The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1894-07-20

Timely Truths About Judge Grosscup's
Unfair Charge.
Evansville Courier.
The charge of Judge Grosscup to
the Grand Jury which indicted Debs
and his associates is certainly a
very remarkable production. 1t IL
lustrates what rapid strides have
been made in the last twenty-five
years toward the subsection Of per-
sonal liberty to the authority Of the
general government. The Judges
charge, while admitting that labor
has right to organize, and that il
is the ''imperishable right of free
man to work or quit work as he
sees fit, and that labor is entitled
to all the fruits of the strategies OF
work or Of the cessation Of work, "
vet holds that whenever labor, thus
Iorganized, undertakes TO exercise
THE rights here clearly conceded Il
lis in conflict with the law and Is
Iamenable to its penalties. The
Ispirit Of this statement is the very
Iantithesis of that which led the
lprohibitionist Of Maine to declare
THAT he was in favor Of prohibition
laws but opposed to their enforce
lment. Judge Grosscup's charge
} recognizes the right Of labor to or
ganize for self protection, but de-
nies the right of such organization
Ito protect itself. We have not the
full text Of the charge before US
but there is enough in the summary
sent to the press, and which was
published in yesterdays Courier, t.
indicate that Judge Grosscup con
siders that railway corporations anc
capitalists are not in contempt ol
the law when they combine to force
down the wages Of labor in order t.
: provide a fund to meet a dividend
on their watered stock, anc
the interest on their watered bonds
both issued in defiance Of the Law
and Of every principle Of common
J honesty and honor among men. /
lis perfectly right, from Judge Gross
cups point of view, for capital t.
e,organzc and lay tribute upon thu
| patrons Of railroad properties ant
r the employees of railroads, by mer'
vote of the board Of directors of ;
; railroad company, but it is all wrong
-lfor labor to use its organization
} conceded to be within the law, 70
; the purpose Of protecting itsel
: against the lawless exactions Of thi
: tribute.
For what purpose do men organ
, ize if they are to be denied the powe
which organization gives? Of wha
4 avail is it to labor to organize an
: vet to be held for conspiracy if tn
: sole purpose Of organization, whic
4 is self-protection and the advance
h ment Of the interests Of the partie
i to the organization, cannot be er
h forced? How can an organizatio
comprising thousands Of men enjo
) .sthe fruits Of the strategies Of wor
+ or of the cessation Of work" il it
/ denied the right to act as an organ
: lzation? If Judge Grosscup's intc
II probation of the law is correct-an
& it may be, for the law is Repul
Il lican law, and the Republican legi
d lation for the past thirty years a
fecting labor in any way has bee
Is penal-it is waste of time to 0
l. ganize labor. If organized lab
le cannot act as a unit in its own b
,r half without violating the conspira'
Is laws what advantage is the
A. in organization at all? If capt.
at and corporations may organize al
$ act as unit to force the PAYNE
Of dividends on unlawful issue
to stock and bonds, without violati
Id the conspiracy laws, surely il mt
~ be plain to everybody that the po
er Of the corporations is superior
o. that ofthe governmental Of The Poop
ne Of which we have boasted for a hu
or dred wears, and for the preservati
H. OF which thousands Of the railro
Ir- employees now on strike fought
he four years, and for which the fath'