Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-07-28
Views of a Prominent Labor Leader
on the Situation.
THE RECENT STRUGGLE REVIEWED
Reforms Must Hereafter Be Accom-
pIished by Legislation.
THE WATCHWORD
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star.
The turbulent condition Of labor through
out the United States during the last few
months. eliminating more recently in the
great strike of the American Railway
Union, the acts of violence necessitating
the employment of federal and state troops
to preserve the public peace and protect
private property from destruction accom-
panied by open expressions of HOSTILE
ty to the authority OF law, should be
sufficient to cause every thoughtful lever of
liberty and the institutions of z free
government to pause and consider the
situation as 1t really exists today. and
seek dilig, ntly for such remedies as
shall prove of permanent benefit to the
nation and the nations people. The careful
observer must admit that we are fast ap-
preaching an Industrial revolution-aye, II
is here already-snd it now becomes the
duty of all who would avert bloodshed to
apply their best energies to an equitable
adjustment of the labor problem which shall
be at once peaceable and effective.
Fair Play for All.
The American people are great lovers of
justice and fair play, and he whose cause
is just will always find willing advocates
and able defenders among all classes Of
people. But before any mans grievance is
taken to the court of last resort-the peo-
ple-it must first have been proven to be
absolutely just. The statement Of Mr.
Debs and his associates first given to the
public found Judgment in the hearts of the
masses. for 1t appeared that the employees
OF the Pullman Company had been most I'M
fairly treated by their employers. But when
Mr.. Pullman was heard, his statement
haty contradicting most of the salient
points in the controversy, the public were
left to Judge between the two, and even yet
the sympathy was with the workmen. But
when, in the furtherance of their plans to
cripple the commerce of the nation as a
means of compelling the submission Of Mr..
Pullman to the terms proposed by hrs en-
pioyes. the third party interested-the pub
hc-was made the greatest sufferer of ali.
Then 1t was that the A. r. U. lost the SYM
pathy Of the thoughtful conservative ele-
ment in every community.
Pullman and His Men.
1t is not the purpose of this article to de-
fend Geo. NJ. Pullman, but rather to call
the attention of the reading public to some
features OF the controversy not heretofore
touched upon from an impartial standpoint,
and at the same time offers some sugges-
tions and comments on the labor situation
generally as II exists at The present time.
Mr.Puiiman is a creature of nineteenth CEN
fury civilization and United States laws.
he IS charged with having made himself
nifty times a millionaire out OF the labo of
his wcrkmen, and the statement has gone
SO lar unchalenged. There are many men
in the tanks of labor who know better. But
TO champion the cause of an employer in
such a controN ersy as this, even If he is
known to be in the right is TO forfeit the
friendship of ones associates in the ranks
OF labor, and the labor leader who does ii
put invites condemnation and defeat. Yes,
ne invites even more than that-he invites
the blacklist from his fellows as surely as
does the aggressive striker from his en-
ployers.
Labor Leaders Are Politicians.
Knowing this. the average leader Of
labor's forces becomes q politician, in that
he first ascertains what his followers want
and then tries to get it for them, even
against his own better Judgment. Senator
Arthur p. German is reported to have said
to a delegation of workmen. who asked
him to support movement to place the
telegraph under government control: Il
don't know how the plan would work but
the people seem to want ii, and / am in
favor. of it," 1t was the answer Of a
shrewd, practical politician, and the leader
of labor who would retain his hold on his
followers pursues the same tactics. The
field of labor is strewn with the wrecks Of
leaders who attempted to turn the tide
from its desired course. And had Eugene
V. Debs, James r. Sovereign or Samuel
Gompers made stand against the general
tie-up they, too, would have been brushed
aside by the more radical element. 1t Is
an easy matter to inflame an audience of
hard working men with references to the ex-
travagant modes of life INDUCED in by the
wealthy employers. And when such men
satisfy such indulgences comes from the
profits of their toll 1t all but maddens them
But is this aiways-or ever-the case? r-.-
How Pullman Made His Money.
So far as Mr.. Pullman is concerned, It is
we'll known that his wealth is a result of
unjust patent laws, which grant a monopoly
right to an inventor. His genius gave to
the travelling public desired accommoda-
tons. The public demand for the same
cCmpels the railroad companies to run his
cars whether they want to or not, and Pull
man has made his millions, not out of his
workmen, but out of the travelling public
who use his luxurious cars. And the peo-
pie VINO are mulcted by him in extortonate
charges for the accommodations provided
are not, as rule. complaining about it
either. The trouble here is in the law
which grants to one man such monopoly
The sleeping car has become a public neces-
sity. When anything becomes a public ne
cessity it becomes legitimate function of
government to protect its people from ex-
tortion. Congress should do one of two
things in this instance, either pay to Pull
man lump sum for his patents and throw
them open to public competition or enact
an interstate law REGULATE the charges
for Pullman service land, we might add
parenthetically, abolish the system Of tip
ping the porters.) o. '--1-'.-'..' ''T'
The Sewing Machine MonopOly,
No one ever rallied against Isaac NJ. Sim
ger because he amassed q fortune of S. :
100000 or 100000 out of his sewing ma
chine, yet he robbed the people under the mo-
nOpoly right granted him by law worse than
Pullman ever thought of doing. The product
of Singer cost about $4,000, 900 to build and
was sold for SS0,OO0,OOO. The sewing ma
chine was labor-saver for the sewing wo-
men of the land, while the Pullman parlor
or sleeping car is at most but a necessary
convenience for those who travel, and this
class of people are usually able to paw for
their extra accommodations. Mr.. Pullman
was once poor mechanic himself and
there is not one among all the host of
strikers today who would not take ad-
vantage of the same laws to accumulate a
fortune If the opportunity presented itself.
All this railing against law and authority
is senseless, and does labor more harm
than good. The law-abidng citizen has no
reason to fear the law. The man who
pays his bills need have no fears of the
law for the collection of bad debts. And
no honest man in the ranks Of labor can
afford to ally himself with the law-break king
and law-defying element
mo rogue e'er felt the halter draw
With good opinion Of the law"
is a couplet well worth considerable ,ust
at the present time Labor organizations
which would retain the good opinion of the
thoughtful people in America today must