The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-08-22
THE GREAT BATTLE.
The Labor Leaders Are Prepar-
ing for the Conflict.
POWDERLY'S LATEST MANIFESTO
He Gives the Knights Version of the Trouble
THE Grand Master Workman
y is Very Determined.

bO -tue ldDOF leduerS Ike pause III d DdIblc
They say it has been to them day of prep
aration after the declaration of war before
the set-to. Never before has Powderly
been in the heat of contest like the one
believed to be coming. He has never yet
ordered strike, and feels some pride on
the record of peace which he feels
is his. There is little doubt, how
ever, about his determination in this
case. His men say he is here to stay, and
the executive board says its headquarters
during the strike, if one is ordered, will be
in this city. 1t is clear that Powderly and
his cabinet intend, if strike is made, that
the general responsibility shall be brought
just as close as possible to the rank and
file. This purpose underlies the orders of
the board to the local master workman to
consult his district assembly. Also the
order which has gone up the river to AL
bany, to convene their district assemblies
Monday. At these meetings the local as
semblies will voice their disposition as to a
general strike, and the result will be that
fair consensus OF opinion among the men
may be had.
To-day Pswderly has been preparing the
following which he made public tonight:
For some time the management of the
New York Central & Hudson River rail
road has been discharging employees who
have been active in labor affairs. 1t hap
pens that all those who have been dis
missed are members of the order of the
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 view to presenting
grievances. These discharges became so
frequent, and were clearly evidence of the
settled purpose on the part of
the company to disrupt and destroy
the organization of the Knights Of
Labor upon the Central system that the
executive board of District Assembly 246,
in which the Knights of Labor upon the
system are enrolled, found it necessary to
call a special meeting to consider the situa-
ton In the meantime the general execu-
tive board having been apprized of the con-
dition of affairs, sent one of its members,
j. j. Holland, to New York with instruc-
bring about an anicable adjust
ment OF the difficulty. On his
arrival in New York, Holland, after
a conference with a representative of the
district assembly, in the course of which
he obtained full knowledge of the trouble
from the standpoint of the men, waited
upon Vice President Webb. Holland
stated to Webb that he had called upon him
to endeavor to adjust the unpleasantness
existing between the company and its
Knights of Labor employees. Webb de-
MED there was any trouble existing be-
tween the company and its employees.
| Holland told him that he as a member of
the general executive board of the Knights
of Labor had come at the request of the
| men, made through the organization to
which they belonged, District Assembly 226
| Webb brusquely declared ne, would not dis
cuss the matter with anyone not an en-
ployee OF the company, and closed the inter
view. Finding all efforts to effect peace
able settlement of their grievances
| impossible, and being convinced it was
only question of time and convenience to
| the company when they would one and all,
be discharged unless they forfeited
their manhood and abandoned their
| privilege as citizens of a free country
renouncing their right to join their fellows
| in organizations calculated to protect their
| just rights without intruding on those of
others. The district executive board had
no alternative but to order strike, which
| they did. The public is already acquainted
with the details of the affair and repeti-
ton is scarcely necessary. The most earn
est and sincere efforts of the general officers
| to secure a hearing for the discharged men
were unavailing The correspondence
which passed between the general master
workman and Webb has been published.
Wednesday morning, August 90 John Dew.
| lill3 VI buo ScucTdl cAcCuGlV0 ana nv
self waited upon Toucey and the general
superintendent and endeavored to have the
matter arbitrated or investigated. Toucey
was emphatic in his refusal. On the after
noon OF that day Webb was visited by
| the same gentlemen, and he reiter-
ated what Toucey had said in
morning. 1t was suggested to him that
disinterested parties hear and determine.
1t was also suggested during the investiga-
| q off ND ~
Investigation proceeded with. That was
refused. Then the following proposition
was made by me: "Webb, could you not
! sit down with me, in the presence of the
men who are discharged and allow me to
question them in your presence, so that |
might know the facts of the case and be
better able to arrive at a decision!'
This, Webb emphatically refused. Devlin
then said: s'Do l understand you to as
sumo that the public and the employees
have no rights that you are bound to con-
slider and do you look upon the matter
simply as though the railroads were your
own property, because if you take that
view of it there is no need of our saying
anything further?" Webb hesitated and
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. During the session of
the last state legislature the Knights of
Labor of New York were active in the
passage of the weekly payment bill. A
committee of knights representing the en-
ployees of the New York Central were
faced in the legislature committee room
at Albany by attorneys for the railroads
and browbeaten, questioned and terror
lied. Some members of that committee
who were at the time employed by the
New York Central were discharged with
out cause, or rather without any given
cause. There exists not the shadow of a
doubt in the mind of that committee that
these men were singled out for endeavorine
to secure the passage of the
above mentioned law. After thoroughly
investigating the causes which led
to the strike, ana after making every effort
! in their power to induce the company to
arbtrate or submit to an investigation by
impartial men the question at issue, namely
whether the men were discharged because
they were Knights of Labor, and for the
purpose of destroying their organization as
they believe and maintain, or for jus;
cause and proper reasons as the officials
of the company allege, the general execu-
tive board has bya unanimous vote deter
mined 10 stand by the men, who, whether
their strike be opportune or not, as the
only alternative consistent with their man.
hood. have no doubt BUTT is the deter
mination of the management to destroy
!, the organization of labor along the line OF
the New Y ork Central unless the organiza-
J ton subsequently binds the knee to the will
of the Vanderbilts During the controversy
} Toucey and Webb stated, and repeated the
statement, that the men were not dis
charged because they were knights an6
! they expected the public to believe then
simply because they say so. Both these
L9entlemen denv certain things in relation