Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1892-07-23
CONTINUED from First Page.l
THE W0RKMEN
In the Homestead Mills Make a Statement Of Their
Position and Their Course For the Benefit Of
the Public-Anyanced Views Upon the In
dustriai Situation-The Rights They Claim.

HOMESTEAD, PA, July 22.-The Ad-
visory Committee Of the locked-out
Homestead workmen issued statement
to-day defining their position. The
statement is as follows:
1.-THE most evident characteristic Of
our time and country is the phenomen
of industrial ntralization, and is put
ting the control Of each OF our great
national industries into the hands OF
one, or a,few men, and giving those men
enormous and despotic power over the
lives and the fortunes Of their employees
and subordinates, the great mass OF
the people, power which eviscerates
our National constitution and our COM
mon law, and directly antagoniZes the
spirit Of universal history in its world
wide struggle after lawful liberty,
a power which though expressed in
terms OF current speech as the right OF
employers to manage their business to
suit themselves, is coming TO mean in
effect nothing less than right to man
age the country to suit themselves.
The employees in the mill OF Messrs. Car
negie, Phipps & Co., at Homestead, Pa,
have built there town with its homes,
its schools, and its churches; have for
many years been faithful co-workers
with the company In the business of the
mill; have invested thousands OF dollars
of their savings in the said mill, in
the expectation of spending their lives
in Homestead and OF working in the
mill during the period Of their eff
cheney.
1.-The National Legislature has seen
fit to specially foster and protect by
public taxation the industry Of their
mills, and the State of Pennsylvania is
to-day guarding it at great and extra
ordinary expense. Therefore the COM
mittee desires to express 20 the public
as its firm belief, that both the public
and the employees aforesaid have equit-
able rights and interests in said mill,
and cannot be modified or diverted
without due process Of law; that the
employees have the right to continuous
employment in the said mill during efi-
cheney, and good behavior without re-
gard TO religious, political or economic
opinions and associations; that II is
against public policy and subversive OF
the fundamental principles OF American
liberty that a whole community OF work
ers should be denied employment or
suffer any other detriment on account OF
membership in church, political
party or trades union; that II Is our
duty as American citizens to resist by
every legal and ordinary means the I'M
constitutional, anarchal and revolution
airy policy OF the Carnegie company,
which seems to evidence contempt OF
public aud private interests and dis
dain of the public conscience by It's re-
fusal to submit to lawful arbitration,
and by the lawless importation of
band Of armed mercenaries to forcibly
deprive the employees of their equitable
rights in advance OF any legal adjudica-
ton thereupon and without previous
appeal to the lawful forces of Allegheny
county and the State Of Pennsylvania.
The committee wishes 1t known that
we will prosecute the said public and
private interests in the courts of law
and equity, and that we demand of Con-
gress and the State Legislature distinct
assertion Of the principle that the pub
lie has an interest in such concerns as
that at Homestead, and that the State
has duty to Judge the affairs or such
concerns when occasion may require.
FINALLY, we desire TO state emphat-
ically that as defenders Of and petition
ers for law and order, we pledge our
selves to refrain from violence and law
lessness, ond that we rest our cause,
which is the peoples cause, the cause Of
American liberty against Anarchy on
one hand and despotiSm on the other,
with the courts. the legislatures and the
public conscience"