Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-08-22
SOLID SYMPATHY
Wanted by the Knights in Fight
Now Raging.
CASH, s5T TALK, THE ESSENTIAL.

The Master Workman Makes an Appeal
to the People and to Organized Labor
for the Sinews of war-He HauIs Webb
and the Pinkertons Over Hot Coals-A
Straight Question to Chief Arthur
Asked to Stand Up and BE Counted on
One Side or the Other.
| NEW YORK, Aug. 22-The statement
yesterday that General Master Workman
Powderly had issued an appeal to the
knights of Labor calling on them to
| strike against the New York Central was
| somewhat premature, as was the sensa-
| tional report that the firemen at Buffalo
had quit work. The firemen say they will
not quit until they get the word from
their officers, but it is evident that they
| expect that word in the near future, and
will obey it with alacrity. Powderly's APP
peal was issued last night and is ito the
| people" and gives the situation, as seen
by the knights of Labor and their leaders,
| at great length.
Appeal of the Chief n. of L.
Mr.. Powderly's appeal is as follows:
ITO THE PEOPLE: For some time the
| management of the New York Central
| and Hudson River railroad have been dis
| charging employees who have been active
in labor affairs 1t happens that all those
who have been dismissed are members of
| the order of knights of Labor and have
| at one time or another been officers of the
| order, or have served on committees which
| waited on the officials with a view to pre-
a ha
came so frequent. and were so clearly evil
| dence of a settled purpose on the part of
| the company to disrupt and destroy the
organization of the Knights of Labor on
| the Central system that the execut i've
board of District assembly No. 346, in
| which the Knights of Labor upon the sys-
tenn are enrolled, found it necessary to
call special meeting in New York to con-
| slider the situation.
| Hollands Interview With Webb.
In the meantime the executive board
having been apprised of the condition of
| affairs sent one of his members, Mr.. J. j.
Holland. to New York, with instructions
| to use all possible efforts to bring about
an amicable adjustment of the difficulty.
On his arrival in New York, after a con-
ference with the representatives of the
district assembly, in the course of which
he obtained a full knowledge of the
trouble from the standpoint of the men,
he waited upon Mr.. ii. Walter Webb.
third vice pre- sident and acting manager
of the company, to adjust the difficulties.
Mr.. Webb denied that there was any
trouble existing between the company
and its employees. and frequently declared
that he would not discuss the matter with
any one not an employee of the company,
and closed the interview
No Alternative but to Strike.
Finding all efforts to effect n peaceable
settlement of their grievances impossible,
and being convinced that it was only IA
question of time when they would one and
all be discharged unless they forfeited
their manhood and abandoned their privi-
leges citizens of a free country by
renouncing their right to join their fell
lows in an organization calculated to pro-
tect their just rights without intrenching
upon those of others, the district execu-
tive board had no alternative but to order
a strike, which they did"
Efforts of Powderly and Devlin.
Mr.. Powderly then goes on to give the
details of the interviews with Toueey and
Webb on Wednesday substantially as re-
ported in these dispatches, wits the addi
ton that Devlin asked if he WAS to un-
derstand that Mr.. Webb assumed that the
public and the employees had no rights
that he was bound to consider, and if he
looked upon the matter simply as though
the railroad was his own private property.
II so, there was no need of saying any
thing further. Mr.. Webb hesitated, and
then took refuge in silence The public
may have formed erroneous impressions of
the position of the Knights of Labor in
the controversy. We do not pretend to
dictate to the company that it shall not
discharge employees. but in all fairness the
discharged man should be told why he is
dismissed.
Blacklisted for Promoting Legislation.
"During the session of the state legisla-
ture the knights of Labor of New York
were active in the passage Of the weekly
pay bill. The committee of the knights.
representing the employees of the New
York Central railroad, were met at Albany
by the attorneys of the railway and brow
beaten, questioned, and terrorized. Some
OF the members of that committee who
were at the time employed by the New
York Central were discharged without
any given cause There is not a doubt in
the minds of the committee that these
men were singled out for endeavoring to
secure the passage of the above mentioned
law
VIII Stand by the Men
After thoroughly investigating the
causes which led to the strike, and after
making every effort in their power to in
duce the company to arbitrate or submit
to an investigation by impartial men of the
question at issue, the general executive
board have by an unanimous vote
determined to stand by the men.
who, whether their strike was op-
perfume or no, had no alternative consis-
tent with their manhood. have no
doubt that it is the determination of the
management to destroy the organization
of labor along the line of the New York
Central unless that organization sub
serviently bends its knee to the will of the
Vanderbilts.
A Question of veracIty.
During the controversy Messrs Toucey
and Webb stated and repeated the state
ment that the men were not discharged |
because they were Knights of Labor and |
they expect the public to believe them,
simply because they say so. Both of these |
gentlemen deny certain things in relation |
TO their conversation with me, which both |
Mr. Devlin and myself are prepared to |
make affidavit to. may therefore be ex- |
cused if am not prepared to accept as |
true beyond question any denial by them |
of statements made by men whose words |
should be of equal value with theirs"
Wants Money But Not Moral support.
Mr.. Powderly then with much elabora-
ton gets down tothe pith of his document |
He says the strikers do not need moral
support, but money, and this he asks not
only of organized labor but also of the |
general public, whose battle he claims the |
knight are fighting. He charges that the
zeal animus of the action of the New York