Los Angeles herald., 1890-11-12
KNIGHTS OF LABOR.
The General Assembly Con-
vened at Denver. r.,
Master Workman POwderly's
Annual Address.
He Wants the Knights to Discuss the
Tariff Question.
The New York Central Strike Reviewed
and the Subsidized Press Sc
verely Scored.
Associated Press Dispatches.

Associated Press Dispatches.
DENVER, Colo, Nov. 1.-THE general
assembly of Knights of Labor convened
this morning, with about 200 delegates
present. General Master Workman
Powderly read his annual address, after
which the meeting adjourned until to-
morrow.
A public reception was rendered the
delegates this afternoon, at which sew
eral thousand people assembled.
Powderly, in his annual report, touch
ing on the economic policy of the gov
ernment, said in part: ave have not,
as an order, adopted tariff or anti
tariff clause in our preamble, and I do
not advise such thing now. We
should, however. open the doors OF our
assemblies for the discussion of this
great problem, so the members may be-
come educated in the basic principles of
protection and free trade. | recommend
that on and after the 1st of January,
next, it shall be permissible for local
assemblies to discuss the question:
Which will bring the greatest good to
the greatest number, tariff or free trade?
Thus we do not commit the order to
either school, and yet allow the mem
bers to take up for discussion and agi-
tation that vital question"
Upon the question of maintaining
legislative committees, Powderly
thought if the assembly decided to main
tain them it should also decide what
measures they shall advocate, how far
they may go, and with whom they may
cooperate, SC they may not be consid-
cred the legitimate prey of every faction
and political party.
Mr.. Powderly dwelt at length upon
the New York Central strike. He said
in part: individual efforts in the
direction of ameliorating conditions that
were not easy of endurance had proved
abortive.- Pablic officials were appealed
to here and there, but nothing ever
came OF it. The public press, from
Buffalo to New York, was with but a few
honorable exceptions, under the infu-
ence of the Vanderbilt system. With
chosen servants of the public travelling
on passes, with the editors of the papers
along the road subsidized in the same
manner, it became impossible for the
workmen to get the public ear or place
their grievances before the officials of
the company without subjecting them
selves to dismissal"
Referring to the visits of committees
of the men to railway officials, Powderly
eaid: THE idea OF meeting on the level
of equality with the employees for the
purpose of discussing terms of agree
ment, was repugnant to men whose
aristocratic tendencies were given birth
beneath the shadow OF the house of Van
derbilt, and means to put stop to those
opportunities were sought for. The
plan of picking Off the spokesman in
order to terrify the others was resorted
to, and one after another was discharged
in the hope that the lesson would be of
practical value to the company in terror
izing the rank and file."
Referring to the correspondence with
Master Workman Lee, Powderly says:
MANY malicious persons and papers
presumed to interpret my Language as
being in favor of conspiracy to get up
a strike, either during the presidential
year or when the Worlds fair was in
progress. What l said was, that if the
organization could be kept UP until the
Worlds fair, the New York Central
would not be able to refuse any just
concession. Those who saw conspiracy
in that sentence, would, if
they were just, say that no
just concession should be refused in any
year. / am opposed to strikes; my
views on the subject are well known;
but ii men are to gain anything they
must be organized they must be pre-
pared to strike, even though we never
do it. Ii we must have strikes, then we
should prepare for them, and not allow
every subordinate to rush the order into
fhara OF rpnroanf,c WI bout
aration. If 1898 should be the best year
to gain what is just and right and proper
for labor, and flat refusal should be
given, that would be the best year to
strike in, and not at time when no
preparation has been made. During the
New York Central strike we had an op-
portunity to learn who our friends were
among the newspapers, and found they
were exceedingly few. We were given
quantities of counsel: warning
and censure. Many papers friendly
to us, did not seem to
understand the situation or the necessi-
ties of the men who worked for low
wages. After the Central strike ended,
there were rumOrs of another ON the
Erie, and the papers began to show that
there was no necessity for q strike on
that road. for the managers and work
men were working in harmony. There
will always be harmony between en-
ployer and employee when the former
has it in his power to dictate what the
employee shall eat, drink and wear
When the employer has a monopoly of
the market, he has also a monopoly of
the harmony that our papers prate
about so much.
We see the editor of New York
paper and the president of the New
York Central railroad operating the
raising of fund to feed men and
women in Ireland, who have been
robbed through exactly the same dia-
bolical system that is now beginning to
rob the workmen of America. That
which is found worthy of praise in the
Irish workman who strikes against in
justice, is damned in his brother in
America when he asks for enough
to keep his children out of the poor
house. In order to prevent strikes, we
must make every preparation to make
them successful when entered upon, and
legislation in that direction must be en-
acted n This session or vNur inpou,iup