The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-08-05
MR.. M'D0NNELL's GRIEVANCE.
He Says That Thcre Is No "Clique" Bear
ing His Name.

In your Issue Of yesterday you publish
a report of a meeting of the Central
Trades Assembly" Of Jersey City. The
report states that the call issued by me,
as chairman of the State Legislative Com.
mittee, requests all labor unions to elect
delegates, what for, no n seems to
know, as the chairman maps the whole
line of action which the convention shall
take. and determines which questions
shall be considered" The report then
adds:-''Thisi is regarded by the majority of
labor men in this city as an unwarranted
assumption of authority on his part, and
they sagely ask:-'Who made the creature
greater than the creator?' They cannot
understand by what authority d commit
tee appointed by a superior body attempts
to dictate how the proceedings of the SUI
perior body shall be managed"
So mo one seems to know" what the
call was issued for: And all because the
State Chairman "maps out the whole
line of action which the convention shall
take, and determines which questions
shall be considered" Now, has the chair
man done anything Of the kinds Does
who has heard it read, well know that
nothing has been mapped out or deter
mined by the chairman of the Legislative
Committee, and THAT the Congress
alone has the power to map out
and determined The call says
trade organizations that the subjects to
be discussed by the Congress be confined
to d few all important ones. BY under
taking to handle too many questions
valuable time will be lost, and strength
will be divided that should be Bhited. 1t
is earnestly desired that the Congress will
give first consideration to the following
fssues;-First-The reduction ofthe hours
Of labor. Second-BaIlot reform. Third
The legal prohibition of Pinkertonism in
New Jersey. Forrth-An amendment to
the factory law, making ten or less hours
illegal days work for women and minors.
Fifth-Adequate school accommodation
in all parts Of the State at State expense"
Now, permit me to ask If there is any
the whole line of action" and "deter-
mines which questions shall be con-
sideredg' If SO, where Is ttf Perhaps
some of the critical gentlemen who have
just joined some organization of working
men will obIige by pointing it out.
And then the call adds:-s'The fofeEo-
ing subjects are regarded with great IN
terest by the masses of wage earfers, - in
Guiding, | hope, the fault finders of Jer-
sey City. And it continues as follows
"Other matters, such as boiler inspection.
increase OF the captation tax of the Fed.
Grafton, prison reform and so forth, may.
of course, at the discretion of the Con-
gress, be considered but the necessity of
combining on o few vital issues is
urged.n Is this mapping OUTS is this
'derermining?" Is this an unjust as
sumption of authority?n The chairman
and Legislative Committee act upon the
instructions of many trade unions by
suggesting the consideration of several
issues and the thanks they now get for
doing their unpaid work is unjust criti-
cism on the part of persons who have
never yet been Interested in the Fedora
ton. These people should at least show
common sense md tell the truth.
Your report further states that the
State Federation was charged with being
q machine, y not for the Consideration Of
labor questions. but rather to boost
into office the controlling spirits" In
deedi Pray, who has been sboosteQn
into office? And what laws have been
passed in the interest of labor in this
State unless through the Federation 81
Trades? have yet to learn that our in
telligent critics in Jersey City have ever
by personal effort or peeuniarY Sacrifice
helped to pass n law in the Interest Of
labor. When they show themselves capa.
BILE OF sacrificing a modicum of what
others have voluntarily given up for the
welfare of labor, their words will be more
deserving of respect and attention.
Your report states that another pecl1-
liar feature which attracted attention was
the fact that credentials had been maiIed
to several unions, whose membership is
largely ON paper, while bona fide organ
izations like the painters, carpenters, Jer-
sey Association. etc. and in fact every
organization which was supposed TO be
against the Mcdonnell CLIQUE, were over
looked" Let me reply briefly to the
person who made this assertion in the
plain and unvarnishedlanguage of Horace
Greeley, "You lie, you villain. you lie y
Calls and credentials have been maiIed
to every bona tide trades union in JERSEY
City and elsewhere, including the United
brotherhood of Carpenters and ,Toiners
the Brotherhood of Painters, and soforth'
The Jersey Association I never heard of
before; it may be q political labor party
for aught | know. Every trades union in
this State whose address is in my poses
sion, and l am prepared to submit the list
at any time, has been mailed a copy of
the call. Indeed, | am free to say that the
organizations to which / first SENT the
official call were the trade unions. he
cause | consider the trade unions to be
the only real labor organizations.
l desire to say that there is not row.,
never has been, II with my consent.
never will be what is termed in YOUR re-
port "a Mcdonnell clique" / am a trade
unionist, first, last and all the time. and
If those who agree with me form 90
Mcdonnell clique" 1 must say that /
have cause to rejoice at the honor done
me.
Again, your report says.-.'The secre-
tary, however, vas directed to send notice
of the meeting to all bodies entitled to
receive it, whether they have been given
the courtesy of credentials or not"
haven't the slightest objection to this
| hope the secretary viii notify
all bona tide unions to send delegates and
tell them at the same time to send their
best men, not forgetting the capitation
tax. The Congress, l think, can be relied
on to reject the credentials of bodies
which are not genuine organizations and
which have their existence only Son
paper" In my Judgment only genuine
trade bodies should be allowed represen-
tation hereafter. Mixed bodies..a cas- a rule.
are not genuine organizations of wage
laborers and their place is more in tRe
political than in the economic movement
The final paragraph in your report rela-
tive to this question states that if | had
devoted more time to furthering labor
matters instead of working for d pfnce in
the Labor Bureau, the Federation Would
not be compelled to make announcement
IN its call that many Of the most i'm
labor measures were, we regret To
say, strangled at the last session Of The
legislature
Let me have the name of the individual
who made this charge. If he is not an TO-
noramus he must be q knave. | have
never spent one minute of my time lobby
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