ordered by the chief
officers of the knights of Labor If the men
who are interested feel 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 members
of the Brotherhood were not obliged to make
cravens of themselves, as many of them did,
hnfh on q WI md in tha Pc
ing strike.
1.-THE taking Of the mems places was 'mean
and dastardly.' II these actions were taken
with the sanction of the chief of the Brother
hood, he, too, is mean and dastardly,s but
two wrongs never make a right and
what is mean and dastardly in mem
Der of the Brotherhood of Engineers can not
become grand and noble in a member of the
order of knights of Labor No Knight of La
Dor should belittle his manhood by stooping to
such dirty work If it is the habit of the
Brotherhood men to do such work as the TAX
ing of strikers places, in Heavens name let
them have q monopoly of it.
knights Of Labor, if you take my advice
you will stand back and allow this struggle to
go on. Let the Brotherhood demonstrate its
power to stand alone without any EN-
tangllng 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 that
they have not stepped out OF the rut of selfish
ness yet and it is best to teach them what
manhood means by keeping your hands off the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy strike The
spectacle presented by men of labor who
belong to different organizations rushing
at each others Threats whenever strike
takes place must be gratifying thing for the
employers of labor to look at. 1t must indeed
give satisfaction to the corporations to know
that neither knights of Labor or Brotherhood
men dare in future ask for better treatment with
any assurance of receiving 1t. 1t must be a con-
soling thought to the monopolst 10 know that
his power is not half SO dangerous to the labor
organizations as the possibility that another
labor organization will espouse his cause,
through revenge Labor will forever be bound
hand and foot at the feet of capital as long as
one working man can be pitted against the
other. No strike should be entered
into until the court of last resort has been
reached, until the last effort consistent with
manhood had been made, until the heads of
the opposing forces on both sides have
been consulted and their verdict given;
| until the last bridge has been burned
between them. Then if it determined
that the last thing possible had been done to
avert trouble, every detachment Of labor's
army-horse, foot and artilery-should be
wheeled into line in defending the rights of the
men III the preach. L nave never seen Such a
strike and never expect to until the narrow
prejudices of the past are buried until the
principles of knighthood are properly under
stood. Then we will have strikes.
knights of Labor, from Maine to California
stand back. Keep your hands off. Let the law
of retaliation be disregarded and let the men
of the Chicago, Burlington g. Quincy railroad
win this strike if they can.
ct. V. POwDERLY,
General Master Workman
PROGRESS OF THE STRIKE
CHICAGO, Feb. 29.-The Chicago, Burling-