Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1892-07-28
THE SUICIDE OF LABOR.
Good Advice and Practical Wisdom for
strikers. Anarchists, and Everybody.
From the independently


From the independently
Tho course of tho strike at Homestead is
tending rapidly to the usual inevitable re-
suit Labor has again committed suicide.
The congressional investigating commit
tee say That they were impressed with the
Intelligence of tho workmen who came be-
fore them. There is no doubt that the
leaders and most of the strikers arc in this
respect above the average. This being SO,
it is hard to understand why they should
have acted so foolshly. Thoy have placed
themselves in "A most humliating position,
and arc paying dearly in the modification
they now feel for the momentary satisfac-
ton they had in lording it over their en-
| ployers and the 800 Pinkertons
The lesson which the Homestead affair
teaches has been taught again and again in
tue history of strikes in this country. 1t Is
that violence always destroys the hope of
the strikers. Their strongest ally is public
opinion. If public opinion is with them.
they may hope to prevail. If not, they can
hardly succeed. Almost the frat thing the
homestead men did was to ALLEVIATE public
! opinion. knowing that they were more
numerous and had more physical power
than their employers, they sought by the
use OF force to bring their employers to
else the right Of ownership; they barred
thom out of their own property; they took
up arms against their representatives and
drove them away; they confl,cated, tenn
pornrily, the possessions of the company.
lhis IS mob law, pure and simple,
and mob law is rebellion against
civil law and civil rulers. The work men at
Homestead levied war against tho ms titu-
lions Of the state of Pennsylvania The
strange thing is that as intelligent men they
dld not seem - understand their position
When they heard that the governor had
ordered out the entire military force Of tho
stale they proposed to receive the soldiers
with brass bands and addresses of welcome.
lhey seemed never to aues5 that the soldiers
were coming to Homestead to use bullets
ana bayonet5 Against them rioters and
reu9is. lhev We're surprised when Gen
Snowden met their advances with GOODNESS.
They were Inundated. They were a sorry
set of men wien they saw the town and
mills p,cke I'D, and watch set upon them.
1t was grievous dsappoin 1ant But it is
a mystery that it should ha = been.
They now snow that they must lie pre-
pared for further humiliation and for heavy
losses. The State of Pennsylvania means
to put the owners in full possession and
contro! of the mis-. The owners mean to
MT non Union man in tb, ,,.orLs o,d ,L,,,
mean 70 refuse henceforth to recognize the
workmen's association. They barred out
the owners for few days, but now the
strong hand of the law has interviewed, and
they find themselves barred out. They have
done very foolish thing; they have played
a losing game. IL they get back at ell, they
must go back as individuals on the com
pany'S terms, and as beaten rioters. The
miners have bebove1 in the san,a idio,ic
way. They struck rs thew had n riobt
TO do. Then tlev strrcl, thctr non.nria,,
successors y, thav had no ri,ht to do rhov
made war against the peace ond order of ths
State, and the State invoked the strong orr,
of the federal government to nut down tbe
rebellion and bring the rebels n irstico
What s+ro,ro .,toli.,- !, it tLat ,ii.,5.
workmen to the hard srd inev;teho nanaItv
that oyertakes those who rnsort "a violance,
Law must protect propsrtv rights ~ if
did not, what would become Of the snug
homes of tina worlr.rs II +,ov NOV 10
wade the propertv RIGHTS of their emuIoy.rs
why NAV not tho enlrlovnrs in turn invsda
the propertv RIGHTS Of Inc yvorkmens can
they not see TINT ths instinct of saIrprsss,.
walton rouses the renornl ruhlic in antagor-
ism to them the moment they Law hands IN
the prOperty of their enDlOvsrs
The workmen in the Carnooie mills in
Harrisburg have s,rucl, in "svmnsthv ,, as
they call il, with their Homestead hrethran
They had no grievance. they b,d inst si,,nod
the schedules and promisai tbair labor for
another wear; but tbey struck becousc the
companv would not anraa to tre,t ,yitb tho
Homestead striker, az union men They
break their contract ont Of "svmnstbv :,
THE il cortoirl,. ,.,,,. III !. IN -.
str.n,,tLon ,','a,'1-.,..s i,.'.- WI va,
in the svmnathv of tho ,,,,I,c uhioh 10 .
sympathy worth something. The workaen
have simply cut or Their own noses and
prepared themselves for inevitable humilia-
ton. Why do a body of men reputed to b.
above the average in intelligence show so
little sense
There has been no little talk about ar
bitratiou. Arbltrat on is good where both
sides can be brought to agree to it. If one
side objects, it is, OF course. impracticable.
Compulsory arbitration is n OF to be thought