St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-12-03
OVATION TO BURNS.
The London Labor Leader
Among Yesterdays Ar
rivals in New York.
HE SPEAKS FROM THE DOCK.
Declines to Pass Upon Amer
lea Until He Looks the
Country Over.
HE SPEAKS FROM THE DOCK.
HE IS GOING TO DENVER
And Will Take in Pullman
Before Going Back to
England.

New YORK, Dec. 2.-Among the pas
sengers on thelCunard steamer Etruria,
which arrived here this morning, was
John NJ. Burns. member Of parliament,
the great socialist and labor leader of
London. A delegation from the labor
organizations of New York city met
him at Quarantine. The delegation
consisted of Z. F. Sweeney, assistant
commissioner of labor; Samuel Com
pers. president of the American FEEDER
alton of Labor: Chris Evans, secretary
OF that organization, and William
OBrien, the walking delegate. Mr..
Burns is accompanied on his preSe mt
trip by two fellOw-members of parIa-
ment-David Holmes, who represents
the town of Burnley, in Lancashire,
and who is president of the WeayeIs'
ASSOCIATION and a delegate to the con-
terence OF the Federation Of Labor, and
John Williams Benn, q member of the
London county council and member of
parliament for st. Georges East. Mr..
Benn is deeply interested in temper
ance affairs. Mr.. Burns. after he had
greeted the committee, asked to be
Excused for IL Moment
while he glanced over a letter from a
relative which had been handed to him
by Mr.. GOmpers pleading that ''the
solidarity of labor begin in the house,
hold" Then he talked to the repre-
sentative of the Associated Press.
'It would be unfair to the American
people for me to talk about them nOW."
Mr.. Burns said, "for, really. [ know
very little about them. l am pleased
with the result Of your municipal elec-
tion IN New York city, for. as we un
derstoOd, the victory was in the interest
Of pure municipal polit les, and as this
is my principal work at present as a
county councillor, it was particularly
interesting to me. | cannot talk fairly
of American affairs, for it would take
years Of work for me to become familiar
with them in way that would be salts
factory to me. AS for the socialist
movement in England. it has come to
stay. 1t will grow as it adaptS itself to
circumstances, and as long as it con-
forms to the covenants which have for
so long made the upper and middle
classes the ruling power. Socialism, as
it affects municipal matters, is not
mixed up with other issues. l have
been watching the labor movement in
America as closely as | could from
distance, and l have concluded that
there must be little more of the
Milk of Human Kindness
injected into labor affairs if they are to
progress. | would like to see them
progress.
On the dock were gathered about 200
members of the local labor unions, who
cheered loudly for John Burns" as he
walked down the plank. Then an in
formal reception was rendered him, and
Mr.. Dubar, of Typographical Union
No. 6, made brief speech of welcome.
In responding Mr.. Burns said it was an
agreeable coincidence that he, who had
been so strongly identified with the
docks in England, should make his first
speech in America on dock, with the
rattle of trucks and the swash of waters
in his ears. David Holmes followed with
a few remarks. and then the party pro-
ceeded democratically OH foot to the
COlonnade hotel along West street. On
many of the corners were gathered
groups of dock lab0rers and cattIemen,
who cheered for Burns as be ap-
preached, and many of them who had
come from London greeted him with
the old cry OF the London dock strike,
"How are you, John?" to which in
quiry Mr.. Burns responded by stopping
and shaking hands with them. Later
in the day Mr.. Burns received number
of newspaper men and talked for an
hour, relating how Mr.. Holmes and he
had been selected by the labor fedora
tion at Norwich to represent that body
in the American
Conference a Denver.
He said their duty was to convey the
felIcitatIons of English labor to that of
America. On his own visit here he said
he came first to observe the condition
of the labor movement in America, and
in what respects it differed from that in
England, and second, as a member of
parliament to visit congress and get
grasp of American political affairs. The
workings of the labor department under
Carroll d. Wright were OF great inter-
est to him, and, as county councillor,
he hoped to have the opportunity of in
specting the various municipal depart
ments OF the great cities of America,
more particularly of New York and
Chicago. Mr.. Burns inclined to believe
that among the cosmopolitan American
people it is possible to bring about con-
certed action for holding the wealthy in
check to prevent them from increasing
their holdings as rapidly as heretofore,
and he will devote particular attention
to the study Of that problem. But
above all, he declared, it was for trade
unionism that he was to work. He be-
lieved that ultimately the principles of
the trade union would be universally
regarded as necessary for carrying out
| any movement for human progress.
The Pullman Strike
/ and the report of the commissioner of
| labor, Mr.. Burns declined to BASS an
| opinion on until he had visited Pull
| man, which be meant to do In Eng
| land the strike had been watched close
| ly, and the general sentiment as de-
| clared was that it had been successful.
| In regard to the differences arising in
the English labor movement, Mr.. Burns
said, of course, they prevailed at times,
| but the unions were generally all to-
gether, and had been singularly sue-