The record-union., 1894-08-15
GRAND MASTER SOVEREIGN.
Sketch of His Career by One Who
knows linn.
[From the Los Angeles Times. ]

Sketch of His Career by One Who
Knows Him.
from the Los Angeles Times
The truth III regard to these demagogues
who nave arrogated TO themselves the
position of leaders of the workingmen Of
the United States is gradually being as
certained. They do not show UP in
very favorable light, but 1t is doubtful
whether any mum Ger of disclosures will
have much effect upon those men who are
so foolish as to follow such false prophets,
after the experience of the past. How
ever, in order that the truth shall pre-
vail, and that these men should not be
permitted to sail under false colors, it is
we'll that the facts should be given to the
! public.
A Santa Ana correspondent of the
Tunes sends us d copy of the Eldora (Har-
! din County, Iowa. Herald, which con-
/ tains brief history of Grand Master
| Sovereign of the Knights of Labor, as he
! IS known in that city, where he resided
from 1877 to 1880. Our correspondent
says that there are number of people in
Santa Ana from Hardin County, many of
whom know Sovereign very well-some
of them to their sorrow, in financial
way-and also confirm the truth Of the
article.
! According to this article Sovereign is
/ model labor agitator, Inasmuch as he Is a
| fraud and deadbeat OF the most pro-
nounced type. Following is the article:
James K. Sovereign, Grand Master
of the Knights of Labor of the United
! States. is but a fair sample of the political
agitators who are stirring up trouble
throughout the country. de is dema-
gogue without honesty, integrity or
honor. Sovereign resided in Eldora from
1917 TO 1880, where he pretended to follow
| the trade of marble-cutler. lie learned
/ 1. Nj,
Falls, and lett that city between two
days, taking new suit OF tailor-made
clothes with him, which he had not paid
for, and also leaving a number Of Otner
bills unpaid. He afterward ran marble
| shop al Ackley, and succeeded in getting
in DEBT to everybody who would trust
him. While at Ackley he got q lot Of
work and advertising of l.. b. Raymond
OF the Hampton Recorder, agreeing TO
send him an imposing-Stone. MIR. Kay
mond is still out his stone and pay for his
work.
sovereign could be very genial, and
worked his smiles TO perfection on those
from whom he expected credit. The
records OF the Office OF the clerk of the
courts snow judgment III favor OF Peter
Bannigan against j. Il. Sovereign for
$40 and costs, and one in favor of DeRoy
Ellsworth Tor So and costs. These judg-
ments were obtained over fifteen years
ago.~ There are unpaid claims against
| Sovereign among all the older merchants.
| DR.. Underwood has a claim Of 500 for
medical attendance, DR.. Morse 81 %, ;.
| L. Whitney SO or $50, Smith Il Petty
over $50; /. o. Narum, a large bill for
groceries; James StoltZ, several dollars
for vegetables; the HcrdEd, SIS for adj
vertising and job printing, pay for which
was promised when the work was done,
but was was taken out of the office by
Sovereign during the absence of the
writer. he telling our partner he would
pay for it Saturday. We visited Mir.
Sovereign nearly every Saturday during
the summer of 1879, but were never able
to get a cent. w. 7. Ebaugh, who
worked tor him in his marble shop at
this place, did not get paid for his labor
by this pretended friend of the laborlng
men.
while here he became nom Der of
lyceum and made loud harangues about
tyranny, oppression, corruption and
Five Points in New York. He would
raise his voice TO such pitch as to fire.
quently break down. During 1880 he
was away from home a great deal and
finally turned up missing. He went
from here 10 Cherokee and began his
first cain paign work for the Greenback
or anti-monopOly party. He afterward
started a Greenback paper at Atlantic
and became the friend OF organized labor
In 1889 he supported BOies for Governor
and advised all laboring men TO vote for
him because he was the friend of the
poor laboring man and the toiling mill
iOns.' AS reward Governor Boies made
him State Labor Commissioner.
During his administration as Labor
Commissioner he worked the calamity
racket on the people to the best of his
ability. BY the most unscrupulous and
dishonest methods he undertook to show
that the farmers, the laborerS, and, in
fact, everybody who worked, was becom-
ing poorer each year, and the rich were
becoming richer. 1t was from his figures
that Governor Boies made his celebr ated
speech in which he claimed that farmers
were losing 81 cents per acre in raising
corn. After he was appointed Labor
Commissioner at good salary number
of Eldora gentlemen, in cluding the Her
dLd editor, put their claims into n, s.
Carpenters hands for collection. At first
he paid no attention to these dunS, but
finally Carpenter received a letter from
Sovereign in which be said: Il do not
know Ross and do not owe him a cent. /
Will not pay the other bills you have eX-
cept part of the Ellsworth account. If
l undertook to pay all | owe IL would
take more than my salary Sovereign is
self-confessed dead-beat; has never
made a success oil any business he has
ever engaged in, and has left unpaid bills
in every town where he has ever resided.
Sovereign is no friend of laboring
men. He is dishonest, unscrupulous and
would not hesitate to sell out their inter-
est for consideration. He has political
mbitions and hopes by sowing the seeds
of discord between labor and capital to
succeed in his ambition. He does not
care how many poor laboring men may
| lose their jobs or families become desti-
tute by following his order for all toilers
to stop work SO long as it strikes at some
one more successful in business than he
has ever been. He is too lazy to earn an
honest living, and it is doubtful if he
ever did good. honest, full days work
in his life. While pretending to work at
| his trade here he always put in more time
| sitting down than at work. Why will
any body of honest men allow such an
unprincip pied dead-b beat, h ypocrite and
scab workman to head their order ?"