The record-union., 1894-08-21
STAND BY THE GUARD.
Patriotism and the Security of Prop
erty.
Post-Intelligencer. ]

Seattle acknowledgement
There is general Indignation expressed
in Chicago against mum ber of merchants
who have discharged their employees
who were necessarily absent on duty
with the militia The last man to do so
unpatriotic an act as to discharge an en-
ploye absent on military duty should be
trader, merchant or man OF business OF
any sort, for the safety of his business,
the preservation of property, really rests
upon the bayonets OF the uniformed SOL
diery of the State. Ordinary disturb
ances can be easily quelled by the police.
but in event of a very great and sudden
danger to the security of the life and
property of the citizen, the great city is
always obliged to call on the Governor TO
reinforce her police with the militia OF
the State. This situation has presented
itself over and over again in the Oldest
and Thost powerful States of the East,
and in every instance order has been re-
stored and property protected by resort
to the militia.
The great city of New York has as fine
body OF police. 1900 strong, as there are
IN the world. The men are stalwart,
brave, well-armed, under admirable dis
clpline, and yet the police Of New York
City could not master the draft riot OF
July, 1868, because the militia of the city
were absent at Gettysburg, and had 1t
not been for the arrival of a detachment
OF United States regulars" from the
forts in the harbor and the return of the
city militia the riot would not have ended
in three days.
The experience in New York and Penn
sylvania has been the same; great riots
cannot be dealt with by the police or by
Sheritf's posse. This is true of the
United States. and the English press con-
Tess that it is true of Great Britain. When
we remember this fact, and remem ber also
that we are not likely to see very soon
any Increase of our small regular army OF
., 900 men, it does seem pure idiocy for a
large merchant, trader and property
holder to discharge an employe because
OF enforced absence on important military
duty. The merchant and trader ought
to be the most patriotic of all citizens; he
ought to be the first to stand up for the
maintenance of an efficient militia; of all
men he ought not to put ban upon
an employe who has been summoned
to do military service for the State.
If these merchants will take the trouble
to read the history OF the great riots of
this century, they will find that the mo-
ment riot gathers any head, no matter
what was the pretext of the mob-rising,
the stores and shops are looted right and
left. That was the experience of New
York City in the draft riots of 1868; the
mob when il reached Union square and
Fourteenth street at once looted the great
clothing store of Brooks Brothers. There
is no logical connection between rising
up to DEFY and resist the draft law and
robbing a great clothing store, but all
riots are alike in that respect. The riot
ers who followed Lord George Gordon in
1850, nominally to protest against popery,
soon fell to robbing and numbering Pro-
testants as well as Catholics.
1t is said that councils of war never
fight, it is certainly true that traders and
merchants, as a rule, not only will not
fight, when they can buy out Of war, but
they seem to have kind of ill-conceal ed
contempt for soldier and all his works.
This is natural enough in one way, for
worker and producer instinctively dis
likes an idler and nom producer, but to
merchant or trader of the slightest pow
ers OF reflection it must be evident that
the security of his goods and his gold, the
liberty he enjoys to ply his vocation, rest
i'll times of sudden, serious civic riot.
upon The bayonets of the State and the
nation.
When the mass of traders, merchants
and property forget this fact and
begin to treat their citizen soldiery with
contempt and neglect, the time is not far
distant when riot will rudely remind the
trader that he cannot afford TO despise the
soldier of the State, and above all he can
not afford to neglect the citizen soldiery
who make up our National Guard, for in
their ranks he finds his political peers,
his neighbors, his social companions and
friends.
A wise and thoughtful merchant will