The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-07-25
Cosc OF tho Man Who Won't See.

Case OF the Man who Won't See.
Perhaps Mr.. GEORGE HENRY Of PlttsHeld
furnishes rs striking an example as any OF
n labor critic possessed OF that mental &C.
centricity which prevents him from seeing
the situation us 1t is in fact. Mr.. HENRY's
letter will speak for him:
"A workman desiring to secure OF trust control
ling corporation certain article. his previous dealings
in the same line having been with said corporation. s
informed that said corporation no longer manufac.
lures said article. but can furnish another equally
merttorious. Tho workman refuses tho equally mer.
itorous article and though he Is willing to pay for
what he wants unable to obtain IT, He forced to
take what tho trust manufactures do without. He
appeals to the State The state will give him no as
sisancc.
"A trust or controlling corporation desiring to Sc
cure labor enters into negotiation with labor union
previous dealings in tho same limo having been with
said union Tho corporation certain price and
certain conditions but is informed that tho union will
not furnish labor At said price and under the cond
tions named. Tho corporation. unable to agree with
tho union appeals to the State for assistance Tue state
grants assistance and such assistance enables tho cor
poratton to the labor desires at such wages as
will give and under whatever conditions 1t wishes to
impose 1t has always been understood that In the
eyes OF State Ohio law) the workman and tho cor.
poration equal footing.
Recent events At Homestead positively ana em.
phatically teach tho opposite"
Down to Mr.. HENRY's account OF the
union refusing to work for the prices and
conditions offered. he writes in complete
and unprecedented understanding Of the
subject; but then his understanding or his
accuracy leaves him. He begins to write
like tho false-speaking demagogues who
try to cover up the Homestead atrocities
by accusing the mill owners OF sending men
to invade the homes OF the rioters when
in truth the latter left their homes and
broke into the mills to shoot the Pinker-
tons. The next act in the Homestead
drama was not as Mr.. HENRY describes it.
The corporations appeal for aid didn't fol-
low its disagreement with the union. Be-
fore that happened the Homestead laborers
plunged Homestead into anarchy. They
robbed Mr.. CARNEGIE OF his property.
and attempted moro. They would have
robbed every laboring man OF tho sacred
right to barter his labor for the mill
owners money. They undertook to es-
tabish the most dcspotio and inhuman
tyranny. to overthrow the first principle
Of freedom. to prescribe. with threats Of
murder, who should work at Homestead
and who shouldn't: then the State appeared
in force.
Here comes the error OF Mr.. HENRY. and
Of others blind or perverted enough to
3y that tho enforcement Of order at
hmestead put the workingmen or the
1oos9g Of equality before the law. Troops
didn tro to Homestead to favor CARNEGIE.
but to l%stablish justice and to see fair
pay II t,e State had failed to go to Home
stead ana % give back to all citizens,
capitalists am laborers alike. what the
Anarchists had taken away from them.
IL would truly hye become guilty Of
gross and acknowledgements, for it would
have made itself the a.,er and abettor OF
an assault against the inatanable privileges
Of American freemen. and a,ainst the es-
sential order OF civilization. ,be State In
arms at Homestead was no moro ,ortia, to
the immediate opponents OF the rioters
than the Judge who sentences q poven
murderer holds the scales unevenly ssl.
anced toward tho side Of his victim.
II. in Interpretations case with which Mr.
HENRY starts out. the workman Is obliged
to take what the trust or corporation offers
or go without, 30 in the other case II
the trust or corporation can get no other
labor than the union offers. it must take it
or go without. But IL either eau get what
he wants elsewhere. he has right to get it
there: and If necessary tho whole power OF
the State Government must be exerted to
defend either or both. The question OF
sympathy or opinion as to the fairness OF
wages or profits is OF secondary i'm.
portanco during crisis seriously involv-
ing the issue between law and anarchy.
Mr. HENIY's meditation on the result of
State protection OF liberty and order. like
the ranting denunciation OF tho Pinker-
tons Invasion" of Homestead. is no more
accurate and no less inherently false and
vicious than the pleas with which the Chi.
cago Anarchists undertook to defend their
murderous emissarics three years ago.