The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1894-07-14

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Dsbs and sevsrsiea Jeda II = osnn
nieation . the uatienal Ixes1tivoI
The following letter Was sent b
! telegraph to President Cleveland
; BY Debs and Sovereign:
CHICAGO, July ITO Hon. GRt
YER CLEVELAND, Washington. DC.
Dear Sir-Through : long perio
of depression. enforced idleness an
low wages, resulting in widesprea
poverty and in many cases Of actus
starvation, the working people hav
been patient, patriotic and Law
abiding, and not until the iron bee
| of corporate tyranny was applies
with the intention to subjugate th
working people to tho will Of AFRO
giant monopolies did they make an.
effort to stay their oppressors. Th
Pullman strike was not declares
until the employees Of the Pullman
company were driven to the verge o
starvation, their entreaties spurnet
with contempt, and their grievances
denied q hearing. No refusal t.
handle Pullman cars was declared
by any railway employe until al
propositions looking towards arbi
tration were rejected by the Pull
man company.
Notwithstanding the facts eel
forth above were known to tho pub
lie and to the national authorities
you have seen fit. under the guise o.
protecting mails and federal prop
erty, to invoke the services Of the
United States army, whose very
presence is used to coerce and in.
timidate peaceable working people
into humiliating obedience to the
will of their oppressors.
By your acts, in so far as you
have supplemented civil and state
authorities with the federal military
power, the spirit of unrest and de-
struction has so far been augmented
that a deep-seated conviction is fast
becoming prevalent that the gov
eminent is soon to be declared q
military despotisn.
The transmission of the United
States mail is not interrupted by
striking employees of any railway
company but by railway companies
themselves, who refused to haul
mails on trains to which Pullman
cars were not attached. As it has
been the common practice of rail-
way corporations to attach and de-
tach from mail trains Pullman
Palace cars at will while said trains
are in transit and carrying mails,
it would seem an act Of discrimina-
lion against employees of railway
corporations to declare such acts
unlawful interference with trans
mission of mails when done by en-
ployes with or without the consent
If their employers.
In view of these facts, we look
,pon the far-fetched decision of At
;orney General Olney, the sweeping
njunctions against railway en-
>loyes and the movements of the
'egular army as employing the
powers of the general government
or the support and protection of
he railway corporations in their
determination to degrade and op-
,ress their employees.
As all students of government
gree that free institutions depend
or their perpetuity upon the free
lom and prosperity of the common
people, it would seem more in con-
onance with the spirit of demo.
ratio governmental federal author
ty was exercised in defense of the
lights of the toiling masses to life,
'ody and the pursuit of happiness.
But, on the contrary, there is not
IN instance on record where in any
conflict between corporations and |
he people the strong arm Of the
military power has been employed
o protect the working people and
Industrial masses from the ravages |
# persecution of corporate greed. |
Now, sir, we pledge to. you the
'ower of our respective organiza-
ions, individually and collectively, |
or the maintenance Of peace and
,ood order, and preservation of
ife and property and aid in pun
shment of all criminals. In the
resent contest between labor and
be railway corporations We shall
|se every peaceable and honorable
means at our command consistent
nth law and our constitutional
lights to secure for the working
'eople just compensation for labor
|one, and respectable consideration
n accordance with the rights of all
aen and the spirit of republican